Is state-led investment in agricultural research and extension still the answer to raising smallholder farm productivity for export crops in Sub-Saharan Africa?
Hoseana Bohela Lunogelo and Maximillan Yanda, ESRF | 4 November 2024
What more needs to be done for smallholders to thrive independently in SSA? Most of the exported agricultural commodities from Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries have historically been produced by smallholder farmers (Golin, Douglas, 2014[i]; Kamala, Alie, et.al, 2019[ii]), including cocoa, banana, cassava and goats, which were the focus of Case Study 04 in the MATS project. Recognizing that smallholder farmers, as opposed to commercial large-scale farmers, lack the requisite capital and knowledge to engage in profitable agricultural production, many support programs have been implemented over the past 60 years to aid them (Maryono, et.al., 2024[iii]; Agrictoday, 2023[iv]). Most of such programmes have been through grants and loans provided by bilateral (mostly by European states and the USA) and multilateral development partners (e.g., World Bank, IFAD, AGRA, FAO), who are coordinated through the Agricultural Sector Working Group (ASWG) (World Bank, 2017[v]; OECD,2023[vi]; Southern Voice, 2020[vii]).
To complement efforts by Development Partners, African countries, under the African Union, adopted the Maputo Declaration in 2003 (NEPAD, 2003)[viii] (and later reinforced by the Malabo Declaration in 2014 (MAAIF,2014)[ix] to set aside at least 10 percent of annual government budgets for the agricultural sector so that they can produce more commodities for both the domestic (Oxfam,2024)[x] and export markets (OEC, 2023). None of the four countries in our Case Study 04 have ever reached that target (AU-NEPAD, 2022[xi]). Tanzania, for example, has for many years prior to fiscal year 2023/24, been giving between 4 and 5 percent of its budget to the agricultural sector (AU-NEPAD, 2022).
Although SSA countries agreed to increase their budgetary allocation for agriculture to 10 percent of total budget, about 26 countries spent under five percent of their annual budget on agriculture between 2019 and 2021 (Oxfam, 2024: ibid; AU-NEPAD, 2022[xii])
The 2022 NEPAD Biennial review report noted that Ethiopia and Uganda were urged to increase their spending on agricultural research of 0.2 percent of agriculture GDP, towards the agreed target of 1 percent. Uganda and Ghana were also alerted on the need to give more than the current 3.1 percent and 4.4 percent of public agriculture expenditure, respectively, as a share of agriculture value added.
On the other hand, Tanzania was censured for having a low proportion of farm households with title deeds (11.6%) on their land and to step up Tanzania interventions to increase yields of the country’s priority commodities and ensure that at least 30% of agricultural land (as against current 10.9%) is placed under sustainable land and water management practices. The biennial review also revealed that fertilizer use, for example, was at less than one half of the recommended average level of 50 kg per hectare of arable land. Consequently, farmers have consistently failed to improve and reach technically acceptable yield levels.
Has public investment failed smallholder farmers?
It is indisputable that SSA’s Governments and Development Partners have pumped a lot of monetary and non-monetary resources to support smallholder farmers. However, the responses in enhancing yields and quality performance have been less than best, or short-lived in nature, lacking sustainability. For those reasons, one is left to wonder what is the missing link in enabling these farmers to reach the expected levels possible under experimental conditions and/or commercial large-scale farmers?
Interviews with farmers in this MATS CS04 study attributed the failure to weakly funded research and extension services, which usually decline once the donor-funded programme ends, or there is a regime change in government. Private sector financing has also not been forthcoming to support primary production by smallholder farmers citing lack of assets owned by farmers, such as land title deeds, for use as collateral. This is the case in Tanzania whereby only 11.6 percent of farming households had title deeds on their land. Vagaries of weather have also limited the penetration of crop and livestock production insurance schemes, selectively starting down the value chain in storage and trading activities (AU-NEPAD, 2022). Smallholder farmers have also not managed to optimally take advantage of the premium prices obtained from exporting organically grown agri-commodities due to lack of ability and skills in setting up a reliable system for certification and traceability (Nyambo, Patrick, et.al., 2022[xiii]).
What should be done to encourage private sector investment to complement public sector investment?
This CS04 report has shown that there is a high market potential for expanded exportation of agrifood commodities (Intracen, 2022[xiv]: ITC, 2023[xv]). These include traditional cash crops such as cocoa, and emerging commodities like banana, cassava and goat meat, which historically have been regarded as non-tradable goods as they were used as subsistence and staple food items. Private sector investors, both local and international, can be mobilized and motivated to collaborate with governments, as part of public-private partnerships (PPP), to set up licensed improved seed multiplication farms, farm mechanization centres, input credit supply to smallholder farmers, warehousing services, and commodity auction systems.
Breaking the cycle of government and donor dependence by smallholder farmers?
Organizing farmers in stronger well governed cooperative societies and apex cooperative unions can entice the banking sector to provide loans to farmers through these farmer-based institutions. This should, however, happen parallel to financial sector reforms that compel financial institutions to set aside a minimum proportion of gross income to agri-production lending and promoting climate-indexed insurance schemes.
Dr.H. Bohela Lunogelo, ESRF MATS Project CSO4 Team Leader and Mr.Maximillan Yanda, Researcher at the Economic and Social Research Foundation
[i] Golin, Douglas (2014). Smallholder agriculture in Africa: An overview and implications for policy. Posted on: IIED.pdf:
[ii] Kamala, Alie; Abdul Konte; Edward Rhodes; and Ricard Coo (2019). The Relevance of Smallholder Farming to African Agricultural Growth and Development. In: African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development 19(01):14043-14065. DOI:10.18697/ajfand.84.BLFB1010. February 2019.
[iii]Maryono, Maryono, Aditya M Killoes, Rajendra Adhikari and Ammar A. Aziz. Agriculture development through multi-stakeholder partnerships in developing countries: A systematic literature review. In: Agricultural Systems. Volume 213. January 2024, 103792. Posted on: www.sceiencedirect.com/science/articile/pii/SO308521X2300197X.
[iv] Agrictoday.com.gh (2023). (Donors supporting about 40% of Ghana’s agric production expenditure is a great threat. Posted on: Donors supporting about 40% of Ghana’s agric production expenditure is a great threat. | AgricToday
[v] World Bank (2017). Ghana: Agricultural Sector Policy Note. Transforming Agriculture for Economic Growth, Job Creation and Food Security. June 2017. Posted on: World Bank Document
[vi] OECD (2023). Geographical Distribution of Financial Flows to Developing Countries 2023: Disbursements, Commitments, Country Indicators (oecd-ilibrary.org)
[vii] Southern Voice (2020). The Future of Agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa. Paper by Suwadu Sakho-Jimbira and Ibrahima Hathie. In: Policy Brief No.2. April 2020. Posted on: www.IFAD.org: future_agriculture_sahara_e-pdf
[viii] AU 2003 Maputo Declaration on Agriculture and Food Security | AUDA-NEPAD
[ix] The Malabo Declaration on Accelerated Agricultural Growth and Transformation for Shared Prosperity and Improved Livelihoods. Posted: as Malabo Declaration on Agriculture in Africa – Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries, Uganda Government
[x] Bearing in mind that African countries spend about USD 90 billion to import food that could be easily produced locally (Oxfam, 2024) as stated in the article titled: African states slash agriculture budgets amidst a worsening food crisis | Oxfam International Pan Africa Program
[xii] 41573-doc-ENGLISH_3rd_CAADP_Biennial_Review_Report_final.pdf
[xiii] Patrick Nyambo, Peter Nyambo, Zira Mavunganidze and Violet Nyambo (2022). Food Security for African Smallholder Farmers. Chapter in: Sub-Saharan Africa Smallholder Farmers Agricultural Productivity: Risks and Challenges. First Online: 28 February 2022: pp 47–58:
[xiv] Intracen (2022). Export Potential Map (intracen.org) (figure 17-20)
[xv] ITC (2023). Trade Map 2023. Accessed from https://www.trademap.org/Country_Sel Product_TS.aspx?nvpm=1%7c%7c%7c%7c%7c0803%7c%7c%7c4%7c1%7c1%7c2%7c2%7c1%7c2%7c1%7c1%7c1