Policy Processes
Central to the work of the consortium is an understanding of policy processes surrounding agriculture in the regional/country settings where we work. This requires a look at how agriculture and farming is understood in policy circles and what bureaucratic, political, budgetary and other processes either prioritise or downplay agriculture.
The policy processes theme work will explore the relative influence of domestic politics and external factors (e.g. aid, regional economic/political integration, the CAADP process) on policy outcomes and how these different influences interact. Key questions we are addressing under this theme include: :
- What are the politics of agricultural policy processes in different national settings? How do regional and international processes impinge?
- What is the contemporary role for and position of Ministries of Agriculture? How does this affect the organisation and perception of the sector?
- What is the contemporary role for and position of Ministries of Agriculture? How does this affect the organisation and perception of the sector?
- How are farmers’ perspectives articulated in policy? Through what organisations, forums and political processes?
Latest articles
Improving processes & advice for African agricultural policy
October 29, 2014 / Policy Processes On 11-13 June 2014, a three-day learning event was held in Ghana, discussing agriculture policy, its impact on agriculture performance and the political economy surrounding African agricultural policy processes. A report, programme, presentation slides and video from the event are
New special issue of ‘Development Policy Review’
September 23, 2014 / Policy Processes A new open access issue of the journal Development Policy Review: ‘The Political Economy of Agricultural Policy in Africa’, has been published. Agricultural development is often seen as a technical issue, but Future Agricultures work has highlighted the politics and
CAADP: how can Africa’s agricultural development be sustained?
July 7, 2014 / Policy Processes An event in the UK Houses of Parliament on ‘The future of African Agriculture and CAADP’ will be held on 15 July. Colin Poulton, convenor of the Policy Processes theme of Future Agricultures, will be discussing new research on the
Does CAADP need more political economy?
April 2, 2014 / Policy Processes On our blog, Blessings Chinsinga reports back from CAADP's 10th Partnership Platform in Durban. Among many positive discussions about the future of farming in Africa, is there a need for a new focus on the political economy of agriculture? Blog:
G8: A recipe for solving hunger?
June 10, 2013 / Policy Processes As the G8 prepares to discuss transparency, hunger and nutrition, the approaches on the table have crucial implications for African agricultural policy. In a new blog post, Ian Scoones asks if the political dimensions of the global food system are
Media competition: Winners announced
February 27, 2013 / Policy Processes We're delighted to announce the winners of our Africa-wide journalism competition on the politics and processes that influence agricultural investment in Africa. The winners are: Print category: Oluyinka Alawode (Nigeria) Audio category: George Kalungwe (Malawi) We had over 40 submissions
Chicken and politics mix in Ghana
November 28, 2012 / Policy Processes A post on the STEPS Centre blog by Future Agricultures researchers Jim Sumberg and John Thompson looks at the politics of chicken in Ghana, with elections just around the corner. 70,900 metric tons of frozen chicken were imported into the
Interview: Does democracy lead to pro-poor agriculture?
November 13, 2012 / Policy Processes The process of democratisation does not always create better pro-poor agricultural policy in Africa. The Africa Portal has published an interview with FAC researcher Colin Poulton on whether democratisation in Africa leads to more pro-poor agricultural policy. The interview comes
South Sudan: caught in a trap?
October 2, 2012 / Policy Processes In a seminar at the Institute of Development Studies on 1 October, Dr Luka Biong Deng discussed South Sudan's uneasy relationship with oil and some ways to understand the country's future (audio and slides are below). The excitement of recent