Latest Resources

26 July 2019

Gene Drive Organisms in Africa: Civil Society Speaks Out

On Monday 1st July 2019, Target Malaria announced the release of 6400 genetically modified (GM) sterile male mosquitoes in Bana, a village in Burkina Faso – the first GM insects to be released in Africa. This is Phase I – by Phase III, Target Malaria aims to release gene drive mosquitoes. Gene drives are based […]

12 July 2019

Burkinabé Bounty connects the resistance of smallholder farmers on the African continent

Burkinabé Bounty connects the resistance of smallholder farmers on the African continent Sabrina Masinjila, ACB’s Outreach and Advocacy officer based in Tanzania, organised a group of farmers to attend a screening of this film at the Zanzibar International Film Festival. She reflects on the experience. The role of art and music to express cultural and […]

8 July 2019

Seed and gene banks play a critical role in conserving and sharing indigenous crop seeds

On a trip to Harare for partnership exploration meetings, the African Centre for Biodiversity visited the Genetic Resources and Biotechnology Institute of Zimbabwe. Gene banks such as these are primarily established to conserve the genetic resources that form the basis for all food production. Seed collections start at the level of community seed banks and […]

5 July 2019

Post Cyclone Idai: Farming practices for resilience to withstand extreme weather events

Ranked as one of the worst tropical storms to hit Africa, Cyclone Idai made landfall in central Mozambique on 15 March, before moving on to Malawi and Zimbabwe. The district of Chimanimani in Zimbabwe was one of the worst-hit areas. On a recent trip to Zimbabwe, ACB spoke to representatives of three organisations that work […]

17 May 2019

Neoliberals capture South African smallholder farmer support policy

Ideological and factional divisions and contradictions between neoliberals, ‘patrons’ and progressives have manifested in South Africa’s smallholder farmer support policy. This was evident at a national stakeholder consultation held by the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) in April 2019. The policy is meant to support marginalised producers. But it has been thoroughly captured […]

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 […]

28 March 2019

Cyclone Idai’s warning – Shift to agroecological systems that work with nature or suffer more dev...

Ranked as one of the worst tropical storms on record to hit Africa, Cyclone Idai made landfall in Beira on Thursday 15 March, before lacerating its way across central Mozambique and then on towards neighbouring Malawi and Zimbabwe. Heavy rains, flooding and storm damage has resulted in devastation on a vast scale. It is estimated […]

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 […]

8 March 2019

Urgent call for African food sovereignty movements to connect with radical feminist movements on ...

This article was first published on the Inter Press Service Agency, on March 8, as part of its coverage of International Women’s Day. Africa is facing dire times. Climate change is having major impacts on the region and on agriculture in particular, with smallholder farmers, and especially women, facing drought, general lack of water, shifting […]