Africa Days 2024 program
June 27 - Mobilization day
08:30 – 09:30 am
Welcome and Installation
09:30 – 09:50 am
Opening Ceremony
Master of Ceremonies: Fatoumata Niang Niox, Founder of ACCEENT, Consultant in Entrepreneurship and Sustainable Development
Moderator: Raïssa Okoï, Senior Journalist, Forbes Afrique, & Founder of OR Agency
- Remarks from her Excellency, Christine Fages, Ambassador of France to Senegal
- Event presentation by Leena Koni Hoffmann, Associate Fellow, Africa Programme Chatham House, Board Member of
SOS SAHEL USA - Introduction and Presentation of “Crops from the Past”, Pierre Thiam, Chef & Activist, Vice-Chair of SOS SAHEL USA
- Remarks from Mabouba Diagne, Minister of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Livestock
09:50 – 10:00 am
Cultural break - Espoir de la Banlieue
10:00 – 11:10 am
High Level Panel 1 - “Why Bring Neglected Crops to Current Food Systems?“
Moderator: Raïssa Okoï, Senior Journalist, Forbes Afrique, & Founder of OR Agency
- Obai Khalifa, Deputy Director, Agricultural Development, B&M Gates Foundation
- Maïmouna Diop Ly, Nutritionist and Public Health Doctor, Noflaye Center, Founder of CYCAS
- Baaba Maal, Singer and Guitarist, UN Godwill Ambassador, Founder of NANNK Movement
- Paul Newnham, CEO, SDG2 Advocacy Hub, Coordinator Chefs’ Manifesto
- Jean-Pierre Senghor, Executive Secretary of the National Food Security Council
11:10 – 11:30 am
Coffee Break - Making fonio pasta with Aboubaker Beye, Scientist, Professor at UCAD
11:30 am – 12:40 pm
High level Panel 2 - “Is There a Future for Lost Crops?“
Moderator: Zoë Karl-Waithaka, Managing Director and Partner, BCG
- Josephine Kane, National Coordinator, NTFV Sénégal Agribusiness A4A
- Jonathan Lewis, Senior Program Officer, B&M Gates Foundation
- Amath Pathe Sene, Managing Director of Africa Food Systems Forum (AGRF)
- Stephen Wood, Senior Scientist, Agriculture and Food Systems at the Nature Conservancy, Research Scientist at Yale
12:40 – 1:00 pm
The Story of “Trees of Life” – Presentation of the Exhibition
Facilitator: Fatoumata Niang Niox, Founder of ACCEENT, Consultant in Entrepreneurship and Sustainable Development
- Kodou Choukou Tidjani, General Director, Great Green Wall Agency of Chad (TBC)
- Mathieu Dondain, CEO of Nexira
- Ange Mboneye, Advocacy Manager at SOS SAHEL
1:00 – 2:00 pm
Lunch – Cooking Demonstration with Chefs from National Federation of Senegalese Chefs and Chef Pierre Thiam
2:00 – 2:30 pm
Short Documentary followed by:
- Conversation between Pierre Thiam, Chef & Activist, Vice-Chair of SOS SAHEL USA and Earlene Cruz, Director Kitchen Connection
- Presentation of Chef’s Manifesto by Paul Newnham, CEO, SDG2 Advocacy Hub, Coordinator Chefs’ Manifesto
2:30 – 3:40 pm
High Level Panel 3 - “What are the current Initiatives on Lost Crops?“
Moderator: Leena Koni Hoffmann, Associate Fellow, Africa Programme Chatham House, Board member of SOS SAHEL USA
- Enoch G. Achigan-Dako, Professor, Head of Genetics, Biotechnology and Seed Science Center, University of Abomey-Calavi, Benin
- Aboubaker Beye, Scientist, Professor at UCAD
- Pierre C. Sibiri Traore, Country Lead, ICRISAT Senegal
- Salimata Wade, Lecturer at Cheikh Anta Diop University, geographer, founder of Compagnie du Bien Manger and Plus Value Culture association
3:40 – 3:50 pm
Coffee break
3:50 – 5:00 pm
African Crops Alliance Launch Round Table
Moderator: Fabienne Diouf, Managing Director and founder, FD & Partners
- Aaron Adu, Managing Director, Global Shea Alliance
- Abdourahmane Diop, Entrepreneur, Venture Builder, Impact Investor, Co-Founder and CEO of Haskè Venture
- Michel Ghanem, Founder of The Forgotten Crops Society, Senior Scientist CIRAD
- Rémi Hémeryck, Executive Director, SOS SAHEL
- Laura Layousse, General Director of CAA
- Simballa Sylla, Entrepreneur, President of Sustainable African Foods
- Pierre Thiam, Chef & Activist, Vice-Chair of SOS SAHEL USA
5:00 – 6:30 pm
Exhibitions & Networking
June 28 - Knowledge Building Day
08:30 – 09:00 am
Welcome and Installation
09:00 – 09:15 am
Day briefing
Facilitator: Fatoumata Niang Niox, Founder of ACCEENT, Consultant in Entrepreneurship and Sustainable Development
09:15 – 10:45 am
Current situation and snapshot
- “LOST CROPS ADVOCACY”: AGRO-BIODIVERSITY AND FOOD SYSTEMS Moderator: Leena Koni Hoffmann, Associate Fellow, Africa Programme Chatham House, Board member of SOS SAHEL USA Keynote speaker:
- Representative from DyTAES (TBC)
- Aaron Adu, Managing Director, Global Shea Alliance
- Daouda Diagne, Sociologist, Independent consultant specialist in peasant dynamics Sociologist
- Mathieu Gueye, Research Director, Botanist, Ethnobotanist IFAN/UCAD
- Rémi Hémeryck, Executive Director of SOS SAHEL
- “CEREALS”: FONIO USE-CASE Moderator: Sébastien Subsol, French Embassy in Senegal Keynote speaker :
- Enoch G. Achigan-Dako, Professor, Head of Genetics, Biotechnology and Seed Science Center, University of Abomey-Calavi, Benin
- Ngouye Camara, Chair Yakaar Niani Wulli Federation
- Michel Ghanem, Founder of The Forgotten Crops Society, Senior Scientist CIRAD
- Mame Kodou Gueye, Scientist, CERAAS
- Laura Layousse, General Director of CAA
- Simballa Sylla, Entrepreneur, President of Sustainable African Foods
- “GRAIN LEGUMES”: BAMBARA GROUNDNUT USE-CASE Moderator: Marame Ba, BAME – ISRA, Geographer, Gaston Berger University of Saint-Louis (Senegal) Keynote speaker :
- Moez Amri, Professor, Mohammed VI Polytechnic University
- Issa Faye, CNRA Bambey
- Mahama Ouedraogo, Director of the Department of Education, Science, Technology, and Innovation (ESTI), of the African Union (TBC) Aissatou Aya
- Ndiaye, Bambara groundnut processing entrepreneur
- “NON FOREST TIMBER PRODUCTS”: BAOBAB TREE FRUITS USE CASE Moderator: Irène Sesmaisons, Director of Efiscens Sénégal, Associate trainer at Bioforce Afrique Keynote speaker:
- Oumou Ndiaye Diop, Accompagnatrice pour le changement, Experte PME, et Développement des Territoires,
- GIZ Pierre-Gilles Commeat, CEO Baobab des Saveurs
- Sekouna Diatta, General director Senegalese agency for Reforestation and the Great Green Wall (TBC)
- Siny Samba, Co-founder & CEO of “Le Lionceau”
- Opa Cissokho, CEO Experna
10:45 – 11:15 am
Coffee and Cultural Break
11:15 am – 1:00 pm
Workshop 1 “Our vision of changes“
Facilitator : Fatoumata Niang Niox, Founder of ACCEENT, Consultant in Entrepreneurship and Sustainable
1:00 – 2:30 pm
Lunch and “Lost Crops“ Cooking Competition
With young Chefs from National Federation of Senegalese Chefs and
Pullman Dakar Teranga Hotel, facilitated by Raïssa Okoï, Senior Journalist, Forbes Afrique, & Founder of OR Agency
2:30 – 3:45 pm
Workshop 2 “Our impact path way“
Facilitator : Fatoumata Niang Niox, Founder of ACCEENT, Consultant in Innovation, Education, Digital Entrepreneurship and Sustainable Development
3:45 – 4:15 pm
Coffee and Cultural Break
4:15 – 5:30 pm
Plenary session “Our African Crops Alliance road map“
Facilitator : Fatoumata Niang Niox, Founder of ACCEENT, Consultant in Entrepreneurship and Sustainable Development
Special guest : Olivier Buyoya, Regional Director West Africa, International Finance Corporation – IFC
2:30 – 3:40 pm
High Level Panel 3 - “What are the current Initiatives on Lost Crops?“
Moderator: Leena Koni Hoffmann, Associate Fellow, Africa Programme Chatham House, Board member of SOS SAHEL USA
- Enoch G. Achigan-Dako, Professor, Head of Genetics, Biotechnology and Seed Science Center, University of Abomey-Calavi, Benin
- Aboubaker Beye, Scientist, Professor at UCAD
- Pierre C. Sibiri Traore, Country Lead, ICRISAT Senegal
- Salimata Wade, Lecturer at Cheikh Anta Diop University, geographer, founder of Compagnie du Bien Manger and Plus Value Culture association
3:40 – 3:50 pm
Cultural break
5:30 – 7:00 pm
Exhibitions & Networking
7:30 pm – 0:00 am
Jam’Sahel - Gala Dinner at Pullman Dakar Teranga (including Culinary Competition Awards)
With Baaba Maal, Cheick Tidiane Seck, Didier Awadi, Korka, Obree Daman, …
