In 2003, African Heads of State made a commitment to invest at least 10% of their national budgets into agriculture by 2015. Many countries are still far from reaching this percentage. And those who have, such as Burkina Faso, are investing in biotechnology, large-scale use of chemical fertilizers, mechanisation, irrigation, pesticides and genetically modified … Read more

The UN’s decade of education for sustainable development (2005-2014) has brought few benefits for the rural population in the Sahel. Most of the region’s education programmes are inadequate, discriminating against girls and not taking into account the differing social, cultural and economic contexts. Yet it is also possible to find many effective strategies. Fatou Batta … Read more

In today’s globalised world it is often hard for small-scale producers to access such markets on equitable terms. Development agencies need to make sure that the concerns of these farmers are taken into account in national policies, argues Fatou Batta. Most family farmers produce both for their own consumption and for local and regional markets. … Read more

(March 2013) Fatou Batta looks at the key role women play in African agriculture.They do more than 70% of the work on the land, and are responsible for almost all processing activities. But do we understand clearly enough the roles of rural women farmers? How can we provide women with strategic support that can enable … Read more