It is a great honor for me to address you on the occasion of the opening of the Africa Political Outlook 2025 Summit. At the dawn of my new duties, I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to inaugurate the exchanges and reflections of this high-level forum. While I regret that I am unable to be with you physically due to commitments in Addis Ababa, you can be assured that my spirit and commitment are fully at your side today.
I send you warm greetings from H.E. Mahmoud Ali, Chairman of the African Union Commission.
I am deeply grateful to the Africa Political Outlook Organizing Committee, which offers Africa - together with its European partners and the international community - this essential forum for strategic dialogue and action.

"New South, Old World" - this year's theme resonates intensely at the heart of the global economic situation. It embodies not only the geopolitical evolutions we are observing, but also the profound metamorphosis of our beloved continent.
Yes, Africa - our new Africa - is on the threshold of redefining its place in the world order. With a population that will reach 1.7 billion by 2030, and with young people accounting for 42% of the world's youth by that date, we are not just accompanying change - we are driving it.
My journey from Eswatini to this continental podium has been marked by profound learning and transformation. As both an academic and a minister, I was able to see for myself the challenges and immense potential of African agriculture. This experience has forged a vision: of an Africa where agriculture is the backbone of economic transformation, where environmental sustainability is no longer a goal but a way of life, and where rural communities thrive thanks to innovative and resilient development approaches.

Africa's agricultural landscape is as rich as it is promising. Agriculture contributes on average 15% of the continent's GDP, with peaks of 23% in sub-Saharan Africa. Over 60% of the population of sub-Saharan Africa is made up of smallholders, and around 23% of its GDP comes from agriculture.
However, the challenges are immense. Climate change threatens the food security of nearly 650 million Africans, forcing us to innovate. The blue economy, with an estimated annual value of $1,500 billion, remains a largely untapped source of opportunities. But in the face of these obstacles, major success stories testify to the transformative power of agricultural innovation.
Just last month, we witnessed a major breakthrough with the creation of the African Food Security Agency, giving concrete expression to our commitment not only to food security, but also to the food safety of Africa's 1.4 billion people.

These pillars go beyond agriculture alone; they embody emergence, forging the new Africa, leader of the New South. They are our path out of poverty, the means to achieve multiple Sustainable Development Goals, the key to integrating the continent's food, water and energy security.

In this new world order, international cooperation and multilateralism take on renewed importance. We need to rethink North-South cooperation in agriculture, while promoting South-South collaboration, particularly in technology transfer. We call on multilateral institutions to support Africa's agricultural transformation, and to reform international trade systems to benefit African producers. This could involve joint research projects on climate-resilient crops, technology transfer programs adapted to the African context, skills exchanges, direct dialogue between African producers and global markets, and the removal of trade barriers and unfair subsidies that penalize our farmers.
My department is the farmers' department, and I will work tirelessly to make African farmers major players, innovative, resilient and drivers of the new African growth.
In the coming months, we will be launching a flagship initiative to turn our commitments into reality, with a strong focus on the AU-EU partnership in agriculture. This partnership will pave the way for strategic dialogues on solutions promoting sustainable agricultural practices. Together, we will build resilient agricultural systems, ensure food security, strengthen economic growth, while preserving environmental sustainability for the benefit of future generations.
Africa is poised to play a central role in feeding the world's growing population. We are well placed to meet the growing demand for organic and sustainably produced food. Advantageous in many agricultural value chains, our ambition goes beyond simply exporting raw materials. We aspire to move up the value chain, producing high-quality finished goods for international markets.