African mass markets demonstrate the value of contextualizing gender issues The notion of gender inclusion has been in African communities for decades but there has not been much adoption due to a number of contentious issues. One of the reasons for slow traction is that development organizations pushing gender inclusion have not invested enough time Read more about African mass markets demonstrate the value of contextualizing gender issues[…]

Benefits of consolidating government programs and development initiatives The benefits of collaborating and building partnerships to solve shared problems like climate change seem very obvious. Mounting evidence indicates that dividing issues into themes often breaks natural synergies, for instance, between agriculture, environment, energy, mobility and other issues that should be approached holistically.  However, the fact Read more about Benefits of consolidating government programs and development initiatives[…]

African Knowledge Management should start by consolidating food preservation innovations at colleges and universities Over the past few years, African institutions of higher learning like colleges and universities have added innovation to their mandate of generating higher level expertise, knowledge and skills. To that end, they have made some headway in research, innovation as well Read more about African Knowledge Management should start by consolidating food preservation innovations at colleges and universities[…]

Increasing the capacity of communities to process information and knowledge One of the reasons why democracy has taken long to germinate in African countries is because ordinary rural people lack capacity to process information from within their own communities as well as information from government sources, from members of parliament, from development agencies and mainstream Read more about Increasing the capacity of communities to process information and knowledge[…]

When you listen to banks talking about agriculture investment it would appear capital or money is more important than fundamental natural resources like land, water, labour and local knowledge. Yet it is clear that without land, water, fertile soils, local people and favourable climatic conditions, capital injected into agricultural projects will not generate meaningful returns. Read more about Reimagining agribusiness models that value farmers and the environment[…]

Bringing back dignity to African farming systems through mass markets Dignity is a fundamental human right. Depending on circumstances, dignity can be about choice. For farmers, it is about choosing what to grow, when, how to grow, how much and where to sell. For consumers, it is about choosing what to consume and where to Read more about Bringing back dignity to African farming systems through mass markets[…]

African governments and development organizations are increasingly being challenged to build the capacity of entire communities rather than continue investing in isolated projects that do not speak to each other. Several agricultural projects have failed to make a difference in many African countries because implementers have rushed into communities without investing adequate time to fully Read more about Pathways for transitioning from projects to community investments[…]

Why African farming communities are fed up with African politics Partisan politics has made it difficult for African countries to unlock value from natural resources such as land, water and favorable climate. Otherwise farming communities would be living fulfilling   lives than urban dwellers. In spite of resources being spent sending children to school, African politics Read more about Why African farming communities are fed up with African politics[…]

Pathways for repurposing resources are long overdue in developing countries Private property laws that many African countries adopted from colonialism have had both positive and negative aspects. One positive is that privatization of property has encouraged investors to make long-term investments in infrastructure and other developments that create reliable employment. On the negative side, once Read more about Pathways for repurposing resources are long overdue in developing countries[…]

The value of connecting seed fairs, community seed banks and mass markets African mass food markets are more famous for providing food to diverse classes of consumers and income to a wide range of farmers. However, what remains under appreciated is the role of these markets in promoting indigenous seed systems on which the majority Read more about The value of connecting seed fairs, community seed banks and mass markets[…]