In this second part of Battle for African Agriculture with Professor William G. Moseley, Dr. Million Belay continues a powerful exchange that began in their first conversation. Building on the themes introduced in Part One, Moseley dives deeper into the colonial legacies shaping African food systems and the urgent need to reclaim indigenous agronomy and agroecology. Together, they push the discussion further—examining how political choices, power structures, and global market forces continue to undermine smallholder farmers while highlighting pathways toward food sovereignty rooted in African contexts. This follow-up episode sharpens both the critique and the call to action, offering listeners not only analysis but also hope for a future where African agriculture flourishes on its own terms.

In this thought-provoking episode of Battle for African Agriculture, Dr. Million Belay sits down with Professor William G. Moseley—geographer, author, and outspoken critic of colonial agricultural models—to unpack the urgent need to decolonize African food systems. Drawing from his landmark book Decolonizing African Agriculture, Moseley explains how the failures of food security efforts across Africa are rooted in Western agronomic paradigms imposed through colonial and neocolonial institutions. Through decades of fieldwork in Mali, Burkina Faso, South Africa, and Botswana, he reveals how political power—not just scientific logic—has shaped agricultural policy, often to the detriment of smallholder farmers.

Together, they explore the promise of indigenous agronomy and agroecology as not only scientific alternatives but political and cultural acts of resistance. Moseley calls for a bold shift away from top-down, export-driven agricultural development toward locally rooted systems that nourish rural livelihoods, promote ecological health, and support food sovereignty. This episode is both a critique and a call to action—inviting listeners to imagine a radically different future where African food systems thrive on their own terms.

In this enlightening episode of Battle for African Agriculture, Dr. Million Belay is joined by Peter Gubbels, a veteran champion of agroecology and food sovereignty in West Africa. Drawing on decades of work across the Sahel with Groundswell International, Peter unpacks how colonial histories continue to shape the region’s agricultural policies, land use, and governance. From distorted food systems to degraded ecologies, he traces the deep scars left by colonialism—and shows how post-colonial aid and development models often reproduce these injustices under new names.

But Peter’s message is far from despairing. He shares powerful examples of grassroots communities reclaiming agency through agroecology, restoring degraded lands, reviving traditional knowledge, and asserting political voice. The episode explores how farmer-led organizing and bottom-up governance can break cycles of dependency, challenge extractive development, and usher in a truly African vision for food sovereignty. Grounded in experience and rich with insight, this conversation offers vital lessons for the entire continent and anyone committed to transforming food systems from the ground up.