Russian Fertilizer Producers Association aims to support African agriculture

The Russian Fertilizer Producers Association (RFPA) participated in the panel session “Russia and Africa: Partnership for Food Sovereignty” during the Russia–Africa Economic and Humanitarian Forum that took place in St. Petersburg on July 28, 2023.

According to the statement of Russian Ambassador-at-Large Oleg Ozerov, Africa is the most food-insecure region in the world. About 278 million people suffer from hunger and their number may double by 2030. Due to sanctions wars, disruptions in logistics and production chains, the wheel of food inflation on the planet will keep gaining momentum.

The RFPA President Andrey Guryev emphasised the need to increase supplies and effectively apply mineral fertilizers in African countries to combat hunger and achieve food sovereignty.

“To feed the growing population of Africa, food production in the region needs to increase by 60%. We are confident that this indicator is possible to be achieved through the efficient use of mineral fertilizers. The agricultural potential of African states is enormous, yet around 60% of fertile land on the continent remains unused. Russia is the world’s largest exporter of mineral fertilizers. We’ve reached this result by investing approximately 1.8 trillion rubles (over $19.5 billion) in the development of the industry over the past ten years. Russia is ready to provide the African continent with all types of mineral fertilizers, including innovative and environmentally preferable products and fertilizers with bio-additives,” noted Andrey Guryev.

Over the past five years, Russia has already doubled its deliveries of mineral fertilizers to African countries, reaching 1.6 million tons in 2022. As Andrey Guryev emphasized, Russian producers of mineral fertilizers intend to double deliveries to African countries in the next five years.