Africa-Press – Gambia. With over 60 percent of the world’s uncultivated arable land, Africa should not be importing most of its grain, right? Ten years ago a World Bank report said “Africa’s farmers can potentially grow enough food to feed the continent and avert future food crises.”
Yet today that potential is still far from being reached. In fact, the UN is warning that a devastating drought in the Horn of Africa could worsen as a fifth consecutive rainy season is predicted to fail. That leaves 22 million people at risk of starvation, including in some agricultural hubs.
DW correspondent Edith Kimani visited farmers in Kenya’s bread basket to see how they are coping with the emerging shocks.
And on the other side of the continent, seeking crop alternatives could also be a way forward, as wheat remains in short supply. Senegal buys half of its wheat from Russia and six percent from Ukraine, but the ongoing war has hampered those imports and sent prices up.
It’s prompted a push in the West African nation for the adoption of more locally sourced cereals.
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