By Milliam Murigi
Africa’s growing fruit industry will come under the spotlight in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, next month as farmers, exporters, processors, researchers, investors and policymakers seek ways to turn the continent’s fruit production into greater trade, jobs and income.
The inaugural Africa Fruit Connect 2026, scheduled for October 6–8 at the Visa Oshwal Community Centre in Nairobi, will bring together players across the fruit value chain to address some of the challenges limiting the sector’s growth.
Dr. Saliou Niassy of the African Union Inter-African Phytosanitary Council (AU-IAPSC) said stronger collaboration between producers, markets, research institutions, plant-health systems and investors was needed to unlock the sector’s potential.
“Africa’s fruit sector has significant potential to contribute to trade, nutrition, employment and economic transformation,” Dr. Niassy said.
“What is needed now is stronger collaboration between producers, markets, research, plant-health systems and investment.”
Africa produces large quantities of fruit, including mangoes, bananas, avocados, citrus, pineapples, berries and indigenous varieties.
But producing the fruit is only the beginning. Because most fruits are highly perishable, poor storage, transport and handling can quickly turn a market opportunity into losses for farmers and traders.
The sector also faces challenges linked to limited cold-chain infrastructure, inadequate processing capacity, access to quality planting material, phytosanitary requirements and unreliable markets.
Africa Fruit Connect is seeking to bring these different players together to explore how such gaps can be addressed while creating stronger links between producers and markets.
The three-day event is expected to attract farmers, exporters, processors, buyers, investors, academics, researchers, regulators, technology companies, financial institutions, development partners and government representatives from Africa and beyond.
Loise Wachira, Director and Convenor of Africa Fruit Connect, said the event would focus on building connections across the sector.
“Africa has the fruits, the farmers and the market potential. What has often been missing are the connections between them,” she said.
The meeting comes as African countries begin implementing the CAADP Strategy and Action Plan 2026–2035, which seeks to accelerate agricultural transformation on the continent.
The strategy includes ambitions to increase agricultural production, reduce post-harvest losses, strengthen intra-African agrifood trade and promote greater local value addition.
The fruit sector intersects with each of these priorities, particularly through opportunities to process fresh produce into products with longer shelf lives and higher market value.
For farmers and other actors in the value chain, the challenge is therefore not only to increase fruit production but also to improve the systems that move produce from farms to consumers and markets.
Organisers say the Nairobi meeting will provide a platform for businesses, researchers, financiers and policymakers to explore partnerships and commercial opportunities across the sector.
