Smallholder farmers in Africa face a number of challenges that negatively affect their productivity.
These farmers, who cultivate plots of land often smaller than two hectares, are burdened by immense challenges that limit them to barely producing enough food to keep their own families alive.
These challenges increase the threat of poverty, hunger and malnutrition. The lack of sufficient nutrition leads to obesity and related illnesses such as diabetes in adults and stunted physical and mental development in children. But the challenges do not stop there.
“Food security is inextricably linked to broader global challenges, so we must work to solve them in parallel,” said Janet Yellen, US Secretary of the Treasury, at the World Economic Forum’s Sustainable Development Impact Meeting in New York in September 2023.
“Pandemics lower income. Conflict disrupts supply chains. Climate change poses risks to entire agricultural systems. So, combatting food insecurity also depends on broader efforts to address these global challenges.”
Challenges
Challenges include climate change, the lack of access to finance, poor infrastructure, lack of competitiveness, and a low adoption rate of technology and innovation.
Climate change
Climate change, which include weather phenomena such as high temperatures, droughts, bush fires, floods, soil salinity and erosion, and the shift in the onset and end of the rainy season, is a major challenge to Africa’s smallscale farmers. These phenomena have negative impacts on crop yields and livestock production and, directly influence food security.
Smallholder farmers need to adapt to climate variability so that they can develop resilience to climate shocks. This can be done by implementing sustainable approaches to food production, like planting cover crops, which not only improve soil fertility and ensure efficient land and water use, but also protect biodiversity.
Governments can help by coordinating across the agricultural subsectors of crops, livestock, forestry, as well as the water, energy and infrastructure sectors to capitalise on potential synergies, reduce trade-offs and optimise the use of natural resources and ecosystem services.
Access to finance
Access to finance is key to improving the productivity and livelihoods of smallholder farmers, who are mostly poor with little or no productive capital assets, be it natural, physical, financial, or human.
For these farmers, financial capital or cash is extremely limited, as they are unable to make real investments to improve production. They cannot obtain the capital they need to buy improved seeds, chemical fertiliser, herbicides and pesticides.
Poor infrastructure
Lack of access to good infrastructure, including road networks, as well as storage and marketing facilities, limit the farmers’ ability to transport produce to markets. They also do not have access to farm-related information.
Most of them do not have storage or processing facilities, nor transport to reach markets or distribute their produce, which leads to high postharvest losses. Also, they do not have access to farm inputs, which are either non-existent or delayed, and therefor unreliable.
As a result, production and supply are inconsistent and rob the farmers of bargaining power to achieve higher profits. Often, they receive even less for their products by selling them at their farm gates.
Improving rural infrastructure like roads is essential for raising productivity by reducing transport costs and the loss of perishable produce. (Source: Pixabay)
Lack of competitiveness
Because of their inability to meet international sanitary and phytosanitary regulations and product quality certification standards, they cannot compete in international markets.
Those who do have the capacity to sell internationally, must be able to export products that meet the minimum standards required by importing countries or enterprises, and they must be price-competitive in international markets.
In general, it is difficult, if not impossible, for smallholders to enter international markets in developed countries without the assistance of private/public sector and donor agencies.
Low adoption rate of technology and innovation
Most smallholder farmers on the continent are still using traditional tools and equipment, which contribute to low productivity. They are slow to adopt new technology, despite government policies or international development partners trying to raise awareness about it.
Unless smallholder farmers adapt to modern technology, the expectations of adequately providing food security for the continent’s increasing population will not be met.
Yet, in some countries where farmers do make use of digital solutions such as smartphones, sensors and satellites connected through the internet and combined with big data analytics, their personal and farm data may be compromised by a lack of security measures in this regard.
These farmers get information about farming methods, market access and financial services, but in the process also provide data about their farming site, operations and commercial transactions, which may be used without their consent and to their disadvantage by the service providers, who are poorly regulated.
Changes that define property rights, also for women, ensure the security of land tenure, and enable land to be used as collateral, will be necessary to realise potential productivity gains. (Source: Pixabay)
Eight strategies to boost productivity
According to the African Development Bank (AfDB), a multilateral development finance institution based in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, since September 2014, there are eight factors that could increase productivity. The results are proven by successful application.
- Developing high-yield crops
Increased research into plant breeding for Africa’s unique soil types, is regarded as essential. For every one dollar invested in research, the returns will be six dollars, according to AfDB. - Boosting irrigation
The increasing effect of climate change and unpredictable weather patterns necessitates more irrigation. The average yields of irrigated farms are 90% higher than those of rain-fed farms in the same area. - Increased usage of fertilisers
To counter deteriorating soil fertility, more fertilisers must be used. Governments must ensure that the right type of fertilisers at the right price and at the right times are available. In addition, farmers must be provided with information on the subject – in East Africa, training programmes boosted average incomes by 61%. Climate-smart farming that protect the soil while increasing fertility, must also be applied. - Improved market access, regulations, and governance
Improving rural infrastructure like roads is essential for raising productivity by reducing transport costs and the loss of perishable produce. - Better use of information technology
Information technology can support the selection of better and more suitable crops, fertilisers and pesticides, better land and water management, access to weather information and sources of credit. Information about crop prices in different markets can increase these farmers’ bargaining power. Mobile crop information services can boost the incomes of smallholder farmers by 10 to 30%, the AfDB found. - Adopting genetically modified (GM) crops
Despite resistance from overseas customers and some African governments, GM crops that are resistant to weather phenomena like drought and heat can provide an opportunity to address food insecurity. - Reforming land ownership
Africa has the highest area of arable uncultivated land in the world, yet most farmers cultivate less than two hectares. This is often the result of poor land governance and ownership. According to the AfDB, land reform in Africa has had mixed results. Changes that define property rights, also for women, ensure the security of land tenure, and enable land to be used as collateral, will be necessary to realise potential productivity gains. - Facilitating integration
As a result of growing international supermarket chains, African economies have gradually diversified from traditional cash crops to fruits, vegetables, fish, and flowers. However, lack of access to finance and poor infrastructure have slowed progress. Government support is crucial to coordinate the integration of smallholder farmers into larger cooperatives and groups.
The implementation of these eight sustainable strategies can boost smallholders’ productivity and enable them to feed the growing African population in the face of the looming food crisis.
Information technology can support the selection of better and more suitable crops, fertilisers and pesticides. (Source: Pixabay)
Resources
Baumüller, H., Chichaibelu, B.B. (2024) Data protection is poor for African farmers who use digital services: Kenya and Ghana cases highlight gaps. The Conversation
https://theconversation.com/data-protection-is-poor-for-african-farmers-who-use-digital-services-kenya-and-ghana-cases-highlight-gaps-235221 utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Latest%20from%20The%20Conversation%20for%20August%205%202024%20 %203055431157&utm_content=Latest%20from%20The%20Conversation%20for%20August%205%202024%20-%203055431157+CID_5639283bec616d242dca8f3a0e6b5718&utm_source=campaign_monitor_africa&utm_term=Data%20protection%20is%20poor%20for%20African%20farmers%20who%20use%20digital%20services%20Kenya%20and%20Ghana%20cases%20highlight%20gaps
Kamara, A., Conteh, A., Rhodes, E.R., Cooke, R.A. (2019) The Relevance of Smallholder Farming to African Agricultural Growth and Development. African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development 19(01):14043-14065 February 2019 19(01):14043-14065 DOI:10.18697/ajfand.84.BLFB1010
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/330826572_The_Relevance_of_Smallholder_Farming_to_African_Agricultural_Growth_and_Development
Ogega, O.M., Korsten, L., Oti-Boateng, P. et al. (2024) How to transform Africa’s food system. Commun Earth Environ 5, 82 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-024-01250-9 https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-024-01250-9#citeas
Smallholder Farmers: The Catalysts for Sustainable Food Production in Africa (2022) Agribusiness Education and Research International https://agribusinessedu.com/smallholder-farmers-the-catalysts-for-sustainable-food-production-in africa/#:~:text=From%20food%20and%20cash%20crop%20production%20to%20livestock,chemical%20fertilizers%2C%20or%20other%20seed%20varieties%20%28FAO%2C%202020%29
Whiting, K. (2023) Four steps to boosting food security in Africa, according to experts. World Economic Forum https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2023/09/boosting-food-security-africa-experts/
