More than 239 million people in Sub-Saharan Africa live in hunger. African governments, international donors, nonprofits, and other partners are helping Africa’s farmers grow more food and increase their incomes. Together, they are proving that progress in agricultural development is not only possible, it’s happening.
FACT: Agriculture plays an important role in Africa’s development.
- Agriculture provides 70 percent of employment and 30 percent of Sub-Saharan Africa’s gross domestic product.
- Helping Africa’s smallholder farmers grow more food is a proven pathway out of hunger and poverty. Almost no country has managed a rapid rise from poverty without increasing its agricultural productivity.
- Studies show that gross domestic product (GDP) growth from agriculture is at least twice as effective in reducing poverty as non-agricultural GDP growth.
FACT: African governments are leading the way in investing in agricultural development.
- In 2003, the African Union adopted the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Program (CAADP), calling on African governments to dedicate 10 percent of their national budgets to agriculture and to seek 6 percent annual agricultural growth.
- Twenty-one countries have signed CAADP compacts, launching solid plans to achieve these goals.
- In 2008, 10 countries met or exceeded the 6 percent annual agricultural growth target: Angola, Ethiopia, Mali, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Rwanda, Senegal, Tanzania, and Uganda.
- In 2008, eight countries reached or surpassed the goal of dedicating at least 10 percent of their budgets to agriculture: Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Malawi, Mali, Niger, and Senegal.
FACT: Africa’s efforts to combat hunger and poverty are working.
- Sub-Saharan Africa’s agriculture GDP growth rate increased from an annual average of 3 percent in the 1990s and 2000s to 5.3 percent in 2008.
- Ghana’s agriculture sector is growing at more than 5 percent a year, and Ghana cut hunger levels by 75 percent between 1990 and 2004, while the share of the population living in poverty fell from 52 percent in 1991/92 to 28.5 percent in 2005/06. Ghana has made the fastest progress in the world on reducing hunger and is on track to achieve the UN Millennium Development Goal of halving poverty and hunger from 1990 levels. Read more about Ghana’s success.
- Malawi transformed itself from a net-importer to a net-exporter of maize for four years running and even became a food donor to neighboring Swaziland and Lesotho. Rwanda’s government increased its investment in agriculture by 30 percent from 2007 to 2009, resulting in a 15 percent rise in food production in 2008.
- In Ethiopia, hunger levels decreased from 71 to 46 percent from 1990 to 2004.
FACT: Improved crops, quality seeds, and new techniques are helping Africa’s farmers raise their yields and incomes.
- Drought-tolerant maize: African farmers using new drought-tolerant maize varieties developed by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center and its partners produced up to 30 percent more maize than those without the improved varieties. Varieties with even greater drought tolerance are in development and expected to benefit 30–40 million people in Africa. Watch a video about drought-tolerant maize.
- Rice: The International Rice Research Institute and its partners are developing heartier new varieties of rice that can withstand drought, flood, cold, and toxic minerals such as salt and iron. These new varieties are already helping 100,000 farmers in Africa increase their yields and incomes. By 2017, they are expected to benefit 20 million farmers in Africa and Asia. Learn more about IRRI’s work.
- Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA): Since its launch in 2006, this African-led effort to improve the productivity and incomes of small farmers has released 68 new varieties of improved seedbred for traits such as resistance to insects, disease, and drought; educated thousands of local agro-dealers to share agricultural knowledge with small farmers; and held training for 280,000 farmers. Learn more about AGRA.
- Dairy development in East Africa: Heifer International, a humanitarian assistance organization, is on track to help 179,000 dairy farmers in East Africa double their dairy-related incomes by increasing their ownership of cross-bred cows, which produce more milk than local breeds, and connecting them to markets so they can sell more milk. In 2009, Heifer mobilized 47,445 dairy farmers into farmer groups so they can form business associations and establish chilling plants that will help them get their milk to market. Watch Heifer’s “What If” video.
- Sweet potato: The International Potato Center has developed improved sweet potatoes, benefiting over 6 million people in East and Southern Africa. Rich in nutrients, these improved varieties help reduce the prevalence of malnutrition, including vitamin A deficiency, which leaves people susceptible to blindness and deadly diseases. Learn more about the sweet potato.
- Coffee: Working with donors and consultants, the Rwandan government created incentives for farmers to improve the quality of their coffee crops and encouraged entrepreneurship in the coffee sector. As a result, the average export price of Rwandan coffee doubled between 2003 and 2008, raising the incomes of smallholder farmers and creating thousands of new jobs. Revenue from coffee exports increased from $35 million in 2007 to $47 million in 2008. Find out more about coffee projects in Rwanda.
SOURCES
The World Bank; Overseas Development Institute; International Food Policy Research Institute; Regional Strategic Analysis and Knowledge Support System; USG Feed the Future Guide; Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa; Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research; the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation