Former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan announced his new role as chairman of a green group funded by Bill Gates to address Africa's dwindling food production and aim to double output. Annan expressed his honor in taking on this important position and emphasized the need to address the challenges faced by millions of small-scale farmers in Africa. The Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa, established with funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Rockefeller Foundation, aims to support African farmers in increasing productivity and income sustainably. The group, headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya, seeks to combat poverty and hunger among small-scale farmers and their families across the continent. Annan stated that the organization plans to collaborate with governments and farmers to enhance local and regional agricultural markets, improve irrigation, soil health, and farmer training, as well as support the development of new seed systems that can better withstand the challenging African climate. He emphasized that the organization will not promote the use of genetically modified seeds, which have sparked controversy in some African nations, but instead will focus on enhancing disease resistance in existing seeds. Annan made these remarks at the World Economic Forum for Africa in Cape Town, expressing hope that agricultural productivity could potentially double or even triple within the next 10-20 years through concrete actions rather than just wishful thinking. The Alliance expressed its support for the goals set forth in the African Union's Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP), which aims for a 6 percent annual increase in food production by 2015. The group plans to implement changes in farming practices similar to those that have successfully increased agricultural productivity in Asia and Latin America. During his time at the United Nations, Annan frequently highlighted the connection between Africa's struggling agricultural systems and its ongoing issues with hunger and poverty. He noted that in the past five years, there has been a 12 percent increase in underweight children in Africa. Annan, who is from Ghana, completed a 10-year term as UN secretary-general last year.