African Food Inequality

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Despite an extensive history of food subsistence throughout the continent, Africa is regularly at the forefront of global discussion in regards to food security, shortages, malnutrition and food-related trade agreements. Almost the contemporary “poster child” of global food inequality, Africa is approached through a rather unique perspective: Instead of being seen as the systematic product of unfair integration into globalization – having its resources stripped, forced to sign lossmaking trade agreements, etc., -- Africa is approached as a continent that does not have (or ever has had) the capacity to maintain itself in regards to food regulation. Thus, through the global perspective, Africa is a continent in need of help, rather than one that was injured at the hands of globalization and colonization. It seems fitting that the global community, in an almost implied sense, reaches out to “save” Africa with the implementation of food-aid organizations, who’s sole task is to aid Africa in it’s long run goal of food sufficiency. Strikingly, however, African once was entirely self sufficient, with little to no prevalence of food shortages (Bloeman, 2001.) It was not until a number of hindering factors – commenced by the extraction of human and capital resources during …show more content…
On the one hand, indigenous peoples of Africa general disfavour aids towards food poverty as it often has lead to unfulfilled expectations which leave them off worse than before. On the other hand, the global community promotes food-aid programs as a result of media exaggeration and Western influence.
Overall, food shortages and poverty in Africa promote a variety of perspectives, all of which weigh the topic through different lenses of

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