Agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa: Prospects and challenges for the next decade

This chapter reviews the prospects and challenges facing the agricultural sector in Sub-Saharan Africa over the next decade. It reviews sector performance, outlines the current market context, provides detailed quantitative medium term projections for the ten-year period 2016-25, and assesses key risks and uncertainties. The outlook for agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa is situated in the context of several mega-trends that shape the sector’s development. These include rapid population growth, urbanisation and rural diversification, an associated structural transformation from farm to non-farm employment, a growing middle class, and increasing interest (both domestically and globally) in the continent’s farmland. The Outlook for agriculture is broadly positive, but could be further enhanced by consistent policies and strategic investments, in particular in rural infrastructure.