Farming accounts for around 60% of all jobs in sub-Saharan Africa. Governments, the African Union and the EU are keen to promote the industrialization of the African farming sector.
But rapid population growth, the effects of climate change and lack of access to finance are among the threats to both the future growth of African agriculture and its capacity to feed its people.
In the meantime, new innovative technologies are being unleashed in the continent’s rural communities. Renewable energy, particularly off-grid solar, is being viewed in many countries as a means to power rural Africa, particularly in those areas furthest away from the electricity grid.
This Special Report looks at some of the challenges and opportunities faced by domestic agriculture and how policymakers and businesses are working to grasp them.
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Bridging African agriculture’s financing gap
The European Commission and African Union set up a joint rural Africa taskforce in May, after agricultural co-operation was one of the key topics as the EU-Africa summit in Abidjan in November 2017.
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Sahel region faces task of increasing crop yields to meet population boom
With their populations set to double by 2050, the Sahel countries – Niger, Mauritania, Mali, Burkina-Faso and Chad – have to develop their agricultural productivity to feed their populations. EURACTIV France reports.
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Senegalese milk production trying to find its way
In Senegal, the dairy sector is facing competition from cheap European exports - that makes its development much harder, EURACTIV France reports.
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Leap-frogging the African electricity grid with solar
Mobile phone technology made landlines obsolete in sub-Saharan Africa years before Europeans began to give up their home handsets. Will off-grid solar do the same in the energy sector?
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‘Cashew means future’ in Swahili
Cashew nuts: They are not only meant to make you happy but also to strengthen the heart. On average, every European consumes an average of one kilo of this nut per year. EURACTIV Germany reports.
