African Re-Agrarianization? Accumulation or Pro-Poor Agricultural Growth?

Abstract

Recent signs of increasing agricultural production in a number of countries in sub-Saharan Africa are by some commentators connected to local level differentiation. This paper discusses such interpretations using household level longitudinal data from smallholder households in eight African countries for the period between 2002 and 2008. The use of a mixed methods social science approach complements traditional economic approaches through adding a spatial perspective. Pro-poor agricultural growth so far is concentrated to particular villages, where it is highly inclusive. The policy challenge remains to devise strategies that can enhance growth also in marginal areas.

Food Dependency in Sub‐Saharan Africa: Simply a Matter of ‘Vulnerability’, or Missed Development Opportunity?

“…This reflects the conclusions of other works that have noted indications of recent deindustrialization (see, for example, McMillan and Headey, ) and/or re‐agrarianization in regions of the subcontinent (Andersson Djurfeldt, ). While beyond the scope of this article, Lawrence () reviews the theories put forward to explain the manufacturing performance in Africa over the past four decades.…”

“…This literature often cites the low productivity of the subsistence sector as an obvious reason to focus development efforts elsewhere (Jayne et al., : 1387). Proponents, on the other hand, point to the possibilities of agriculture (à la Lewis) as a spur to the pro‐poor growth sought by the late Millennium Development Goals (Andersson Djurfeldt, : 218; Bezemer and Headey, ; Hazell et al., : 1351). Rather than citing current or past low productivity, these authors tend instead to focus on productivity potential and the historically inadequate investment and policy support that has long created a bias against subsistence agriculture in SSA (Andersson Djurfeldt, : 5; Diao et al., : 1376; Mendes et al., : 131–32; Rao, : 1280).…”

Social Science Studies on European and African Agriculture Compared: Bringing Together Different Strands of Academic Debate on GM Crops

“…This means that consumer influence on agricultural development is weaker or at least more difficult to study, as it has to occur outside formal market chains. However, in recent years the commercialisation of smallholder agriculture has been mentioned by many as a key pathway for helping rural Africans out of poverty [115,116]. If domestic African agriculture is to feed a growing urban population, consumer choice is likely to be a more important issue on the agenda in the future.…”

Sustainable Agricultural Intensification in Four Tanzanian Villages—A View from the Ground and the Sky

“…In sum, therefore, over time, (statistically significant) yield increases-that is, intensification based on staple crops (either in maize or in rice) has occurred in the four study sites, when we consider the data from the quantitative survey. As suggested by an earlier study from two of the villages specifically [25], as well as work drawing on the larger dataset [44][45][46] and other studies using a number of large-scale datasets [47] (including the Afrint dataset), the drivers behind intensification are closely linked to commercialization. Rising yields can, therefore, be seen as a response to improved market opportunities and rising prices.…”