Making for sustainable food security in Africa (2)

Africa has detailed historical information on food production in her age-long subsistence agricultural activities that has not been adequately and technologically supported for sustainable food security. The reason for this observed inadequacy in food production is that subsistence farming and commercial agriculture that presently run concurrently on the continent is majorly bedeviled by poor funding, which ought to have paved the way for robust commercial agriculture in most African economies. 

Commercial agriculture on its own, largely targets export-oriented agriculture, which necessarily alone (without the domesticated, resilient subsistence systems) may not make the required impact for sustainable food security to very meaningfully mitigate the prevalent hunger across Africa.

Funding of essential projects that relate to food availability and affordability is key (especially to localized small holder farmers that are vulnerable to financial deficiency, better still and essentially, due to lack of working capital). This is because the drought challenge being faced in many parts of the continent, as a result of the environmental devastations based on the impact of global climate change, needs to be aggressively tackled and effectively addressed technologically, by African leaders in the various affected countries. It requires funding from the government, if such challenges are to be controlled and effectively checked. Drought is generally identified as a big threat to poorly managed agricultural programmes, especially within the continent, due to paucity of funds to strategically control the environmental devastations from drought. Sustainable food security in Africa therefore, could be a far cry, unless the right buttons are pulled to arrest the abnormal food production situations, and readjust the disruptions caused by any eventual irregular development that may occur along the line of food production value chains.  

Within the African continent, over several decades ago, it was known that subsistence agriculture through small holder farming systems significantly provided sufficient food within every identifiable local community. Over time, as the global population increased in leaps and bounds, with trending massive drift and emigration to urban areas, which included these peasant farmers searching for greener pastures, food production dropped and food sufficiency suffered. This particular method of farming started giving way due to a decline in manpower at the affected localities, with its eventual negative impact of food scarcity and hunger that gradually crept in, thus affecting the system.

The state, known to be a modern state of vulnerability in food production, which directly affects food security in that geographical region, could drift towards reliance on food imports. Such a situation should not be allowed to occur in any African economy. The governments can stop such a trend from manifesting through policies and direct financial aids to farmers, by critically engaging them in agricultural services rather than being distracted by the vain thoughts of emigration to urban areas, while their abandoned agricultural vocation suffers.

Sustainable food security in Africa could meaningfully support industrialisation in a very significant way. Agriculture, therefore, needs to be taken seriously by African leaders in governance, by reasonably focusing to boost agriculture in the region; and concentrate more in making agriculture an essential sector of special note for economic growth and development. Appropriate government intervention is needed from the African leaders, with policy that shall make agricultural services within the continent to specifically target food production for self sufficiency, with regards to the global food supply chains, as a food hub in the international market. Well funded agricultural schemes could spark off a coordinated chain reaction development in the economic activities that promote industrialisation within the continent. Thus, all the African economies should be religiously pursued to actualize the expected agricultural productivity, and attain the regional heights in food production, with the eventual goal of sustainable food security on the continent.

Critical wealth and financial prosperity for all the participating economies will definitely be at a comfortable reach and conveniently realised for the corporate benefits of the African continent. The continent’s infrastructural development could seamlessly spring up as things get properly put in place in the respective economic sectors that, thereafter, will run without undue financial stress or any unnecessary operational bottle neck. Africa must rise on her feet economically because innovative and creative ideas are expected to be internally initiated with a unique strategy that would take the macro-economy to enviable status that the entire world would admire with unconcealed jealousy. The overall macro-economic benefits realized shall transcend down to every microeconomic effort made by all participating individuals in building the economy. Every corporate organisation conducting their private business and discharging their duties within the continent, shall not just limit their obligatory corporate social responsibilities on their respective mapped out projects but would be urged to join and partner with the government, through aids and support to grow the regional agriculture, by raising funds that shall promptly attract the right continent’s economic targeted goals, as gains and values for all stakeholders in the socioeconomic loop.                   

• business a.m. commits to publishing a diversity of views, opinions and comments. It, therefore, welcomes your reaction to this and any of our articles via email: comment@businessamlive.com 

Onome Amuge

Onome Amuge serves as online editor of Business A.M, bringing over a decade of journalism experience as a content writer and business news reporter specialising in analytical and engaging reporting. You can reach him via Facebook and X