The poor agricultural system in Africa, who is to blame?

Although agriculture is the backbone of the African economy, it has faced considerable challenges in the past sixty years. Africa has moved from being a self-sufficiency continent before the 1960s, to net food importers, with a handful of countries facing severe food shortages from drought, desertif...

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Autores principales: Nchanji, Eileen Bogweh, Nchanji, Yvonne Kiki, Adolwa, Ivan S.
Formato: Journal Article
Lenguaje:Inglés
Publicado: Scientific Research Publishing, Inc. 2021
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/126544
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author Nchanji, Eileen Bogweh
Nchanji, Yvonne Kiki
Adolwa, Ivan S.
author_browse Adolwa, Ivan S.
Nchanji, Eileen Bogweh
Nchanji, Yvonne Kiki
author_facet Nchanji, Eileen Bogweh
Nchanji, Yvonne Kiki
Adolwa, Ivan S.
author_sort Nchanji, Eileen Bogweh
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Although agriculture is the backbone of the African economy, it has faced considerable challenges in the past sixty years. Africa has moved from being a self-sufficiency continent before the 1960s, to net food importers, with a handful of countries facing severe food shortages from drought, desertification, climate change and wars. In this article, we use the case of Northern Ghana to explore some of the salient dynamics that have resulted in the current crisis in the African agricultural sector over time. Using historical and contemporary evidence gathered from Northern Ghana during several field trips from 2013 to 2015, we argue that practices adopted as a result of colonial influence in combination with socio-economic and biophysical factors and ineffective economic policies have contributed immensely to the poor state of agriculture in Africa. Note should be taken that most of these economic policies have origins from the Structural Adjustment Policies and the Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers. We conclude that our agricultural systems can be improved if policies are inclusive, equitable and sustainable and also if there are synergies between international or government organisations implementing agricultural projects over time and space.
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spelling CGSpace1265442025-11-11T19:02:02Z The poor agricultural system in Africa, who is to blame? Nchanji, Eileen Bogweh Nchanji, Yvonne Kiki Adolwa, Ivan S. agrifood systems green revolution agricultural policies agricultural transformation sistemas agroalimentarios revolución verde política agrícola Although agriculture is the backbone of the African economy, it has faced considerable challenges in the past sixty years. Africa has moved from being a self-sufficiency continent before the 1960s, to net food importers, with a handful of countries facing severe food shortages from drought, desertification, climate change and wars. In this article, we use the case of Northern Ghana to explore some of the salient dynamics that have resulted in the current crisis in the African agricultural sector over time. Using historical and contemporary evidence gathered from Northern Ghana during several field trips from 2013 to 2015, we argue that practices adopted as a result of colonial influence in combination with socio-economic and biophysical factors and ineffective economic policies have contributed immensely to the poor state of agriculture in Africa. Note should be taken that most of these economic policies have origins from the Structural Adjustment Policies and the Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers. We conclude that our agricultural systems can be improved if policies are inclusive, equitable and sustainable and also if there are synergies between international or government organisations implementing agricultural projects over time and space. 2021 2023-01-04T10:42:17Z 2023-01-04T10:42:17Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/126544 en Open Access application/pdf Scientific Research Publishing, Inc. Nchanji, E.B.; Nchanji, Y.K.; Adolwa, I. (2021) The poor agricultural system in Africa, who is to blame? Agricultural Sciences 12 p. 1375-1403 ISSN: 2156-8553
spellingShingle agrifood systems
green revolution
agricultural policies
agricultural transformation
sistemas agroalimentarios
revolución verde
política agrícola
Nchanji, Eileen Bogweh
Nchanji, Yvonne Kiki
Adolwa, Ivan S.
The poor agricultural system in Africa, who is to blame?
title The poor agricultural system in Africa, who is to blame?
title_full The poor agricultural system in Africa, who is to blame?
title_fullStr The poor agricultural system in Africa, who is to blame?
title_full_unstemmed The poor agricultural system in Africa, who is to blame?
title_short The poor agricultural system in Africa, who is to blame?
title_sort poor agricultural system in africa who is to blame
topic agrifood systems
green revolution
agricultural policies
agricultural transformation
sistemas agroalimentarios
revolución verde
política agrícola
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/126544
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