Malawi heads to the polls on 16 September 2025, but beyond the politics, the bigger question is: can the next government fix the country’s deep economic and food crisis? Since the return of multiparty democracy in 1994, Malawi has built a reputation for peaceful elections and regular transfers of power. Citizens and institutions have…

The study, “From Farm to Futures: Competition, Financialization, and Digitalization in Global Grain Value Chains,” shines a spotlight on agricultural giants ADM, Bunge, Cargill, Louis Dreyfus Company, COFCO, and Olam — collectively known as ABCD+. These firms, it claims, have created a powerful oligopoly that dominates global grain trading, squeezing farmers and pushing up…

South Africa’s booming agricultural sector must expand into non-traditional markets if it is to remain competitive in a changing global economy. This was the key message from industry leaders at a side event during the G20 Agriculture Ministerial Meeting in Cape Town, hosted by First National Bank and partners. The gathering brought together top…

The Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) has strongly dismissed claims that cocoa farmers in Côte d’Ivoire earn higher farmgate prices than their Ghanaian counterparts, calling such assertions misleading and factually inaccurate. In a statement issued in Accra, COCOBOD reaffirmed its commitment to farmer welfare, cocoa sector sustainability, and Ghana’s leadership in the global cocoa industry.…

Ghana is at a crossroads in its agricultural journey, with two landmark investment agreements worth a combined $6.5 billion holding the potential to shift the nation from subsistence farming to a modern agro-industrial hub. Policy think tank IMANI Center for Policy and Education has praised the initiatives — Qatar’s $1.5 billion irrigated farming project…

Singapore-based agribusiness giant Olam has announced a $200 million investment in Ghana to expand agro-industrial projects, a move set to transform the country’s food sector. The pledge was revealed on August 29 by Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa after President John Mahama’s state visit to Singapore (August 26–28), where nearly $1 billion in…

When Cyclone Freddy tore through southern Malawi in 2023, it devastated farms and communities. For Alex Maere, a 59-year-old small-scale farmer in Sazola village near Mount Mulanje, the storm erased decades of hard work. Once producing over 850 kilograms of corn each season, Maere was left with only 8 kilograms after floods stripped away…

Southern African leaders are making a bold call for accelerated investment in agriculture and trade as the region battles intensifying climate shocks, rising food prices, and the urgent challenge of feeding a fast-growing population. This week, Zimbabwe is hosting the SADC Regional Hand-in-Hand Investment Forum, a three-day event uniting agriculture ministers, the Southern African…

Ghana’s agricultural sector is facing a critical challenge as maize imports are projected to rise by 67 percent for the 2025/26 season, potentially reaching 300,000 tonnes and threatening the livelihoods of thousands of local farmers. Dr. Amos Rutherford Azinu, founder of the Legacy Crop Improvement Centre, warns that this dramatic increase represents a tenfold…

Ghana is embarking on an ambitious plan to transform its agricultural sector by expanding irrigation, rehabilitating old facilities, and constructing new dams to ensure food and nutrition security. Speaking at the Sustainable Food System Summit in Accra, organized by the UN Global Compact, FAO, and key local partners, Minister for Food and Agriculture Bryan…