The past, current, and future of the Africa Green Revolution: The case study of Kenya, Morocco, and Nigeria

Abstract

The “Green Revolution in Africa” is an agricultural revolution aiming to ensure food security in Africa. However, dissemination of existing knowledge about the “Green Revolution” is poor. The objective of this study is to investigate the existing knowledge on the “Green Revolution in Africa.” A systematic literature review (SLR) is performed using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐Analyses (PRISMA). The SLR method has identified 149 articles and the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) reports on Africa's Green Revolution. Qualitative studies used four main databases, that is, Science Direct, Scopus, Web of Science, and Springer Link. The authors developed three main themes to structure this study: the historic background of the Green Revolution, the status of agricultural development in Africa, and the results of Africa's Green Revolution policy, as well as alternative ways to achieve the Green Revolution in Africa and Sustainable Development Goals under climate change and global crises. The study found that the Green Revolution is far from reaching its initial targets as there is increasing hunger and poor crop productivity. Some studies proposed agro ecology, green technology innovation and smart farming, efficient irrigation, drainage and water management, and adaptation to climate change. For water stressed regions, other policies and strategies should be adopted such as rainfall harvesting, use of nonconventional waters and nonconventional crops and use of less water consuming crops. These are possible approaches to achieve Africa's Green Revolution in a rapidly changing climate and global crises.