Betting on Africa to Feed the World

Speaker: 
World Food Prize Laureate Akinwumi Adesina
 
16 Oct 2017
 
8:00 PM
 
Great Hall, Memorial Union

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Akinwumi Adesina is President of the African Development Bank and the 2017 World Food Prize Laureate. Heralded as “Africa’s Norman Borlaug,” Adesina has for the past two decades helped transform African agriculture. He organized the 2006 Africa Fertilizer Summit, was an early leader in the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa and, more recently, served as Nigeria's Minister of Agriculture. His policy reforms in support of the African farmer have expanded access to financing and credit, helped end corruption in the fertilizer and seed sectors, and promoted investment in agriculture from both the public and private sectors. The 2017 Norman Borlaug Lecture and part of the World Affairs Series

A reception and student poster display will precede the lecture from 7 to 8 p.m. in the South Ballroom, Memorial Union. Posters will address world food issues and are submitted by undergraduate and graduate students.

[i]"An Africa that can feed itself - it’s a big vision," said Dr. Adesina as he assumed the presidency of the African Development Bank. "Ten years is a sufficient amount of time to do that. It will require political will. It will require a lot of resources, a lot of commitment from private sector. But I think we have set the direction, and we’ve put the stakes in the ground. That one is critical. And I can’t forget what Norman Borlaug used to tell me. 'Akin, go score some goals for African Agriculture.' "[/i] [b]World Food Prize press release:[/b] [url=https://www.worldfoodprize.org/index.cfm/87428/43419/president_of_african_development_bank_wins_2017_world_food_prize]President of African Development Bank Wins 2017 World Food Prize[/url] [b]Biographical information:[/b] [url=https://www.worldfoodprize.org/index.cfm?nodeID=90971&audienceID=1]2017 World Food Prize Laureate Akinwumi Ayodeji Adesina[/url] Dr. Norman Borlaug (1914-2009) was a Cresco, Iowa, native whose discoveries sparked the Green Revolution. He received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970 for his contribution to world peace through his wheat research and production that saved millions of lives worldwide. He founded the World Food Prize in 1986 to recognize the achievements of individuals who have advanced human development by improving the quality, quantity or availability of food in the world.