Agriculture: importance, farming systems, problems and solutions: WASSCE Economics

Most families in Sierra Leone depend on farming, yet the country still imports much of the rice it eats. Agriculture feeds the nation, employs most of its people and earns foreign exchange, but it is held back by problems WASSCE expects you to explain, and to solve.

Learning objectives

By the end of this lesson you should be able to:

explain the importance of agriculture to West African economies
describe the main farming systems and land tenure systems
explain the problems facing agriculture in West Africa
suggest measures to improve agricultural production

Why agriculture matters

Definition

Agriculture is the growing of crops and the rearing of animals (including fishing and forestry) for food, raw materials and income.

Contribution	Explanation
Food	Feeds a growing population and reduces costly food imports
Employment	Employs the majority of Sierra Leone's workers, mostly as smallholders
Raw materials	Supplies industry: palm kernels for oil mills, cocoa, rubber, timber, cotton
Foreign exchange	Exports such as cocoa and coffee earn dollars to pay for imports
Government revenue	Export duties and taxes on agricultural trade
Market for industry	Farmers buy tools, fertiliser, clothing and other goods
Capital for development	Savings from farm incomes can be invested in other sectors

Farming systems

System	Features	Merits	Demerits
Subsistence farming	Small plots, family labour, hand tools; grown mainly for the family	Feeds the family; low cost	Low output; little surplus to sell
Commercial farming	Grown mainly for sale; larger scale	Higher income; uses modern methods	Needs capital; market risk
Shifting cultivation / bush fallow	Land farmed for a few years, then left to recover	Restores soil fertility naturally	Needs lots of land; wasteful as population grows
Mixed farming	Crops and animals on the same farm	Manure for crops, crop waste for animals; spreads risk	Needs more skill and management
Plantation agriculture	Large estates, one cash crop, hired labour	High output and quality for export	Needs huge capital; often foreign-owned
Mechanised farming	Tractors and machines	Large output, less labour	Expensive; needs spare parts and skills

Land tenure

Land tenure is the system by which land is owned and used.

Communal or family ownership: land belongs to the community or extended family and is allocated by chiefs or family heads. This is common in the provinces of Sierra Leone.
Individual (freehold) ownership: one person owns the land outright, as in much of the Western Area.
Leasehold: land is rented for a fixed period, often to investors.

Communal tenure gives everyone access to land, but it can discourage investment (a farmer may not plant tree crops on land he does not own), makes land hard to use as security for loans and leads to fragmented plots and disputes.

Problems of agriculture in West Africa

Simple tools and methods: hoes and cutlasses limit the area a family can farm.
Lack of credit: farmers cannot borrow to buy seed, fertiliser or machines, partly because they lack collateral.
Land tenure problems: fragmentation, disputes and insecure rights.
Poor storage and processing: much of the harvest rots or is eaten by pests after harvest.
Poor transport: bad feeder roads raise costs and cut farmers off from markets.
Pests, diseases and weather: floods, drought and late rains destroy crops.
Ageing farmers and youth migration: young people leave for towns.
Poor marketing and low prices: middlemen take a large share; prices swing widely (see the next lesson).
Low use of improved seeds and fertiliser, and weak extension services to teach new methods.
Illiteracy among farmers, which slows the spread of new ideas.

Improving agriculture

Problem	Measure
Lack of credit	Agricultural banks, cooperatives and microfinance; loans on easy terms
Simple methods	Mechanisation on suitable land; tractor-hire services
Low yields	Improved seeds, fertiliser (sometimes subsidised), research
Ignorance of new methods	Extension services and farmer training
Storage losses	Silos, drying floors, processing centres
Poor roads	Building and maintaining feeder roads
Weather	Irrigation and swamp development for dry-season farming
Marketing	Cooperatives, guaranteed prices, better market information
Youth migration	Make farming profitable and attractive; rural amenities

In Sierra Leone

Sierra Leone has large areas of inland valley swamps suited to rice, yet much rice is imported. The Sierra Leone Agricultural Research Institute (SLARI) develops improved rice and cassava varieties, and the government's Feed Salone programme (launched in 2023) aims to raise food production and cut rice imports through mechanisation, irrigation and support for farmers.

Common mistake

When asked for "measures to improve agriculture", do not just list "give farmers money". Explain the mechanism: credit lets farmers buy fertiliser and improved seed, which raises yields per acre.

Key points

Agriculture provides food, jobs, raw materials, foreign exchange and revenue, and a market for industry.
Farming systems range from subsistence and shifting cultivation to plantations and mechanised farming.
Communal land tenure gives access to land but can discourage investment and borrowing.
Problems include simple tools, lack of credit, poor storage and transport, pests and weather, and poor marketing; each has a matching remedy.

WASSCE examination focus

WAEC tests this

Expect to explain the importance of agriculture to your country, describe the problems of agriculture in West Africa and suggest measures to solve them, and to compare farming systems or explain land tenure. Match each problem with a specific solution, and use Sierra Leonean crops and examples.

Quick check

Give three ways agriculture contributes to Sierra Leone's economy.
Why may communal land tenure discourage investment?
State two causes of low agricultural output in West Africa.
How does irrigation help farmers?

Answers: 1. Any three: food, employment, raw materials, foreign exchange, government revenue, a market for industry. 2. Farmers may not invest in land they do not own, and cannot use it as security for loans. 3. Any two: simple tools, lack of credit, poor storage, poor transport, pests and diseases, bad weather, land tenure problems, ageing farmers. 4. It provides water in the dry season, so farmers can grow more than one crop a year and are protected from drought.

Agriculture: importance, farming systems, problems and solutions