Browsing: Role of sustainable agriculture in African food security

• Irrigation in Africa has the potential to essentially double agricultural productivity.
• In Sub-Saharan Africa, irrigation is a key factor in achieving food security, yet it remains vastly under-utilised.
• FAO advises that each African country assess its irrigation potential as the basis for planning sustainable food production.

Irrigation in Africa has the potential to essentially double agricultural productivity, boosting output by up to 50 per cent. This optimistic evaluation is provided by the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO). However, even with this potential, FAO shares concerns that it is vastly underutilized, with agriculture in Africa remaining predominantly rain-fed.

“Although irrigation in Africa has the potential to boost agricultural productivity by at least 50 percent, food production on the continent is almost entirely rainfed,” reports FAO.

According to FAO data, the area under irrigation in Africa currently makes up just 6 percent of the total cultivated area. In Sub-Saharan Africa, irrigation …