ARUA-SFS intends its work to catalyse positive changes (impact) in Africa’s food systems so that they can be transformed into sustainable, resilient systems that support livelihoods, provide nutritious, safe food and protect the planet. Focusing on the future food system, ARUA-SFS intentionally aims to take advantage of advances in digital technologies and data science to offer solutions to the continent’s complex food systems challenges.

ARUA-SFS focuses its research efforts on transformative research to achieve its intended impact. As a Centre hosted at the University of Pretoria’s Future Africa Institute, ARUA-SFS aligns its approach with Future Africa’s understanding of transformative research. Transformative research should address Africa’s complex challenges by adopting an integrative (interdisciplinary), engaged (transdisciplinary) and holistic (systems-focused) approach.

ARUA-SFS has identified impact areas where it focuses its research and work to catalyse impact in African food systems. These impact areas are:

• food, nutrition and health
• jobs, poverty, and livelihoods
• climate and environment
• policy for food systems transformation
• digital technologies and data science
• inclusive food systems

Embedded in the ambitions of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the African Union’s Agenda 2063 – The Africa We Want, the ARUA-SFS impact areas articulate how we connect our work with society to achieve transformation.

To learn more about ARUA-SFS and our impact areas, visit the ARUA-SFS website