ABN NEWS ISSUE 01: THE SEEDS EDITION

Without a doubt, seed sovereignty is the foundation of food sovereignty. As such, seeds must remain in the commons. In this our maiden newsletter, our focus is on seeds. Our lead article, the new scramble for Africa highlights how agri-business multi national companies (MNCs) arm-twist African governments into passing laws that threaten food security in Africa. Our focus is also on the harmonisation of seed and trade laws across Africa that agro-business MNCs, at the expense of the rights of small holder farmers, save, sell and exchange their traditional seed varieties.

This edition, above all, celebrates the amazing work being done by different farming communities and organisations across Africa. We look at how communities are reviving lost indigenous seed varieties, how they are ensuring food sovereignty and how they are boosting income from agriculture. Most important, we feature articles on how communities are protecting their eco-systems, reviving indigenous farming knowledge, which in a nutshell, are forms of resistance against the corporate capture of agriculture in Africa.