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‘Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa is a major assault on seed sovereignty’
The Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa aims to revolutionize farming in Africa by various interventions including supporting research, farmer seed and fertilizer access and in various other ways.
Based in Kenya and chaired by Ghanaian former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, the organization is funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. That automatically gave it deep pockets and prestige, making the organization an important agenda setter in African agriculture. But those who are opposed to ‘green revolution’ thinking look at the organization not as a welcome help to Africa’s agricultural challenges, but instead as a new threat.
Indian activist Vandana Shiva is a strong critic of green revolution effects in her country. She is one of the most prominent voices to warn African countries against repeating what she feels are the dangers of the technological efforts that raised agricultural yields in Asia, but at a human and environmental cost that some argue is unacceptable.
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