Technology in Africa: Paving the Road to Food Security
by Janki Shah
Everyone in the United States and around the world knows the immense
problems Africa has had for decades in feeding its growing population.
Though massive world aid has gone to Africa, the problems to go away
and most of the blame is put on the lack of efficiency in Africa, politics,
and corrupt leaders who keep world aid money to feed their appetite
for greed. I put forth another reason of why Africa might be failing.
They are far behind in technology, especially in agriculture. I think
technology that fits the specific needs of the growth and living patterns
of African regions will help the country sufficiently fed and take care
of many more of its billions of inhabitants.
Enduring economic and social progress comes primarily from new innovations
and improvements in technology. In the past, we in the West solved many
problems through the advancement of technological sciences. For Africa
to solve the food problem, the world must help the continent through
a new technological revolution, just as India escaped from famine by
increased farm yields through their Green Revolution. India was able
to increase harvests because they focused on farm technologies that
were geared towards the climates and regions of India. Africa must do
the same.
Consider the scarcity of necessities that is so prevalent in Africa.
Any and every possible explanation has been given, usually focusing
on what Africans do wrong or how they are innately prone to be too lazy
to help their country advance. But a visit to Africa's villages makes
clear that these excuses are clearly false, for Africans in general
work long, laborious days, but are still not able to meet the needs
of their country. These problems have more to do with the struggle for
survival under difficult physical and regional conditions rather than
with problems that are unique to African societies.
For example, African farmers produce only one-third or less of food
per every 2.5 acres of farmland than other farmers around the world.
As one would assume, this results in widespread hunger, which is greatly
exacerbated by the prevalence of disease. As many know, Malaria is ubiquitous
in Africa and poses a unique threat because Africa's mosquito species
are particularly prone to transmitting the disease. Furthermore, because
of Africa’s hot and steamy climates there are many other tropical parasitic
diseases that further burden Africa. Due to these conditions, in addition
to bad roads and almost no transportation, people from overseas are
unlikely to inhabit or invest in Africa and therefore, economic isolation
soon follows. With all these negative circumstances in place in Africa,
it seems almost impossible to rise up and beat the odds, thereby making
the challenges of survival harsher than ever.
Nevertheless, we can find practical solutions to these problems of agriculture
because simple and “low-cost technologies can address specific problems.
Low farm yields can be addressed through improved seed varieties specially
adapted for African conditions, combined with technologies for replenishing
soil and managing water.” (1)
The problem of diseases, especially Malaria, can be controlled through
thicker, enduring mosquito nets and stronger, more effective, medicines.
Other tropical diseases and sicknesses can be controlled through new
technologies to make cleaner and safer drinking water. Local technology,
even on a small scale, such as communal mobile phones, local wireless
Internet, and more paved roads could do an abundance of good to break
the economic isolation of African villages.
In addition, many of the countries that provide Africa with aid persistently
ask Africans to change their “trade policies, government institutions,
public administration, and more.” (1) Though these changes are important
to a growing country, they can not be put in place until Africa has
been helped to finance and introduce practical technologies to solve
their problems of agriculture and have been able to provide themselves
with basic necessities through technology, and, in some cases, these
changes in trade policies and governmental institutions are changes
fit for the West but make no sense in the context of Africa’s reality.
Since Africa does not have enough money to adopt the needed technologies
on its own, it must get financial help from world donors to escape poverty.
The problems of technology and development in Africa are just one example
of how community, regional, and climate problems can be “addressed by
the design and spread of improved technologies.”(1)
“On a recent visit to Africa, a senior agricultural scientist said that
in today's world, the scientist is closer than ever before to the farmer,
but farther away than ever from the policy makers.” It should be obvious
that most politicians just do not understand science, and today, they
rarely “seek the advice of scientists and engineers in addressing major
issues. Everything is viewed as politics and votes, not as technical
problems requiring technological expertise, which is why Africa's poverty
is so often attributed to corruption rather than to ecological challenges.”(1)
Furthermore, it is now time to recognize that governments are not knowledgeable
enough to understand the challenges of the world that could be solved
by simply using scientific thinking and putting technological advances
into place around the world. “New ways are needed to ensure that science
and technology are given the prominence needed to address a wide range
of increasingly urgent global problems.”(1) Therefore, it is now time
for all global aid to come to the conclusion that technological development
through monetary aid should be the new way to help develop Africa and
help solve the problems of mass hunger and poverty.
1. http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2006/01/26/2003290826
2. http://americantruthaz1.tripod.com/myth_of_race.htm
3. http://www.angolapress-angop.ao/noticia-e.asp?ID=411464
4. http://web.mit.edu/africantech/www/
