Posted on January, 26, 2023 at 03:01 am
The disruption of grain deliveries from Ukraine can be a chance for African countries to step up food production at home, the African Union’s Commissioner for rural economy and agriculture, Josefa Sacko, told EURACTIV in an interview.
While pressures on global food prices had relaxed somewhat by the start of this year according to data from the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 had a major impact on international agricultural markets.
As Ukraine and Russia together made up significant shares of worldwide grain and oilseed exports, countries dependent on imported wheat and other products were hit hard by disruptions and price spikes.
North African countries like Egypt, Algeria, or Tunisia, but also sub-Saharan states including Nigeria, Kenya, and Benin have been particularly affected, Sacko explained.
Speaking to EURACTIV Germany on the sidelines of the Berlin Agriculture Ministers Conference on Saturday (21 January), she warned that food shortages and high prices pose a high risk of social unrest in many African countries.
“In Africa, we are very vulnerable to such conflicts,” she said while pointing to the beginning of the Arab Spring in Egypt, where protests were triggered in 2010 by high bread prices.
The disruption of grain deliveries from Ukraine can be a chance for African countries to step up food production at home, the African Union’s Commissioner for rural economy and agriculture, Josefa Sacko, told EURACTIV in an interview.
While pressures on global food prices had relaxed somewhat by the start of this year according to data from the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 had a major impact on international agricultural markets.
As Ukraine and Russia together made up significant shares of worldwide grain and oilseed exports, countries dependent on imported wheat and other products were hit hard by disruptions and price spikes.
North African countries like Egypt, Algeria, or Tunisia, but also sub-Saharan states including Nigeria, Kenya, and Benin have been particularly affected, Sacko explained.
Speaking to EURACTIV Germany on the sidelines of the Berlin Agriculture Ministers Conference on Saturday (21 January), she warned that food shortages and high prices pose a high risk of social unrest in many African countries.
“In Africa, we are very vulnerable to such conflicts,” she said while pointing to the beginning of the Arab Spring in Egypt, where protests were triggered in 2010 by high bread prices.
The disruption of grain deliveries from Ukraine can be a chance for African countries to step up food production at home, the African Union’s Commissioner for rural economy and agriculture, Josefa Sacko, told EURACTIV in an interview.
While pressures on global food prices had relaxed somewhat by the start of this year according to data from the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 had a major impact on international agricultural markets.
As Ukraine and Russia together made up significant shares of worldwide grain and oilseed exports, countries dependent on imported wheat and other products were hit hard by disruptions and price spikes.
North African countries like Egypt, Algeria, or Tunisia, but also sub-Saharan states including Nigeria, Kenya, and Benin have been particularly affected, Sacko explained.
Speaking to EURACTIV Germany on the sidelines of the Berlin Agriculture Ministers Conference on Saturday (21 January), she warned that food shortages and high prices pose a high risk of social unrest in many African countries.
“In Africa, we are very vulnerable to such conflicts,” she said while pointing to the beginning of the Arab Spring in Egypt, where protests were triggered in 2010 by high bread prices.
Source: EURACTIV