Director, Communication & Outreach AKADEMIYA2063 TITLE OF THE PRESENTATION Dr. Julius Ecuru & Dr. Philip Osano

#2024ReSAKSS #2024ATOR Making the business case for bioeconomy in Africa Julius Ecuru1 & Philip Osano2 1ICIPE/BioInnovate Africa 2 SEI/Africa Centre 2 October 2024 At the Policy Centre for the New South, UM6P Campus, Rabat, Morocco

#2024ReSAKSS #2024ATOR Introduction • Bioeconomy is regarded a growth pathway for the future: • Reduced carbon emissions, biodiversity conservation, innovation & prospects for decent jobs. • Attractive to policy makers because of its attributes: • biologically based, • scientifically driven, • innovation driven, • cross-sectoral, • sustainable, • The added value of the bioeconomy is in new goods and services – good for consumers/safe for the environment/job prospects for youth.

#2024ReSAKSS #2024ATOR Why bioeconomy • Rich biodiversity, available biomass. • Largest arable land (60%) – can support both large & more intensive smallholder farming systems. • Added value with more advanced bioprocessing/biomanufacturing capabilities. • Opportunity to keep carbon emissions low.

#2024ReSAKSS #2024ATOR Making a bioeconomy business case • Macro economic stability • Liberal system and fiscal policies • Impressive growth at 4% or more (AfDB, 2024), but mostly infrastructure, security, FDI. • But efforts should increase and sustain growth at 7% pa to attain middle income status. • Where? How? Bioeconomy; economic diversification! • Biodiversity richness • Rich biodiversity – gene, species & ecosystem levels • Herbal medicines (e.g., Covidex in Uganda) • CDB 1992 & Nagoya Protocol – access to genetic resources and benefit sharing, but should be more enabling. • Biotechnology capacity • Investment in modern biotechnology (rDNA techniques in crop & livestock improvement, pharmaceuticals • Several trials of GM crops done, some release in .South Africa, Burkina Faso, Ghana, - still controversies but opportunity exists.

#2024ReSAKSS #2024ATOR Fig 1. Evolution of the African bioeconomy

#2024ReSAKSS #2024ATOR Making a bioeconomy business case… • Agricultural potential • Agriculture provides the main feedstock for the economy. • Contributes >23% of GDP • Greatest opportunity to boost the manufacturing sector. Country Population in millions GDP (US$bn)PPP Industry Agriculture Services Manufacturing CO2 Emissions (kt) Burundi 12.6 2.78 10.6 28.7 44.8 9 713 Ethiopia 120.3 111.27 21.6 37.6 36.3 5 18,098 Kenya 53 110.35 17 22.4 54.4 7 19,447 Rwanda 13.5 11.07 20.3 24.1 47.8 9 1,382 Tanzania 63.59 67.87 29.8 25.9 34.3 8 14,436 Uganda 45.85 40.53 27.1 23.8 41.8 16 5,675 Table 1: Key productive sectors of the East African economy

#2024ReSAKSS #2024ATOR Making a bioeconomy business case… • Forward looking policies • EAC Regional Bioeconomy Strategy 2021/22—2031/32 • Namibia National Bioeconomy Strategy 2024 • South Africa National Bioeconomy Strategy 2013.

#2024ReSAKSS #2024ATOR South African Bioeconomy 2013 East African Bioeconomy 2022 African Bioeconomy (?) Attain interconnectedness through the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (2018); & connect also with the global bioeconomy Namibian Bioeconomy 2024

#2024ReSAKSS #2024ATOR Conclusion • The African bioeconomy will increase the economic and social value of regionally traded, bio- logically based goods and services. • Countries with a vibrant bioeconomy will be the ones to fully participate in and benefit from the ACFTA. • African countries should develop bioeconomy clusters of innovation and entrepreneurial activities based on renewable bio- logical resources and their unique needs and natural advantages. • These efforts should culminate in what would become the African bioeconomy, connecting with the rest of the world.

THANK YOU