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Imagine a farmer standing at the edge of his field, watching dark clouds gather in the sky. He has seen this before—promises of rain, the scent of change in the air—only for the wind to shift and carry it all away. This is the story of agriculture in many parts of Africa. Policies arrive like storms full of promise, yet too often, they fail to reach the soil where they are needed most. Instead, they hover in the air, discussed in conferences, debated in boardrooms, but never genuinely taking root where they matter.
The challenge in most countries has never been a lack of policies. Over the years, governments and institutions have crafted countless frameworks, initiatives, and strategies aimed at transforming agriculture and securing food systems. Yet, the fields remain barren—not for lack of effort, but because execution has consistently fallen short. No matter how well-intended, policies mean little if they are not grounded in the realities of the people they are meant to serve.
Too often, new policies emerge not to solve existing challenges but to layer themselves on top of older, ineffective ones, creating a tangled mess of regulations, frameworks, and guidelines that contradict rather than complement each other. It is as if, each time a car gets stuck in the mud, instead of pulling it out, we throw another vehicle on top of it, hoping the weight alone will somehow push it forward. But all that does is deepen the problem. The road is not clear; the way forward becomes even more difficult.
This is not to say that new policies are unnecessary. The agricultural landscape constantly evolves—climate change, trade dynamics, technological advancements, and demographic shifts all demand new and adaptive responses. However, the rush to introduce new policies must be balanced with the discipline to assess, refine, and implement existing ones. A policy is only as good as its execution, and a new policy that does not correct past mistakes is merely a fresh coat of paint on a crumbling wall.
Agriculture truly needs a shift in focus—from policy creation to policy action. This means governments must move beyond drafting documents and start doing the real execution work. It means engaging farmers, researchers, private sector players and other relevant stakeholders as equal partners, not afterthoughts. It means crafting policies acknowledging market realities rather than operating in political abstraction. It means revisiting old frameworks, discarding what no longer works, and adapting to the present rather than clinging to the past.
If the goal is fundamental agricultural transformation, then the conversation must evolve not just towards the excitement of new policies, but towards the complex, necessary work of making all old and new policies function effectively. Ultimately, it is not policies alone that transform agriculture—it is action. And action is long overdue.