The Commercialization of Agriculture and the Rise of Rural Political Protest in Black Africa

Abstract

Throughout the developing world, the commercialization of agriculture has been highly ambiguous in its effects. On the one hand, it has brought prosperity to rural farm families. On the other, it has produced political grievances and generated social conflict. These paradoxical consequences have been as true in Africa as they have elsewhere in the developing world. In this essay, I look at the relationship between the commercialization of agriculture and the rise of political protest, in that continent. And I do so by addressing the question: Why would rural dwellers find it reasonable to demand political action in support of their efforts to make themselves economically better off by seeking to take advantage of commercial markets for their products?