The 2nd Africa Rural Development Forum was convened under the theme “Transforming Africa’s Rural Area through Skills Development, Job Creation and Youth Economic Empowerment for Africa”. The Forum offered opportunities partnership and experience sharing and innovative approaches on rural development, territorial planning, skills development including innovative financing, ICT and employment for the youth in the green and blue economy.

The second edition of the Atlas under the theme “A new Emerging Rural World: An Overview of rural Change in Africa” was launched during the 2nd Africa Rural Development Forum. The Atlas provides information and analysis on cross-sectorial factors and dynamics to inform public policy debates and decisions on rural transformation.

Subsequent to the launch of the ATLAS was the establishment of a support network for expanded use of the Atlas across all regions. The support network will also aim to support and strengthen local capacity for generating quality data on rural transformation. 

In response to the call by the 1st Africa Rural Development Forum (Contonou Declaration) for NEPAD to elaborate on the strategies for rural development in Africa, a blueprint of Africa Rural Development framework was developed and endorsed at the 2nd Africa Rural Development Forum.