Agriculture holds the key to broad-based economic growth, poverty reduction and food security in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). This is due to the importance of the sector for SSA economies, the extent of rural poverty and the dependence of 50 million...

The rapid expansion of agri‐food exports from low‐ and middle‐income countries and the contribution of global value chains to rural development is well‐documented in the literature. Also studies on modernization of domestic food value chains in th...

Agricultural transformation remains one of Africa’s most pressing priorities but has been difficult to achieve. The statistics are well-known: Africa, especially Sub-Saharan Africa, (SSA), needs to double (and perhaps even triple) current le...

Since the mid-1990s, many East African nations have enjoyed relatively high economic growth rates and made substantial progress in poverty reduction. Nevertheless, firm productivity remains low across sectors, and the region remains highly dependen...

For the past 50 years, Daisy Namusoke has grown crops on her small plot of land in the Buikwe District of Central Uganda, mostly to feed her husband, five children, and two grandchildren. Like most smallholder farmers in Africa, she grows a mix of...

Collaboration between government and private sector is crucial The importance of agricultural growth in Africa is highlighted during the upcoming World Food Day on 16th October that focuses on raising awareness of world hunger and food security. T...

The economic outlook for Sub-Saharan Africa for 2016 gives room for cautious optimism. A 4.7% increase in GDP across the region in 2016 has been higher than expected. However, the World Bank warns that low commodity prices and high borrowing costs...

Why data could be the deciding factor in Africa’s agricultural transformation. The world has a palm oil problem. It’s a global, billion-dollar industry and its end result is irreversible environmental damage, ranging from deforestation and fires, t...

Africa’s cities currently provide the largest and most rapidly growing agricultural markets in Africa. Out of total urban food sales of roughly US$200 to US$250 billion per year, over 80% comes from domestic African suppliers. In the coming decad...

Ethiopia currently sits as the world’s sixth largest coffee producer. The industry employs approximately 15 million people and accounts for 28 percent of the country’s total annual exports. Arabica coffee originated in Ethiopia, and consumers know th...

Improved irrigation and agricultural practices are touted as efficient ways to mitigate drought impacts. Paradoxically, that may not be the case in Jordan, where the use of state-of-the-art irrigation technology by commercial farmers in the East has...

Striga — an invasive parasitic weed with purple-colored flowers — looks striking and harmless. But beyond that mark of beauty is a nutrient-sucking monster that stunts crops such as maize and sorghum, leaving affected farmers counting losses. Witc...