Southern Africa is facing a critical moment for its food systems.
Climate shocks are intensifying. Agricultural costs remain under pressure. Soil health is declining. Livestock diseases continue to threaten production and trade.
Against this backdrop, regional leaders, policymakers, researchers, development partners, private-sector representatives and agricultural experts are set to gather in Durban for a high-level conversation with potentially far-reaching consequences.
The High-Level SADC Food Systems Transformation Policy Dialogue will take place on 14 August 2026 at the Southern Sun Elangeni and Maharani Hotel in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, as an official side event of the 2026 SADC Summit.
The dialogue comes as South Africa assumes the Chairship of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and will focus on turning regional food systems priorities into practical action.
A Region Under Growing Pressure
Southern Africa’s agricultural sector is confronting several challenges at the same time.
Prolonged droughts, devastating floods and extreme heatwaves are placing additional pressure on already vulnerable food systems.
Farmers are also dealing with rising and volatile fertiliser prices, declining soil health and limited access to quality agricultural inputs.
Then there is the continuing threat of Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD).
Outbreaks of the disease can disrupt livestock production, regional trade and rural incomes, making animal health an important part of the region’s wider food security conversation.
Yet the challenges also highlight an opportunity.
Southern Africa has significant potential to transform its food systems into engines of sustainable economic growth, job creation, improved nutrition and climate resilience.
Unlocking that potential will require more than individual interventions.
It will require regional cooperation, evidence-based policy, investment and coordinated action between governments, researchers, development partners, businesses and farming communities.
Four Priorities Take Centre Stage
The High-Level Policy Dialogue will focus on four strategic pillars considered central to transforming Southern Africa’s agrifood systems.
1. Indigenous Foods Could Play a Bigger Role
The first focus area will examine how indigenous and underutilised crops, livestock and fisheries can contribute to food and nutrition security.
Discussions will explore ways to promote greater dietary diversity while supporting climate resilience and rural livelihoods.
Participants will also consider nutrition-sensitive agriculture, local food value chains, traditional knowledge and innovation as tools for strengthening regional food sovereignty.
The goal is to look beyond conventional approaches and consider the resources and knowledge already present within communities across the region.
2. Scaling Climate-Smart Agriculture
The second pillar focuses on technologies and practices that have already demonstrated potential to strengthen agricultural resilience.
Participants will examine climate adaptation pathways, sustainable land and water management, nature-based solutions and digital agriculture.
Weather information and early warning services will also form part of the conversation, alongside innovative financing mechanisms designed to support climate-resilient agriculture.
The emphasis is on scaling solutions that can help farmers remain productive while adapting to a changing climate.
3. Better Access to Agricultural Inputs
Productivity depends on farmers having access to quality agricultural inputs and productive resources.
The dialogue will therefore explore practical pathways for implementing the Africa Fertilizer and Soil Health Action Plan (2024–2034).
Discussions will include regional regulatory harmonisation, stronger seed systems, soil health management and expanded soil testing services.
Participants will also consider sustainable fertiliser use and ways to improve smallholder farmers’ access to quality inputs.
The focus is not simply on producing more.
It is on building healthier, more productive and more sustainable agricultural systems.
4. Protecting Livestock and Regional Trade
The fourth pillar places the One Health approach at the centre of discussions around livestock resilience and regional trade.
With Foot-and-Mouth Disease continuing to affect livestock production and trade, participants will examine coordinated responses to transboundary animal diseases.
The discussions will consider stronger surveillance systems, improved biosecurity and greater cross-border collaboration.
The dialogue will also explore the operationalisation of a regional FMD coordination framework and the establishment of a SADC FMD Vaccine Bank.
The objective is to strengthen livestock production while supporting safe regional trade.
Preparing for a Potential El Niño Challenge
The timing of the dialogue is particularly significant.
Forecasts are pointing towards a potentially severe 2026/27 El Niño season, creating an opportunity for SADC Member States to consider how the region can prepare before climate shocks become crises.
The discussions are expected to inform a coordinated regional preparedness framework.
Potential priority actions include:
- Anticipatory action
- Stronger climate and early warning services
- Strategic food and seed reserves
- Climate-resilient farming systems
- Water resource management
- Livestock protection
- Disaster risk financing
- Enhanced cross-border coordination
The principle is straightforward: acting earlier can reduce the human and economic cost of climate shocks.
For a region where agriculture supports livelihoods, trade and food security, preparedness could prove critical.
From Dialogue to Action
The Durban meeting is designed to go beyond discussion.
By bringing together government ministries, regional institutions, development finance institutions, farmers’ organisations, research institutions and private-sector representatives, the dialogue aims to create a shared platform for action.
One of its expected outcomes is the adoption of a SADC Food Systems Transformation Communiqué.
The communiqué is expected to establish a shared regional agenda for accelerating resilient, inclusive and sustainable food systems.
The dialogue will also seek to generate concrete policy and investment recommendations, deepen policy harmonisation and mobilise strategic investments.
Coordinated commitments around agricultural productivity, food security and FMD prevention and control will also form part of the expected outcomes.
A Coalition Behind the Conversation
The High-Level SADC Food Systems Transformation Policy Dialogue is convened by the Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network (FANRPAN) in partnership with the Department of Agriculture, Republic of South Africa, and the SADC Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources (FANR) Directorate.
Supporting partners include the National Agricultural Marketing Council (NAMC), FANRPAN South Africa Node, Kagiso Trust, FAO Subregional Office for Southern Africa, Agricultural Research Council (ARC) South Africa, CARE Southern Africa, Africa Climate Foundation, Southern African Confederation of Agricultural Unions (SACAU), Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development for Southern Africa (CCARDESA), Trust Africa, and the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) South Africa.
The breadth of the partnership reflects the scale of the challenge.
Food systems do not operate in isolation. Agriculture connects climate, health, trade, livelihoods, nutrition, finance and rural development.
A Defining Conversation for Southern Africa
The Durban dialogue arrives at a moment when Southern Africa has both a challenge and an opportunity in front of it.
Climate variability is testing agricultural resilience. Disease is threatening livestock and trade. Input costs and soil health are placing additional pressure on farmers.
But the region also has the knowledge, institutions, farmers, researchers and innovators needed to build stronger food systems.
The question is whether those resources can be brought together quickly enough — and at sufficient scale.
On 14 August 2026, Durban will become the meeting point for that conversation.
The ambition is clear: move from fragmented responses towards coordinated regional action, protect livelihoods and build food systems capable of feeding communities while withstanding the shocks of an uncertain climate.
For Southern Africa, this is not simply a policy discussion about agriculture.
It is a conversation about resilience, livelihoods and the region’s food future.
