Battle For African Agriculture Podcast

What happens when farmers lead the transition to agroecology, and what does the economic evidence say? In this episode, Dr Million Belay (AFSA) talks with Tsuamba Bourgou of Groundswell International and economist Vanja of Altos Impact about a farmer-to-farmer movement in eastern Burkina Faso that has been growing for over a decade.

We look at the numbers from a study of more than 400 farmers. Yields rise from about 320 kg/ha to over 1,400 as practices are stacked. Advanced agroecological farmers out-produced their neighbours in one of the driest seasons on record. We also hear why fertilizer subsidies fail to deliver profit, and why agroecology returns about $5 for every $1 invested.

We also cover how village committees, quotas for women and youth, and government partnerships help the movement spread, why labour is the biggest barrier to the transition, and what policymakers must change to scale agroecology across West Africa.

Read the full impact assessment: https://www.groundswellinternational.org/blog/agroecology-pays-off-in-burkina-faso-new-study-shows-yield-gains-strong-financial-returns-despite-severely-dry-conditions/

Why are Western Kenya's soils so exhausted, and what happens when farmers stop waiting for outside help and start fixing the land themselves?

In this episode of The Battle for African Agriculture, Dr Million Belay, General Coordinator of the Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA), speaks with Ferdinand Wafula of Bio Gardening Innovations in Kenya. Ferdinand traces how agrochemicals, monocropping and a colonial legacy left farmland tired and farmers dependent, and how farmers are now restoring soil health by making their own fertiliser.

Guest: Ferdinand Wafula, Bio Gardening Innovations, Kenya

Host: Dr Million Belay, AFSA

In this episode, Dorothee Marie Lisenga shares how stories of struggle and resilience are being used to defend land rights, amplify Indigenous voices, and fight for justice and food sovereignty across Africa.

Dr Million Belay talks with Dolar Vasani, author of Pink Bucket, about how her cancer diagnosis led her to investigate glyphosate and our broken food system.

🎧 Battle for African Agriculture is on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Amazon Music.

#Glyphosate #FoodSystems #Agroecology #AFSA

Border wars: The fight against illegal pesticides

I smuggled to survive, the realities of women in cross-border trade

THEY WANT TO CONTROL AFRICA’S FOOD — AFRICA IS FIGHTING BACK

Wanjira Mathai on carrying her mother's Legacy through Food, Climate justice & the Environment.

Can social movements transform agriculture? In this episode of The Battle for African Agriculture, Million Belay sits down with renowned agroecologist Dr. Peter Rosset to explore how organized peasant movements in Cuba and across Latin America helped build one of the world's largest agroecology movements. Together, they examine why agroecology is more than a farming practice it is a science, a social movement, and a pathway to food sovereignty. Drawing on Cuba's remarkable transition during its food crisis, Peter shares powerful lessons on farmer-to-farmer learning, the limitations of industrial agriculture, and what Africa can learn from Latin America's experience in building resilient, people-centred food systems.

In this episode of The Battle for African Agriculture, Dr. Million Belay sits down with Professor Miguel Altieri, one of the world's foremost pioneers of agroecology, to explore why biodiversity is the foundation of resilient farming and why the future of agriculture depends on working with nature not against it. Drawing on more than four decades of research and collaboration with farmers and social movements across Latin America and beyond, Professor Altieri explains how agroecology strengthens food systems through biodiversity, healthy soils, traditional knowledge, and ecological resilience. He also reflects on the origins of agroecology, challenges the Green Revolution model, and shares practical lessons from his own agroecological farm in Colombia. They examine some of the biggest questions facing global agriculture today: Can agroecology feed the world? Why are monocultures becoming increasingly vulnerable to climate change? What role do seed sovereignty, food sovereignty, and farmer knowledge play in securing our future? This conversation offers valuable insights for farmers, policymakers, researchers, students, and anyone interested in building sustainable, just, and resilient food systems.

In this episode of The Battle for African Agriculture, Million Belay speaks with renowned agricultural biodiversity scientist Dr. Awegechew Teshome, whose work across Africa, Asia, and Latin America reveals why seeds are the foundation of food security, biodiversity, and sovereignty. Drawing on more than three decades of research, he explains how farmers have been the original innovators, developing resilient crops through generations of knowledge, selection, and conservation.

Together, they unpack the hidden battle over seed ownership, the impacts of the Green Revolution, the rise of seed patents and biotechnology, and why Africa's rich agricultural diversity is key to building resilient food systems. This conversation is a powerful call to protect farmers' knowledge, embrace biodiversity, and secure Africa's food future through agroecology and food sovereignty.

In this episode, Million Belay, together with Professor Stephen Gliessman explore why agroecology is far more than ecological farming it is a political, cultural, and social movement that challenges the structures shaping our food systems. For over five decades, Professor Stephen Gliessman has been at the forefront of agroecology, helping transform it into one of the world’s most influential approaches to sustainable food systems. Drawing on 50 years of research and collaboration with farmers, he reflects on the failures of industrial agriculture, the power of Indigenous and local knowledge, the importance of seed sovereignty and youth leadership, and why genuine transformation requires shifting power rather than simply improving farming techniques. They also unpack the famous Five Levels of Agroecology, showing how the biggest change happens when communities reclaim control over food, markets, knowledge, and governance. The conversation also highlights Africa’s unique contribution to global agroecology, examines the risks of corporate capture through concepts like “climate-smart agriculture,” and points to the growing evidence supporting agroecological systems. The conversation emphasizes why culture remains one of the most overlooked yet essential pillars of sustainable agriculture.

In this episode of The Battle for African Agriculture, host Dr. Million Belay sits down with Ugandan lawyer, policy advocate, and food systems activist Dr. David Kabanda to unpack one of the most overlooked dimensions of African agriculture: law and governance.

From food sovereignty and corporate concentration to the East African Agroecology Bill and the urgent need for legal frameworks that protect farmers, biodiversity, and indigenous food systems, Dr. Kabanda argues that agriculture is far more than food production—it is about power, justice, and the future of Africa itself.

Together, they explore why agroecology remains contested, how industrial agriculture shapes policy and narratives, the role of accountability in food governance, and why reclaiming African food systems is essential for health, sovereignty, and resilience. This conversation offers a compelling vision for an Africa where food systems are built on agroecology, farmers' rights, and democratic control.

In this episode of The Battle for African Agriculture Million Belay sits down with Hon. Françoise Uwumukiza, Member of the East African Legislative Assembly and Deputy Secretary-General of the African Food Systems Parliamentary Network, for a candid conversation about the future of African food systems. From climate change and the struggles of smallholder farmers to agroecology, women's cross-border trade, corporate influence, ultra-processed foods, and the loss of indigenous food knowledge, Hon. Uwumukiza argues that Africa's greatest challenge is not a lack of policies, but the failure to implement them. She calls for stronger support for farmers, protection from hazardous chemicals, and a return to food systems rooted in African cultures, traditions, and food sovereignty.

Are we witnessing a new, silent colonization of Africa through its food and data?

In this eye-opening episode of the Battle for African Agriculture Podcast, host Million Belay sits down with Hon. Gideon Gatpan, Chairperson for the Committee on Agriculture, Tourism, and Natural Resources at the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA).

Together, they pull back the curtain on the hidden corporate battles taking over African soil.

From foreign-backed "Green Revolutions" pushing banned chemical fertilizers to the dangerous rise of GMOs and corporate seed monopolies,

Gatpan delivers a chilling warning: If Africans do not own their seed systems, they face a terrifying vulnerability.

But the threat isn't just in the soil it's in the sky.

Gatpan exposes how global tech giants like Elon Musk's Starlink are quietly mapping and extracting rural data, stripping African nations of digital sovereignty. "Power is in the data. Money is in the data," he warns.

Watch until the end to understand how local farmers, civil societies like AFSA, and regional policymakers are fighting head-on back to reclaim African Food Sovereignty before it's too late.

🌾 Support the movement for African Food Sovereignty.

Drop your thoughts in the comments below: Is technology helping African farmers, or exploiting them? #AfricanAgriculture #FoodSovereignty #DataGovernance #AFSA #Agroecology #EastAfrica #Starlink #CorporateColonization

00:00 - The Battle for African Agriculture

01:31 - Laws vs. Corporate Power: Why Policy Matters

02:45 - From Humanitarian to Politician: Gideon Gatpan’s Journey

04:36 - The Warning: Is This A "Third Colonization"? 05:52 - Small Farmers vs. Massive Corporations

08:33 - How Laws Are Actually Made in East Africa

10:14 - The Truth About Unimplemented Policies

12:16 - Border Controls & The Realities of Regional Trade

14:26 - The Push for Agroecology & The Seed Bill 2025 17:15 - Are Western Corporations Funding African Laws?

20:54 - Top-Down Danger: Do Farmers Actually Have A Voice?

24:23 - The Dark Side of the "Green Revolution"

28:02 - The GMO Struggle & The Court Battles

30:08 - Bio-Digitalization:The Next Threat to Farming

33:23 - Starlink & The Mass Extraction of African Data

37:00 - Reclaiming Power: A Vision for African Food Sovereignty

In this episode of The 3-Part Conversation on The Battle for African Agriculture Podcast with, Pat Mooney, we explore the deepening crisis in the global food system and the opportunities embedded within it, unpacking how corporate control of seeds and food systems continues to reshape agriculture, while also examining the future of agroecology, multilateral institutions, and Global South solidarity. The discussion reveals why food is ultimately about power and justice, and why agroecology must be understood not only as a science but also as a movement, with African actors holding more influence than is often recognized. It further reflects on corporate power and fragile global supply chains, the evolving role of UN food agencies, the importance of territorial food systems, and the need to connect food struggles with broader movements around climate, labor, health, and biodiversity, alongside the strategic role of African governments and civil society

In this episode of The Battle for African Agriculture, Million Belay sits down once again with Pat Mooney, founder of the ETC Group and long-time mentor in global struggles for food sovereignty. They unpack the hidden dangers of gene editing, synthetic biology, and AI in agriculture technologies promoted as “solutions” but often deepening dependency and corporate control. Pat reflects on Africa’s biodiversity, the scramble for seeds, and the role of Big Tech in reshaping farming. He also shares a powerful story of resistance: how global civil society defeated “Terminator seeds.” This conversation is a call to vigilance and collective action to defend African agency in food systems.

In this opening episode of a 3-part series, Million Belay sits down with legendary activist, ETC Group co-founder Pat Mooney to uncover the hidden history of corporate control over agriculture. From the 1960s to today, Pat traces how seeds once shared by farmers across the world became privatized, patented, and concentrated in the hands of a few powerful corporations. He reveals how the Global South supplied the genetic foundation of global agriculture, only to lose control over it through systems of intellectual property, policy shifts, and what he famously called “biopiracy.” This conversation breaks down the key turning points that reshaped food systems from global policy battles to the rise of seed monopolies and asks a critical question: who really controls our food? This is Part 1 of a 3-part series. In the next episodes, we go deeper into biotechnology, digital agriculture, and the future of corporate power.

In this episode of The Battle for African Agriculture, Million Belay sits down with food systems scholar and activist Professor Molly Anderson to unpack the hidden power structures shaping global agriculture. She draws out linkages from colonial legacies and corporate influence to donor-driven agendas and the politics of food sovereignty. Molly also exposes how dominant narratives continue to shape who controls food, land, and agricultural policy across Africa and beyond. They also explore why the Green Revolution model continues to dominate despite mounting evidence of its failures, how institutions like the World Bank and IMF influence agricultural policy through debt and structural adjustment, and why agroecology is a political struggle for justice, dignity, and power.

In this episode of Battle for African Agriculture, Million Belay talks with Christopher Wali Magala, the Team Leader at Alwana Natural Farms, a veteran farmer and former government Agricultural Extension officer, about his shift from conventional farming to agroecology. He shares how biodiversity, intercropping, and local knowledge transformed his farm in Mukono, restoring soil and ensuring food security. He also boldly challenges the dominant narratives around GMOs and monoculture.