Tag: Agriculture

John Chikwenga, 44, of Mululu village in Balaka district in eastern Malawi thought his eyes were deceiving him when he saw his prize: a brand new tractor. He had suffered years of backache and sore muscles from tilling his fields with a hoe. ...

China’s approach to agricultural assistance in Africa differs markedly from those of other donors from Japan, Europe and the United States. While other countries frame their development programs under the larger of “aid,” the Chinese instead go out of their way ...

As COVID-19 spreads across the African continent, an African Union report has suggested that the outbreak could lead to a serious food security crisis in Africa, with as estimated 2.6% to 7% decline in agricultural production predicted for 2020. The FAO Director-General QU Dongyu has ...

It’s almost common knowledge that China is one of the main development partners of African countries. Like the other economic powerhouses of the world, China is implementing China-Africa partnerships, where, currently, the more visible interventions are related to infrastructure projects. ...

China has provided agricultural assistance to Africa for decades. Yet questions are frequently raised as to how its aid in Africa resembles those run by other development actors in terms of project assessment, management, monitoring, and evaluation. Recent developments, such as the establishment of the China International ...

Since I started working for a non-profit organization, one of the most frequently asked questions I get is: “so, if you’re giving out free money, how do you measure your success and failure?” This, of course, is a fair and relevant ...

As part of an effort to assist subsistence farmers in Zimbabwe, an initiative to expose them to viable agro-business models and farming practices has for the past four years taken the villagers to China for training to learn how they can contribute to the country's food security ...

Drive 35km south from Salima town, in the central region of Malawi you will see a signpost on the side of the road that reads “China Aid Malawi Agriculture Technology Development Centre”. And then you drive another 500 meters from ...

Zimbabwean farmers have long relied on traditional knowledge systems to read the climate and decide when to head for the fields at the start of what they consider the rainy season and prepare for planting. However, despite successive poor harvests caused ...

In August 2019 Melange Coffee Roasters, a family-owned Ethiopian coffee processing company inaugurated a new plant in Addis Ababa. With an investment of 1.37 million USD, the plant immediately began exporting processed, powdered packages of Ethiopia’s world-renowned coffee to China and South Africa. ...

One of the most prominent themes to emerge from all those Africa summits that take place around the world is the importance of replacing traditional aid programs with new private-sector-led trade and investment initiatives, specifically public-private partnerships (PPPs).

In 2006, the Chinese government began a program of delivering agricultural aid to Africa through establishing Agriculture Technology Demonstrations Centers (ATDC), aimed at stimulating local development and also promote Chinese commercial and diplomatic interests in Africa.  Some of these ATDCs have been beneficial, but many others are ...