Experts push Africa to turn bioeconomy research into profitable industries

NAIROBI, Kenya, Aug 25 — East Africa must move beyond bioeconomy strategies and research projects to build profitable industries that create jobs and retain more value from the region’s biological resources, experts have said.

The call came at the Africa Bioeconomy Workshop in Nairobi, where policymakers, scientists, investors and entrepreneurs urged governments to link agricultural production, research and innovation to markets.

Niall O’Connor, Centre Director of the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) Africa Centre, said the region had the resources, research capacity and entrepreneurial talent needed to build a competitive bio-based economy but was still losing value by exporting raw materials.

“The bioeconomy in Eastern Africa, it’s no longer a concept confined to research circles,” O’Connor said.

“A lot of work over the years has been done on research, but now it’s actually happening across the continent.”

The 2026 State of the Bioeconomy in Eastern Africa report identifies agricultural residues and organic waste as potential feedstock for industries producing biofuels, organic fertilisers, biodegradable packaging, natural fibres, renewable oils, industrial enzymes and bio-based construction materials.

“We must move from exporting raw biological resources to retaining greater value at home through local processing and manufacturing,” O’Connor said.

Dr Abdou Tenkouano, Director General of the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (icipe), said agriculture, which contributes between 23 and 35 percent of GDP in many sub-Saharan African countries, offered a major opportunity to build industries around biomass.

“At its core, the bioeconomy uses scientific knowledge and innovation to transform biological resources into economic and social benefits in a sustainable way,” he said.

Tenkouano urged governments to strengthen university-industry partnerships and support innovation and entrepreneurship in agro-processing and bioprocessing.

“We should promote innovation and entrepreneurship in value addition and agro and bioprocessing to create jobs for young people and incomes for families, especially through university-industry partnerships,” he said.

Value addition

The push for commercialisation is also being linked to food security, with African policymakers calling for greater investment in staple crops while building industries around them.

Dr Isata Kamanda, Sierra Leone’s Deputy Minister for Agriculture and Food Security, said countries should focus investment on crops that underpin their food systems, including rice and cassava.

“I think the way to go is to invest on your major staples,” Kamanda said.

Under its Feed Salone strategy, farmers are being linked to processors, while locally produced rice is being incorporated into school-feeding programmes to create a reliable domestic market.

Kenya’s Principal Secretary for Science, Research and Innovation, Prof Shaukat Abdulrazak, said increasing food production must be accompanied by efforts to diversify consumption and strengthen local value chains.

He cited efforts to promote traditional crops such as millet and sorghum, arguing that food security depended not only on what farmers produce but also on consumer demand and the markets available to them.

Regulatory standards

Both officials stressed that higher production would have limited impact without reliable seed systems, certification and regulatory standards.

“You can’t do a business without certification,” Kamanda said, calling for standards covering the food chain from production and processing to packaging and consumers.

The experts also highlighted financing as a major constraint.

O’Connor called for patient and blended finance, reliable biomass supply chains, shared processing infrastructure, quality assurance systems and stronger access to markets.

He said fragmented national markets could also discourage investment and called for harmonised standards, certification and trade rules across East Africa.

Countries including Ethiopia and Kenya have developed national bioeconomy strategies, while Uganda, Rwanda, Tanzania and Burundi are advancing their own frameworks.

But O’Connor said strategies would have little effect without financing, implementation programmes and institutions capable of supporting businesses.

The Nairobi workshop is expected to contribute to a broader African approach to bioeconomy development and inform preparations for the Global Bioeconomy Summit in Dublin, Ireland, on October 20–21.

Among the senior participants were Kenya’s Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi, East African Community Deputy Secretary General Andrea Ariik Malueth and British High Commissioner to Kenya Matt Baugh.