‘Best practice’ is not even a mouthful but what it means in practice remains unclear to many people who use the phrase. In African agriculture, it takes a lot for a farmer or trader to become a best practitioner. Most value chain actors face challenges in identifying sufficient quality evidence that can be translated into Read more about How to move from ordinary to best agricultural practices[…]
Indigenous commerce should inform criteria for valuating African economies Instead of continuously depending on western criteria to value their economies, African countries and influential institutions like the African Development Bank should develop relevant criteria for valuating African economies. Unless that happens, they will not escape the narrow definition of economic growth which does not translate Read more about Indigenous commerce should inform criteria for valuating African economies[…]
Narrow extension models are no longer suitable for holistic food systems Besides being instruction-oriented, conventional extension models were designed to promote a narrow range of hybrid crops and livestock. This has rendered extension services in many African countries unfit for purpose given that African food systems are too broad and includes wild life that co-exist Read more about Narrow extension models are no longer suitable for holistic food systems[…]
The curse of imported knowledge and extractive investment models Local communities in the Global South are waking up to the limitations of imported knowledge and extractive investment strategies that leave them worse off. Meanwhile, African countries continue to use land, minerals, oil, gas, timber and many other natural resources to compete for investors. Policy makers Read more about The curse of imported knowledge and extractive investment models[…]
How can communities protect their food systems from external influence? Answering the above question is at the centre of a campaign being implemented by the Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA) in more than 13 African countries including Zimbabwe. Dubbed My Food is Africa, the campaign started in 2022 with baseline surveys to understand Read more about How can communities protect their food systems from external influence?[…]
Local home-grown economy versus foreign currency – driven economy Besides loss of autonomy and exposure to external shocks, countries that are obsessed with foreign currency tend to marginalize the majority of citizens from participating in socio-economic development. Ideally, development should be seen in the well-being of local people. It is through investment in data collection Read more about Local home-grown economy versus foreign currency – driven economy[…]
Communities are not always waiting for external knowledge Contrary to most top-down extension approaches promoted in most African countries, communities are not always waiting for external knowledge but are often innovating and developing home-grown coping mechanisms. That is why it is important to first assess knowledge gaps first before introducing an idea or innovation. Assessing Read more about Communities are not always waiting for external knowledge[…]
What if business literacy is more important than financial literacy? Across the world, bankers and financial institutions are succeeding in turning “financial inclusion” and “financial literacy” into buzzwords. However, what is not emphasized enough is the fact that finance is just a catalyst because money is not a stand-alone ingredient. In fact, it is business Read more about What if business literacy is more important than financial literacy?[…]
Leaders should rise and fall on the Altar of Climate Change and Food Sovereignty That Climate Change and Food Sovereignty are defining issues of our time is no longer debatable. It follows wherever elections are done across the world, from local councilor to President, leaders should be voted on the basis of their plans to Read more about Leaders should rise and fall on the Altar of Climate Change and Food Sovereignty[…]
A ready market is more important than food hand outs and free inputs Food hand-outs and free inputs have been over-used to address poverty and food insecurity in most developing countries, yet providing a ready market for existing commodities could be a better solution. In communities where local food like indigenous chickens, goats, sheep, small Read more about A ready market is more important than food hand outs and free inputs[…]
Time to use mass food markets and seed fairs in decolonizing gene banks A very important step in decolonizing African food systems is re-defining and contextualizing the meaning of a gene bank. The conventional scientific notion of a gene bank[1] as a type of bio-repository that preserves genetic material ignores the socio-cultural dimension of genetic material. For instance, scientific Read more about Time to use mass food markets and seed fairs in decolonizing gene banks[…]