ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on agricultural production in eastern and southern Africa. For many years, there have been concerns about the ability of Africa's agricultural sector to feed the people of the continent. According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), while the output of crops and livestock in Africa increased, it did not keep pace with the population so that by 1998 agricultural production per capita had declined to 98 per cent. The chapter also explores the Macro-environmental operating conditions for agriculture. Most agriculture is highly dependent on rainfall patterns which are generally highly seasonal. The exceptions are the highland areas of the East African plateau, including western Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi, where seasonality is less marked due to the moderating influence of altitude and relief. Self-help ventures, support and advice by small-scale grassroots NGOs, an increasing representation of African farmers less as passive victims and more as agents of their own destiny.
