Africa Agriculture

Tea and coffee are among Kenya’s most important export commodities and both have seen production and export values expand considerably in recent years. However, both segments are also heavily dependent on the international export market, leaving smallholder farmers vulnerable to volatility in world prices for the two crops.

As the country’s largest employer and contributor to foreign exchange, agriculture is a critical pillar of Kenya’s society and economy, and the sector has grown steadily in recent years, despite facing a host of challenges. Although staple crops and subsistence farming are critical to maintaining food security, Kenya is also the world’s largest exporter of black tea, and...

As the world’s second-largest producer of cocoa – behind only its neighbour Côte d’Ivoire – Ghana’s agricultural output and overall economy are dependent on production of the crop, which represents 57% of the sector’s export earnings and over 20% of total export earnings, and employs more than 800,000 farmers.

The palm oil industry is coming full circle in West Africa. The commodity was first produced in the region as early as the 16th century and commercial trade began in 1820. In the mid-19th century traders transported planting materials from Ghana to Asia, where the climate proved highly conducive for growth. The industry boomed in this new location, leaving Africa behind...

While there is plenty of fertile land available for agriculture in Ghana – an estimated 6.1m ha of its 13.6m ha of agricultural land is not cultivated at present – land acquisition remains a challenging process.