African Food Fellowship welcomes inaugural class of Zambia Fellows

The African Food Fellowship has admitted its first cohort of Zambia Fellows. Some 34 food systems leaders joined the Fellowship in September 2026, kicking off their AFF journey with the prestigious Food Systems Leadership Programme (FSLP), which is delivered by faculty from Wageningen University & Research and Wasafiri Consulting.

The FSLP equips Fellows with foundational knowledge about food systems, including core concepts about complexity, how systems change, and scenario building.  It combines academic insights and knowledge with real-world problem solving, enabling Fellows to develop practical and actionable approaches that drive impact in their communities.

In a welcome dinner held for the Zambia Fellows at the Radisson Blu in Lusaka, guest of honour Mr Victor Mbumwae, Zambia’s Food Systems Convenor, encouraged the Fellows to take action and own their place in the food systems transformation agenda.

“Leadership is built on two key principles: anticipating future trends and opportunities, and influencing change to achieve transformation,” he said.

“So move beyond conventional thinking, break barriers, and inspire others to embrace new approaches to development and food systems transformation.”

The Fellows work across Zambia’s food systems spectrum, holding roles in food production, distribution, value addition, consumption, and advocacy, with a special focus on three impact areas: Access to Healthy & Nutritious Foods, Inclusive Markets & Trade, and Resilient Food Systems.

“I am excited by what our Fellows will achieve through this programme. This is a landmark moment for Zambia – for the first time, such a diverse group of professionals is coming together over an extended period to reimagine what it means to be an impactful food systems leader and to co-create a shared vision for the country’s food systems agenda,” shared AFF Zambia Connect lead Tambudzai Matenga.

The Fellowship’s entry into Zambia is funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and supported by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) . It marks a major milestone in the Fellowship’s mission to expand into a pan-African network and nurture a critical mass of African leaders to deliver healthy, inclusive and sustainable food systems.

GIZ’s Manager of Project Component for Transformation of Food Systems (TES), Zambia, Mr. Klaas Grimmelmann, encouraged Fellows to be bold, visionary, and innovative.

“Imagine the food system you want to see in the future and begin taking practical steps toward that vision. Use the Fellowship to strengthen collaboration across Zambia and the wider African region,” he said.

About the African Food Fellowship

The African Food Fellowship is a network of leaders in Africa working on radical change to transform food systems across the continent. We support food systems actors with world-class training, platforms, and networks, to spark collaborative action for healthy, inclusive, and sustainable food systems. The Fellowship is initiated by Wageningen University and Research and Wasafiri Consulting with support from the IKEA Foundation, Small Foundation, and GIZ on behalf of the German government.

About GIZ

The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH is a German federal enterprise with more than 50 years of experience in international cooperation and a presence in over 120 countries worldwide. Together with our partners, GIZ works for a future worth living by creating opportunities and sustainably improving people’s lives. Through our networks, we turn international agendas into action – with a global vision and local impact. The collaboration with the African Food Fellowship is supported by the Global Programme Transformation of Food Systems.