BIOFUELS A FAILURE FOR AFRICA

There has been a great deal of hope and expectation that bio-fuel would solve many of the challenges facing Africa and the world today. Internation pressure comes from developed countries, hoping that bio-fuel will meet their colossal energy needs, reduce the need for diminishing supplies of fossil fuel, solve the global climate crisis and create business opportunities.  However, use of bio fuel has not met the intended expectations. If anything, Biofuel stragies have failed to take off.

Read this compelling report about how Jatropha was doomed to fail from the word go. From poor yield to huge financial losses, the jatropha strategy was dealt blow after blow. Touted as the wonder plant that was to create a new economic miracle for Africa’s marginal and arid lands, Jatropha’s fate was sealed from the very beginning. Tales of this plant’s use in energy and food were used for widespread publicity to justify large scale jatropha plantations. And by the way, some small scale farmers were even evicted from their land to make way for the planting of this “miracle” plant.