The Rise of Agricultural Growth Poles in Africa

The policy brief examines the rise of agricultural growth poles in Africa, which are coordinated investments designed to shift the continent from subsistence to commercial agriculture. While these 'agropoles' aim to attract private investment and promote industrialization, the document highlights significant operational challenges, including poor coordination, financial mismanagement, and risks to small-scale farmers. It argues that for these initiatives to be sustainable, governments must implement robust legal frameworks, avoid stabilization provisions in contracts, and follow a three-stage development process consisting of vision, design, and implementation, with a strong emphasis on transparency and community engagement.

• Over the last 15 years, Africa has seen the establishment of 36 agricultural growth poles and 9 corridors, covering at least 3.5 million hectares of land across 23 countries.
• Agropoles are intended to facilitate a transition from subsistence farming to commercial agriculture and attract private investment to promote agro-industrial development and economic transformation.
• Several agropoles have faced significant operational delays and failures; for example, Morocco's plan for six agropoles was delayed by five years with only two operational, and Senegal's Mpal Agropole took over 10 years to start.
• Common challenges hindering the success of agropoles include poor financial management, inadequate infrastructure planning, governance issues, and a lack of consideration for the socio-historical context.
• The document warns against the use of stabilization provisions in investment contracts, as they can freeze domestic laws and exempt investors from future legal amendments or requirements.
• Current consensus from the IMF, World Bank, OECD, and UNIDO suggests that tax holidays and income tax exemptions are ineffective for increasing investment flows in low-income countries and can undermine government revenue.
• Responsible development of agropoles requires a three-stage process: Vision (aligning with development plans and mapping land rights), Design (conducting feasibility studies and environmental/social impact assessments), and Implementation (allocating resources for monitoring and enforcement).

APA

Picard, F., Coulibaly, M., & Smaller, C. (2017). The Rise of Agricultural Growth Poles in Africa. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/rise-agricultural-growth-poles-in-africa.pdf

Chicago

Picard, Francine, Mohamed Coulibaly, and Carin Smaller. The Rise of Agricultural Growth Poles in Africa. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2017. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/rise-agricultural-growth-poles-in-africa.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Picard |first1=Francine |last2=Coulibaly |first2=Mohamed |last3=Smaller |first3=Carin |title=The Rise of Agricultural Growth Poles in Africa |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=September 2017 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/rise-agricultural-growth-poles-in-africa.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{picard2017rise, author = {Picard, Francine and Coulibaly, Mohamed and Smaller, Carin}, title = {{The Rise of Agricultural Growth Poles in Africa}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2017}, month = sep, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/rise-agricultural-growth-poles-in-africa.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }