AFRICA CAN DO IT!!!

Africa farm yields and agriculture activities are among the lowest in the world comparatively, looking at our arable lands and green forest vegetation, as well as the number of lakes, streams, rivers as well as rain water available to us. According to UNEP, 2010 finding and UNECA, 20000 findings, there are between 63 and 80 transboundary river and lake basins on the African continent alone. Africa has about one-third of the world's major international basins-basins larger than 100,000 Km2. Virtually all sub-Saharan African countries, including Egypt, share at least one international water basin. Every year hundreds of thousands die as a result of flooding in Africa alone, we are not counting those who are displaced and the properties lost in this case. It is true that we cannot sometimes control floods but we can do better. In the year 2012, about 14,380 people were affected by floods in the Upper East Region of Ghana alone. That is how serious the problem is. And talking of youth in agriculture, many farms were swept away by water, and many people remain jobless as a result up to now.

That is the problem of Africa, the one we are supposed to be finding solutions to, but what are we doing and this I believe Africa can do, we don't need any group of people to come and tell us what we can do before we set into action to do what is necessary for our continent.

Well, but that is what is happening in Africa now, in as far as matters of agricultural are concerned.

A G8 initiative intended to get corporations to invest in Africa with the goal of alleviating hunger on the continent is not working. President Barack Obama launched the 'New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition' in 2012 when the US held the presidency of G8. The aim as was portrayed was to encourage partnerships between governments and corporations to invest in Africa, with that, the G8 said it hoped to 'lift 50 million people out of poverty in sub-Saharan Africa by 2022'

Ironically, that program is doing more harm to Africa than good. I have been following this very program very closely, due to the nature of my job as a youth developer, I have friends and institutions that I get a lot of vital information from across Africa, and what I have heard and observed so far, is not good for Africa's agricultural future and especially in as far as the small skill farmer is concerned. Instead of becoming a mechanism for improving farm production, reducing poverty and hunger in Africa, the new alliance is causing many hardships for African farmers, including land grabs by companies that have been engaged by the G8. This is causing many farmers to and potential hundreds of thousands of African farmers off lands that their communities have worked for generations.

Can that be a good help to Africa? It is unacceptable and cynical of the G8 to pretend to be concern about hunger and land grabbing in Africa while backing schemes that will ruin the lives of hundreds of thousands of Africa farmers. That is not what they bargained for.

As at the time of preparing this material, about six African countries signed onto the Alliance-Ghana, Ethiopia, Burkina Faso, Tanzania, Mozambique and the Ivory Coast with over 70 global and local Companies.

The most surprising part of all these so-called alliance is that, the policies were developed by the African governments in consultation with the private sector investor, ignoring the farmer who is the supposed beneficiary. In order for their voices to be heard in this matter, a coalition of African farmers posted a petition on the website of G8 calling their plan as 'a new wave of colonialism'. They pointed out that 'private ownership of knowledge and material resources means the flow of royalties out of Africa into the hands of multinational corporations'

And nothing can be far from the truth than what they said. Their concerns were genuine. They know what they have faced over the years and what they are currently facing. What happened then, nothing. Instead of the G8 calling for engagement of the farmers and reconsideration of the partnership, it rather went ahead to roll out more programs. Some of which includes making sure the farmers buy genetically modified seeds rather than the cheaper local ones they have used for years.

Many multinational grain, seed and fertilizer companies have joined the fray since it is business as usual. That policy favours companies like, Monsanto (NYSE:MON), Cargill, Inc, Yara International ASA (OTC: YARIY), DuPont Co. (NYSE:DD), Kraft Foods Group Inc., AGCO Corp. (NYSE: DD), Unilever N.V. (NYSE ADR: UN), Nestle SA (OTC: NSRGY), Swiss Re AG (OTC: SSREY) etc.

Again, let me say that their investment is not what hurts me and it is not what we should concern ourselves about, but the mode of operation and the effect it is having on our Agricultural sector as a continent of youth that will eventually turn to agriculture investment in order to create jobs for ourselves and preserve these lands for the future generation.

For instance, part of the agreement says that Nations that have joined the alliance have to facilitate land access to companies that invest in Africa. In practice, this means the eviction of small farmers from their lands at the hands of Western corporations with the full support of their governments. Well, I know others may hold contrary views, but this is what I think and I don't intend to hold any other view than this, I have read and seen many of such Western organizations such as World Bank, IMF and their cronies give such advice to many an Africa country and yet nothing good has come out of that. I am sad but sorry to say that, this policy is one of those that will make us regret ever believing in such organizations and their allies.

I am an optimistic, but we need to face the reality, this is what we have failed to do over the year, we have always bought every idea or initiative brought by those Western powers without subjecting them to proper scrutiny, no wonder we have soo many failed policies as a continent than any other continent. We have become importers of everything including solutions.

Already, thousands of local or small farmers in Mozambique have been pushed off their lands, new regulations have been planned for the Ivory Coast and Ethiopia, and this means hundreds of thousands in those countries will soon face the same fate. Per the alliance, Ghana and the rest of the countries are to enact similar rules. Let us prepare for the worst form of hunger and poverty with such a policy in place.

You see, it is not difficult for governments to push farmers and entire communities from the lands they occupy because all lands belong to the government in Africa, thus per law as far I know in the case of Ghana. All government will have to do is to convince the chiefs and leaders with small tokens and it is over for a whole community. Which farmer can refuse to move? With intimidation of the removal of price supports for your products and with everyone doing it? Who are you to refuse?

Indeed with a youth that should concern its self with agriculture; we must be worried about this phenomenon. Shouldn't we? You will realize that the above policy is not the one that seeks to help the development of agriculture on our continent. On a continent that has about 50-90% of its population in agriculture, such a program cannot be a good for its people. Those multinational companies will end up competing with our local farmers in the wrong manner which will eventually take them out of business.

We all know that per statics that has been made available for the past 20 years or so, Africa's agriculture sector is doing well, at least relatively well than all other continents even though not at the rate that is expected. According to statistics, for early 1990s to the mid-2000s, agriculture production in Africa exceeded most other parts of the world. According to a statistics, Countries like Nigeria, Ghana, Benin, Burkina Faso, Angola, Sudan, Mozambique and the Ivory Coast grew agricultural production faster over the period of 10 years than Brazil's impressive 77%.

What does the above means? It means that, the African farmer knows what he or she is about. Hard it not been that the activities of the Africa farmer has been hampered by lack of adequate capital, difficulties in getting the supplies they need, difficulties in getting subsidies on their farming inputs such as seeds, fertilizer, machines etc, and difficulties in getting markets for their products.

I think that if G8 mean well for Africa and its small farmers, the above were the things to look at, not the formation of alliance with a cabal of corrupt governments and self seeking or profit seeking multinational corporations.

In an era where many complain that the African youth doesn't want to venture into agriculture, if we want to address such a problem, we will need to put certain pragmatic measures in place having in mind the above challenges and solutions as proffered.

1. Make the accessibility of farm lands to the farmer and the youth a bit easy than it is now. For instance, various Africa governments can set aside a particular portion of land mainly for youths who will like to form alliance and go into block farming.

2. Make available ready credit facilities to the youth

3. Facilitate the organization of youth forums such as this one so as to help deliberate on matters that will help in sharing ideas, and improving upon their various farming activities.

4. Construction of good roads so as to make the transportation of their various farm products to where they are readily needed.

5. The governments must also make available storage facilities so as to enable them store their produce when season and sell them or offload them to the market when needed.

6. Last but not least, the government must also make available proper incentives that will enable the youth improve in such fields. For instance, they can make available scholarship facilities that will enable these youths take courses or further their education in order to improve upon what they do.

As a continent that seeks to eradicate hunger and poverty, I think that we have the solutions right here with us, we should not look further beyond our continent. We must encourage our governments to help find Africa solutions to our problems. The era where we use to import everything including solutions from the Western world is over. It is time for all of us to act. Let those who are sitting unconcerned be reminded of the urgency of this moment, let those who are complaining be told that, the way forward is not in complaining but in proffering pragmatic solutions to our problems, and let those who are weeping, be consoled that hope has come for Africa, we are the hope of Africa, let us make it happen. AFRICA, I BELIEVE CAN DO IT!!!!

Prosper Dzitse, President/CEO-Institute of Mentorship and Leadership Training