* Any views expressed in this opinion piece are those of the author and not of Thomson Reuters Foundation.
Investing in agricultural innovation can make a difference
This past year, Africa has once again grabbed the headlines for all the wrong reasons. Civil war in South Sudan. Famine in the Central African Republic. And now, the tragic Ebola outbreak that has left thousands dead in West Africa.
Each of these crises leads back to an underlying issue that doesn’t make the front page. Vulnerable populations will continue to be plagued with shocks such as conflict, hunger and disease until the chronic underdevelopment in Africa is addressed. We know that GDP growth in Africa that derives from agriculture is estimated to be 11 times more effective at reducing poverty than growth in any other sector. With improved agriculture systems also comes better health, infrastructure and economic growth.
This is why the African Agriculture Technology Foundation (AATF) was put in place over a decade ago, to contribute to improvement of rural livelihoods and build the resilience of resource poor smallholder farmers. We believe that the future of our continent does not have to be determined by the stories we see in the papers today. If we prioritise innovation, and the technological solutions that will combat climate change, poor soils and pest infestations that are currently holding African agricultural progress back, we can write a new chapter of African history.
Here are just some of the ways we can make this happen.
Harnessing the “data revolution”
We now have more data then ever before – and new ways of analysing them are becoming more powerful, and more affordable by the day. In order to determine which technologies are going to work where, we need to start making use of this data. A new online tool developed by the International Food Policy Research Institute has done exactly that – and it shows that investing in drought tolerant crops in sub-Saharan Africa will have a great impact between now and 2050, under predicted climate scenarios. For example, Somalia could see maize yields increase by 15.8% and Mali and Gabon could see yield increases of over 12 percent.
AATF is currently coordinating a project to develop Water-Efficient Maize for Africa (WEMA) that is both drought-tolerant and insect pest protected – adding this second added benefit (insect protection) increases projections for yield increases even more. In Kenya, where WEMA trials are already underway, farmers who grew the WEMA conventional hybrids for one season in 2014 recorded an average yield of 4.5 tonnes per hectare compared to the national average of 1.8 tonnes per hectare.
Working with the private sector
Partnerships between public sector organisations who serve the poorest populations, and the private sector, who have access to a wealth of technology and infrastructure, are the most effective at tackling the complex problems that face African farmers. In West Africa, where cowpea is a staple for over 200 million people, farmers are faced with the challenge of pod-borer infestation, which often causes up to 80 percent yield loss. In an effort to curtail the damage caused by Maruca vitrata, the most common insect pest in cowpea, AATF is working with partners that include donors USAID and also businesses like Monsanto, to develop cowpea varieties that are able to withstand infestation from Maruca. The already developed varieties have been tested for efficacy in confined field trials in three West African countries of Nigeria, Ghana and Burkina Faso and are showing promising results. When ready the improved cowpea varieties are expected to improve yields by over 20 percent and are expected to benefit 8 million farmers.
Fostering mechanisation
Mechanisation can expand areas under cultivation and consequently increase yields and food availability in addition to bringing efficiencies in crop production and reducing drudgery and freeing farmers to engage in other economically productive activities. Through its Cassava Mechanisation and Agro-Processing project, AATF is improving access to mechanised tools, as it has successfully negotiated access to cassava mechanisation technologies from Brazil. Incorporating mechanisation with best management practices such as use of improved cassava cuttings, fertiliser and weeding has seen the yields of cassava improve by up to four times in Nigeria and Zambia, where farmers who previously harvested 7 tonnes of cassava grown under manual production are harvesting between 28-35 tonnes. This has translated into increased food availability for farmers and their families and income from sale of excess produce.
These interventions are working. But if we want them to create a lasting impact, that will turn the world’s view of Africa from a hungry continent to a modern and thriving economy, we need African governments to continue to support this work in transforming African agriculture, through funding and appropriate policy decisions. Let us ensure that the headlines about Africa next year tell a different story.
