Ethiopia enjoyed a bumper maize harvest – so good in fact, that prices tumbled so far that many farmers simply left the grain in the fields.

Nalisha Kalideen interviews FIRMINO MUCAVELE, from Eduardo Mondlane University

In the rural areas of Mozambique increasing numbers of families are growing their own food and lifting themselves out of poverty.

Over the last decade the country has reduced rural poverty by 15 percent through agricultural growth. But the industry is still technologically underdeveloped and food harvests are still not sufficient to sustain an increasing population.

The Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) claims that its “stress breeding”, high-yield seed program…

KAMPALA, Jul 3 (IPS) – Africa must embrace agricultural biotechnology or risk being excluded from a major technological revolution that has had increased food production in the Europe, North America and Asia.

Professor Diran Makinde, director of the West African Biosciences Network and NEPAD Biosciences Initiative says that “Africa missed the Green Revolution, which helped Asia and Latin America achieve self-sufficiency in food production.

MAPLOTINI, Swaziland, Jul 5 (IPS) – What is the first step towards transforming life in a hardscrabble rural community? Address issues of water.

The Swaziland Water and Agricultural Development Enterprise (SWADE), a government parastatal, has injected new life into the community of Maplotini using an integrated water resources management approach.

Maplotini lies in the heart of the lowveld, which receives not more than 300 mm of rain per year.

Sustained investment in agriculture accompanied by effective and inclusive policies are key strategies for Southern Africa to address the global food crisis.

In an attempt to reduce rural poverty, Angola’s government plans to diversify its oil-focused economy by trying to restore the country’s once-booming agricultural sector.

“Linking Media with Agriculture and Development in Africa”

Inter Press Service (IPS) Africa will host a training workshop for journalists and produce a conference newspaper in Maputo, Mozambique, where more than two hundred government officials, professors, farmers and researchers from across Southern Africa are meeting next week to discuss agriculture and economic development.

IPS Africa has partnered with The Food Agriculture Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network (FANRPAN)…