Rwanda will, for the second time, host the 2024 International Conference on Business Models (IBMA) which will act as a platform to share best practices in turning agriculture into a full-time business career.
Agriculture serves over 70% of Africa’s population and accounts for over 50% of the continent’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) however the sector is still largely rotating around subsistence farming despite the potential it holds in food and value chains.
The first IBMA, organized by the Africa Organization of Technology in Agriculture (AOTA) was held in Rwanda last year.
The 2024 event will host more than 500 delegates from across the world who will share experiences. Kenya is expected to host the 2025 event (with over 1,000 participants) while in 2026 the conference will be in South Africa.
While African governments are committed to tripling intra-African trade in agricultural commodities and services by 2025 as part of the 2014 Malabo Declaration, the aspiration is far-fetched as this kind of trade continues to dwindle from its peak in 2013 to less than 15 percent in 2022.
Dr. Nimrod Israeli, the co-founder and chairperson of IBMA said that the meeting will be rooted to change the way agricultural issues are addressed.
Israeli said that the IBMA is on an international realm and it can be used to borrow ideas from others, even in the past and thus no reason to start from scratch in addressing challenges in modernized agriculture.
“We believe we share the same problems and the people from the past, already overcome the same problems, so we can learn from them. This is why we focus on business models, as one of the three pillars,” Israeli said.
He noted that the other two pillars are ecosystem, and technology which need to be focused on to change the way agriculture is done and that instead of looking at other models, it is better to focus on models that work for Africa.
“This conference is growing bigger every year as we expand partnerships and solicit more funding,” said IBMA’s organizer Isaac Kagara, the Co-founder of AOTA.
Kagara said that the conference focus will build ways of monetizing agriculture through attracting knowledge and sharing new models of agriculture business.
“We want agriculture to be done as a business. That’ s why next year’s theme will focus on community and especially smallholder farmers to learn from others,” Kagara said.
The University of Rwanda (UoR) representative, Dr. Alfred Bizoza said that they are committed to partnering in the conference to develop research based business models by onboarding science and research as a way of achieving a knowledge based economy.
The Kenyatta International Conference Centre (KICC) and AOTA signed a partnership memorandum of understanding agreement to allow Kenya host the third conference in 2025, in Nairobi, Kenya.
The Kigali IBMA conference to be held at the Kigali Conference Centre (KCC) will be a springboard for initiating collaboration and planning jointly between the Rwanda Convention Bureau (RCB) , their Kenyan counterparts – KICC and another third country to be confirmed soon.
KICC officials said that they will be marketing their conferences in Rwanda to encourage more Rwandans to go to Kenya and vice versa.
The KICC acting Chief Executive Officer, Patricia Ondeng’ said that this is not a competition but a partnership and we are going to be working together.
“This journey started long ago and we intend to walk together to reach far. it is a collaboration not a competition,” Ondeng’ said.
Ondeng’ said that the KICC is planning to celebrate 50years and the conference will provide a platform for marketing its “Incentive tourism initiative that will make the tourism experience attractive for visitors.
“Agriculture is at the heart of our economy and a lot has been invested. There will be more participation from Kenya and the 2025 conference will be bigger,” she said.
RCB Director of Destination Marketing, Frank Murangwa said that this will help build partnership with the Kenya industry lead Kenyatta International Conference Centre KICC and also a learning experience from them in managing big events.
