On July 17, 2023, Russia withdrew from the Black Sea grain deal, disrupting the safe transport of Ukrainian grains through the Black Sea. The Kremlin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, cited the lack of implementation of the Black Sea agreements concerning Russia as the primary reason for withdrawal. While the collapse of the deal will accelerate inflation of food prices and ultimately heighten food insecurity globally, African countries will bear the largest brunt. The deal’s collapse has brought Africa’s food dependency problem to the fore.
With Russia’s keenness to position itself as a key ally to African countries, it should prioritize enabling the continent to avert food crises sustainably. Russia should partner with African governments to accelerate the implementation and adoption of climate-smart agriculture in partner countries. Russia should also re-direct funding towards building sustainable irrigation programs and water desalination to ensure more water is available for agriculture. At the same time, Russia should partner with African governments to create more harvest storage facilities, such…..
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