Latest Resources
2 August 2021
The violence of agrarian extractivism in Ethiopia
Locusts, state authoritarianism and webs of US imperialism We are pleased to share you with our latest discussion paper in our “Multiple shocks in Africa series”. We show how the locust swarms that hit the Horn of Africa over the course of 2020 were yet another in a series of shocks already battering smallholders in […]
18 August 2020
Registration of farmers’ varieties in SADC
Key Issues emerging from the dialogue between CSOs and SADC, African governments August 2020 The registration of farmer varieties is a controversial issue. On the one hand, it is argued that registration facilitates accessible opportunities and benefits for local farmers, such as increasing visibility of varieties, promotion and protection of indigenous knowledge, and opportunities for […]
29 May 2019
ACB’s Commentary on An Africa-Europe Agenda for Rural Transformation: Report by the Task Force Ru...
The European Union (EU) is in the process of defining a new set of priorities in the African agricultural and food sectors, through the proposed implementation of the EU-Africa Alliance for Sustainable Investment and Jobs. Their Task Force for Rural Africa published a report with draft recommendations, which is oriented towards promoting the capitalist transformation […]
16 April 2019
Agroecology as an alternative (Video four of a four-part series)
In August 2018, the Rural Women’s Assembly (RWA) and the African Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) hosted a speak-out for SADC smallholder farmers in Windhoek, Namibia, on Farm Input Subsidy Programmes (FISPs). FISPs are government agricultural programmes that promote Green Revolution inputs produced by multinational corporations, such as chemical fertilizers. In Ghana, for example, up to […]
20 March 2019
Alternatives to FISP: Farm Input Subsidy Programmes in Africa
In August 2018, the Rural Women’s Assembly (RWA) and the African Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) hosted a speak-out for SADC smallholder farmers in Windhoek, Namibia, on Farm Input Subsidy Programmes (FISPs). FISPs are government agricultural programmes that promote the use of Green Revolution inputs produced by multinational corporations. These top-down packages have proven to be […]
13 March 2019
Experiences of FISP: Farm Input Subsidy Programmes in Africa
In August 2018, the Rural Women’s Assembly (RWA) and the African Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) hosted a speak-out for SADC smallholder farmers in Windhoek, Namibia, on Farm Input Subsidy Programmes (FISPs). FISPs are government agricultural programmes that promote the use of Green Revolution inputs produced by multinational corporations. Farmers were not properly consulted about their […]
5 March 2019
WHY FARMERS FIND FISP PROBLEMATIC (Part 1 of 4 videos)
In August 2018, The Rural Women’s Assembly (RWA) and the African Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) hosted a speak-out with SADC smallholder farmers in Windhoek, Namibia, on Farm Input Subsidy Programmes (FISPs). FISPs are government agricultural programmes to promote the use of Green Revolution inputs (hybrid seed, synthetic fertilizer and agro-chemicals) produced by multinational corporations. WHY […]
17 September 2018
The SADC PVP Protocol: Blueprint for uptake of UPOV 1991 in Africa
In the recently published discussion paper, ‘The SADC PVP Protocol: Blueprint for uptake of UPOV 1991 in Africa’, Sabrina Masinjila and Mariam Mayet, provide an updated critique on the regional Plant Variety Protection (PVP) system developed under the auspices of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) – the SADC PVP protocol – adopted by the […]
10 September 2018
Report from SADC regional farmer speak out on farm input subsidy programmes
Rural Women’s Assembly (RWA) and African Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) jointly hosted a meeting of farmers and civil society organisations (CSOs) in August 2018 to share views and experiences on farm input subsidy programmes (FISPs) and public sector support for agroecology in the region. About 140 participants from Namibia, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Zambia, Malawi, […]
13 August 2018
Farm input subsidy programme (FISP) info pamphlet
This pamphlet offers a quick background on the FISPs and the key issues and concerns. It explains what FISPs are, their aims, why the FISPs are failing to meet their objectives, how they promote small-scale farmer dependency, and ways of transitioning out of FISPs towards more appropriate forms of smallholder farmer support. African Centre for […]