Africa’s story in the 21st century is often told in the language of progress—rising skylines, bustling megacities, and technological dreams. Today, the continent stands at a crossroads where glittering urban dreams collide with the haunting reality of empty fields. While skylines rise, agricultural lands fall silent, and food insecurity grows into one of Africa’s gravest threats. Looking through a forensic lens—where evidence, causation, and accountability matter—we uncover a sobering picture of systemic neglect and missed opportunities shaping Africa’s food security landscape.
Diagnosing the crisis
Food security—defined as reliable access to safe, nutritious, and sufficient food that is sustainable—remains fragile across much of Africa. Millions remain undernourished despite the continent holding 60% of the world’s uncultivated arable land. The contradiction is stark: Africa imports staples like wheat and rice while vast fields go untended.
A forensic reading of this crisis reveals patterns of neglect and systemic failure. As captured by Dr Nwodo in the book Forensic Lens on Africa’s Food Security Landscape, food insecurity is less a product of scarcity than of “structural choices that privilege urban modernity over rural resilience.”
The pull of urban dreams
Cities in Africa symbolize opportunity and progress. They offer jobs, infrastructure, and services. Yet these urban dreams often come at a cost. Young people are abandoning farming communities, lured by the promise of city life. This migration depletes not only labour but also indigenous agricultural knowledge passed down through generations.
Governments, too, invest disproportionately in urban infrastructure—roads, flyovers, and housing—while neglecting rural roads, irrigation, and storage facilities. This skewed development strategy creates a forensic trail of causation: as investments shift cityward, rural productivity declines, making food imports a default solution.
Urbanisation is not inherently bad. Cities bring innovation, jobs, and infrastructure. Yet the unchecked expansion of African cities often drains human capital from farms to concrete.
The reality of empty fields
Empty fields in Africa are not merely idle lands; they are metaphors of untapped potential. Poor mechanisation, limited access to finance, and weak agricultural research leave many farms underperforming. Land grabs and poorly regulated mineral mining concessions further displace smallholders, leaving tracts of land underutilised.
This “empty field” syndrome creates dependency, weakening sovereignty over food systems. It also increases vulnerability to global price shocks—exemplified by the COVID-19 pandemic and the Ukraine war, where supply chain disruptions left millions at risk of hunger.
Forensic attribution: Causes and accountability
From a forensic standpoint, identifying who or what is responsible is critical. Evidence suggests multiple factors:
- Policy neglect, with many governments falling short of the Maputo Declaration’s pledge to allocate 10 per cent of national budgets to agriculture.
- Limited adoption of climate-smart practices, leaving agriculture vulnerable to droughts, floods, and desertification.
- Corruption and weak institutional frameworks that undermine sustainable food policies.
- Failure to make agriculture attractive to the youth, leaving farming aged and stagnant.
These are not faceless issues—they are identifiable policy failures, institutional weaknesses, and missed investments.
The way forward: Towards justice and resilience
Forensic inquiry is not only about exposing failures; it is about building a case for change. Africa must reclaim its fields and transform them into engines of food sovereignty. The following interventions are essential:
- Rebalance investments in infrastructure by prioritising rural areas—irrigation, feeder roads, and storage facilities are as vital as city bridges.
- Empower youth and women through incentives, training, and technology that make farming innovative, profitable, and dignified.
- Adopt climate-smart agriculture using drought-resistant crops, efficient irrigation, and resilient farming systems.
- Strengthen forensic monitoring to create accountability systems that track agricultural spending and outcomes with precision.
- Promote regional trade and reserves to build collective resilience through shared food systems and integrated markets.
Food insecurity in Africa disproportionately affects the most vulnerable—women, children, persons with disabilities, prisoners, and those living in conflict zones—whose access to nutritious food is often limited by poverty, displacement, and systemic neglect. Ensuring their inclusion in food policies is not just a moral imperative but a measure of Africa’s collective resilience and justice.
Conclusion: Bridging the divide
Through a forensic lens, Africa’s food insecurity is not merely a humanitarian crisis—it is an issue of justice, accountability, and foresight. The evidence is clear: while cities grow taller, fields grow emptier. Without decisive interventions, Africa risks a future where urban dreams are built on the hunger of abandoned farmlands.
But with renewed commitment, evidence-based policy, and collective action, the continent can turn its empty fields into fertile grounds of hope, prosperity, and resilience. This is not just about feeding Africa today—it is about securing the continent’s tomorrow. And as every forensic investigator knows, the evidence—if acted upon—always points to the truth.
The writers are Forensic Experts
BY DR STACY NWODO AND DR LAWRENCE KOFI ACHEAMPONG
🔗 Follow Ghanaian Times WhatsApp Channel today. https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VbAjG7g3gvWajUAEX12Q
🌍 Trusted News. Real Stories. Anytime, Anywhere.
✅ Join our WhatsApp Channel now! https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VbAjG7g3gvWajUAEX12Q
