THE ROLE OF THE STATE IN AGRARIAN DEVELOPMENT IN AFRICA
Africa has one of the largest areas in farmland they occupy a large scale farm products to the export market, there are millions of farmers all over the land and people are highly depending on agricultural crops. They are one of the largest producers of wine products around the world including sugar, nectarine, maize and grape fruit. They are also mass producing live stocks and dairy products. These activities have provided livelihood and employment for millions of African people around their countries and they respectively represent the minority ethnic groups or poor citizens but highly contributed to the government gross national revenue.
This has been the reason why the states of Africa have been recreating several agricultural reforms as early as the year 2000 this includes the land reform variation and the agricultural deregulation law. The government is hoping that they can earn more with the coming of investments from other countries including countries from Asia, Europe and the United State, but it has created an argument and protest against its people through which according to the farmers such law is static and in favor with other countries and this largely affect the livelihood of people.
The people fear that by as early 2010 to 2014 the larger pieces of land will soon be promoted to other nationalities including Chinese, Indians and other government who has the money to lease such lands and the production that should be given to the country will be used by the foreign nationalities to their advantage and they are the ones who controlled the farmers which is usually coming from the local ethnic groups of African which according to them they are the laborers in their own native land and the foreigners are their masters. The question is who really benefit from this situation, is it the government or the foreign nationalities? These create too much competition from other countries and they being the poor citizens are usually the ones to suffer. The issue of employment and livelihood is at risk.
Another argument is the Issue in South Africa by which their government has marginally set the transfer of at least 30% of their farm production to the American, European and other nations and this has been the long practiced of history during the past decades of 1890’s Lancaster House Agreement who ruled their government subconsciously by the white people enacting them as slaves. Former Deputy Secretary Phumzile Mlambo Ngcuka has made a comment on this that it is happening again.
But despite the criticism the race of the foreign nationalities continue to make interest in their land. By the year 2002 the government has even provide a bill of foreign protectionism that will further ensure that such regional and multi-lateral negotiation will continue as well as the price control from various agricultural products are also consider to regulate its price. In the eyes of the farmers that this is a bargain of the government not just in its people but also in its products through this situation the poverty stricken community will also continue or perhaps in their perception will even worsen.
Another major argument that have risen is the favor of reforms that is highly expensive, according to the government that the US has paid at least Billion Dollars in subsidies as early as 2001 but according to the farmers they have gotten more than what they have paid for and they have sold their products in a much more larger prices. This same goes for the Europeans and other countries that their payments has been allocated for the budget of the farmers for only about 25% in fertilizer and other utilities, the question of budget allocation again seems to favor foreign countries and the government but not its people.
Tariff is another issue since crops receive disproportionate support that has becoming a free trade barriers, this will again favor the American and European nations to easily reached their products and sell them a higher price, that is why they have been so concerned with the protectionism law to further establish same countries in Africa for domination. Another issue in agriculture is the climate change which the drought and water level reduction from water sources are limited and it can be reduced by more than 50% but the government has supported the use of sustainable development to preserve the natural resources with the help of foreign government and their country together with the assistance of Non Government Organizations including (UNESCO) and United Nations.
They have created a sustainable plan to generate power plants such as solar panels and wind energy to produce electricity that will provide water resources and environmental preservation as early as 2000 but this is only limited to certain areas and will soon be presented to other communities. This can largely increase the environmental protection and water resource accordingly so there should be enough for the years to come. There are more other issues held by the farmers in Africa each year from various countries or state they represent and usually their concerns are the foreign countries, they are hoping that their government will take the initiative to listen to their argument since the life of their children is at stake here.
Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com
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