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By JIMOH BABATUNDE, Maputo, Mozambique The President of the Alliance for Green revolution in Africa (AGRA), Jane Karuku, has said that for Africa to be able to feed itself and  for its farm produce to be competitive in international market there is  need to use both organic and inorganic fertilizer. Speaking ahead of the opening ceremony of the African Green Revolution Forum here in Maputo Tuesday, Karuku said AGRA believes in generating homegrown solutions to Africa´s food security challenges through building capacity across the whole agricultural value chain. Karuku explained that the usage of fertilizer in Africa is so low that there is need to accept that we must use fertilizer to grow productivity and that African farmers must be brave enough to break the circle by using both organic and inorganic fertilizer. "Africa's soils are in trouble. Continuous farming without replenishing soil nutrients has depleted three-quarters of farmland. Without access to fertilizers and org...

By JIMOH BABATUNDE in Maputo, Mozambique Leading figures and experts including African heads of states, farmers and business leaders, are already in Maputo, Mozambique to attend the African Green Revolution Forum (AGRF) which opens tomorrow. This year’s forum will be focusing on the scaling up and financing inclusive agribusiness through transformative public private partnerships. The forum put together by the Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) will also be used to launch the Africa Agriculture Status Report, published by the body. Developed and written in association with a range of agricultural experts from leading research and academic organisations, the Africa Agricultural Status Report presents a comprehensive assessment of agriculture in Africa, looking at progress, challenges and opportunities all along the value chain. Speaking on the three day event, Director, Communication of AGRA, Sylvia Mwichuli, said the report that will be launch tomorrow will provide independ...