Why Africa's Food Supply Needs A Regional Approach

By disrupting international supply chains, the COVID-19 pandemic has triggered much debate about the need for deglobalization. This presents an ideal opportunity for Africa to explore the regionalization of agribusiness on the continent, writes Louis van Ravesteyn, head of Agri-Business Pan Africa within the Personal and Business Banking division at Standard Bank Group.

- Louis van Ravesteyn

As supply chains around the world are disrupted and the demand for certain types of food decreases in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak, questions have begun to emerge about Africa’s capacity to ensure food security for its citizens.

While parts of the continent have faced recent food production challenges due to droughts, floods and locust swarms, Africa continues to have enough staple food to feed the majority of its citizens, thanks to local farmers and imports from other parts of the world.

The outbreak of COVID-19, however, has highlighted the need for the continent to concentrate its efforts on becoming self-sufficient in the production of certain food, such as wheat, maize, rice and proteins, as well as value-addition and the processing of raw materials.

FROM GLOBAL TO REGIONAL

More formalised or efficient value chains in other parts of the world mean that countries in Africa will continue to import certain food, but thanks to the current global outlook, there is an opportunity for Africa to refocus and benefit from the competitive advantages that exist on the continent, such as arable land, affordable labour, and, in some regions, good rainfall.

Agriculture remains the sector with the most potential to drive growth in Africa, especially sub-Saharan Africa. The sector employs 70% of the continent’s population and contributes about 23% to GDP.