Page 40 - Msingi Afrika Magazine Issue 16

Community

companies to make their laws and to the local agroecosystems. Mon- systems, and they supply diets that
regulations corporate-friendly, under santo dropped the local varieties are among the healthiest on the
heavy pressure from the World from circulation and pushed its planet.[26] Despite a policy envi-
Bank, foreign governments and own, patented varieties instead, even ronment that is designed to crush
major donors like the Bill & Melinda though some of the local varieties them, Africa’s food systems are also
Gates Foundation. The justifica- were much more productive than the continent’s economic engine,
tion was always that such changes their own. Over the years, Mon- providing more livelihoods, jobs and
would drive private investment into santo, together with the companies revenue than any other sector.[27]
plant breeding on the continent that import and distribute chemical Food imports on the other hand
and provide farmers with improved fertilisers, became the main benefi- are a huge revenue drain on Africa’s
varieties. But this investment is not ciaries of the government’s seed and scarce foreign reserves (which, it
happening. Instead, the number of fertiliser subsidy programme. With needs to be said, are generated in
formal plant breeders is in decline, Monsanto in control, the yields of large part from the sale of fossil
even in some of Africa’s biggest hybrid maize went down, the soils fuels).
seed markets, and the vast majority were depleted, and, during the 2015-
of Africa’s plant breeders are still 2016 drought and flooding seasons, Africa’s local food systems are what
working in the public sector. More- the maize crops were almost entirely sustains the continent today, and
over, the private sector is almost ex- destroyed. In many places across what can sustain it into the future.
clusively focused on plant breeding Malawi, farmers are now moving The climate crisis will increasingly
for big money-making hybrid crops back to local seed varieties, com- challenge these systems, especially
like maize, and is hardly present posting and reintroducing tradition- if global greenhouse gas emissions
when it comes to important tradi- al crops that were left behind by in other parts of the world are not
tional food crops that are more resil- the subsidy programmes, such as seriously reduced. African food
ient to climate change like millet.[21] legumes that build soil fertility and producers will have to continue to
Meanwhile, the legal and regulatory hardy crops like cassava and millet. adapt their practices and knowledge
changes that governments have im- to cope with a changing and unpre-
plemented for the seed companies A vision for Africa’s food systems dictable climate. Local markets will
have damaged and even criminalised in an era of climate crisis have to integrate emergency reserves
Africa’s dynamic and innovative Any policy or programme that is and other measures to ensure peo-
farmer seed systems, which continue going to effectively deal with the ple’s access to food and livelihoods
to account for 80% of Africa’s seed twin food and climate crises bearing during extreme weather events like
supply. down on Africa has to focus on the floods and droughts. These are dif-
main actors in Africa’s food system. ficult but not insurmountable issues,
Malawi provides a painful lesson Africa’s food producers (small farm- and already there are many inspiring
of why programmes to boost local ers, fisher people and pastoralists) initiatives being implemented across
food production with corporate and local markets still supply 80% the continent to prepare for climate
seeds do not work. A little over a of the food that is produced and change.
decade ago, Malawi launched a na- consumed on the continent. Africa’s
tional programme to distribute sub- food supply relies primarily on the It is important to recognise that the
sidised maize seeds and fertilisers to knowledge, seeds, animals, soils and climate crisis requires approaches
its farmers. Initially the programme local biodiversity that is maintained to adaptation that support Africa’s
focused on varieties bred by nation- by Africa’s small food producers. food systems and are led by Af-
al scientists. But soon, after much And Africa’s growing number of ur- rica’s small-scale food producers,
pressure from the US government ban consumers depend on the small not approaches that rely heavily on
and the World Bank, the program traders and street food vendors to chemical inputs and seeds sold by
became focused on hybrid maize ensure their access to these foods. multinational companies, such as
sold by Monsanto and the Seed It is critical to note that the vast those often described as “climate
Co., a company from Zimbabwe. majority of these actors in Africa’s smart” and promoted by pro-
The first thing that Monsanto did food systems are women. grammes like A Green Revolution
when entering the country was to Africa’s food systems, based large- for Africa (AGRA). (see box: The
buy up the national seed company ly on agroecological practices and hoax of climate smart agriculture).
that had developed open-pollinated short circuits, are the ultimate in
and hybrid maize varieties adapted green, low emissions and resilient It is also crucial to recognise that

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