East African countries are battling the worst desert locust invasion in decades. The locusts are devouring crops and pasture leaving in their wake a region that is staring at a potential food crisis.

The annual Alltech Global Feed Survey, released on Jan. 27, estimates that international feed tonnage decreased by 1.07% to 1.126 billion tonnes of feed produced in 2019, due largely to African swine fever (ASF) and the decline of pig feed in the Asia-Pacific region.

Africa’s agricultural productivity ­— a key metric of its development plan — increased a dismal 2 per cent in 2019, according to the progress report of ‘Agenda 2063’, a blueprint on how the continent should develop in half a century.

Kenya is the world’s third largest producer of avocados. It’s also Kenya’s leading fruit export, accounting for nearly one-fifth of its total horticultural exports.

 Kenya’s livestock herders planting chilli peppers, Pakistan’s mountain farmers rearing fish and tropical fruits being grown in Sicily — farmers around the world are already shifting what they grow and breed to cope with rising temperatures and erratic weather.

In his 2020 State of the Nation Address, President Cyril Ramaphosa noted that “this year we will open up and regulate the commercial use of hemp products, providing opportunities for small-scale farmers; and formulate policy on the use of cannabis products for medicinal purposes, to build this industry in line with global trends.