Skip to content
  • EN
  • FR
  • ES
  • About us
  • Contact us
  • Donate
Facebook X Instagram Vimeo Telegram
La Via Campesina – EN
  • TopicsExpand
    • Land, Water and Territories
    • Agroecology, Biodiversity and Peasants’ Seeds
    • Trade Markets and Income
    • Public Policies
    • Peasants’ Rights
    • Climate and Environmental Justice
    • Migrants and Waged Workers
    • Transnational Companies and Agribusiness
  • ArticulationsExpand
    • Youth Articulation
    • Women’s Articulation
    • Diversities
  • Publications
  • MultimediaExpand
    • Videos
    • Podcasts
  • CampaignsExpand
    • Global Campaign for Agrarian Reform
    • Global Campaign for Peasant Seeds
    • Campaign to Stop Violence against Women
    • Campaign against Agrotoxics
    • Campaign for a Binding Treaty
search
  • EN
  • FR
  • ES
search
La Via Campesina – EN
Facebook X Instagram Vimeo Telegram
7-Derio (2017) | Southern and Eastern Africa | Western and Central Africa

Notes from the VII Conference: Political context and struggles in Africa

24 July 201731 July 2017

The first afternoon of the VIIth International Conference of La Via Campesina was devoted to the international political context which is characterised by the unsolvable capitalist crisis and ever stronger pressures on populations, states and the environment together with the dangerous commercialisation of natural resources. The future is the struggles and resistance that have been outlined. La Via Campesina’s members, throughout the world, consider that the only alternative to the proposed model is food sovereignty, and that agroecology is the only way to achieve this and to feed the people. In these two spaces the regional specificities were analysed.

Political Context

In Africa, young and fragile democracy is suffering a serious setback which in turn means that so too are freedom of expression and of organisation. Political systems are paralysed and citizens’ rights are flouted. Since liberalization in the 80s, African markets have become more open to the world. However, currently the political right is not respected. First land was grabbed; then the seeds, with the support of the Bill Gates foundation, and others; and then the water, to the point that now all of the continent’s riches are in the hands of a few, with the blessing of the IMF (International Monetary Fund) and the World Bank. In the sphere of agriculture, huge swathes of land, supposedly under-used, are sacrificed for large scale investment projects, mechanisation and the use of chemicals. This situation forces the young people who are without prospects and who make up the majority of the population, to leave the country on the perilous path of migration or being exploited by fundamentalists for extremists means.

https://www.facebook.com/viacampesinaOFFICIAL/photos/a.1501801956557037.1073741910.342562582480986/1501847343219165/?type=3&theater

Struggles and resistance

Justice, whether climatic, civilian or access to common goods, encompasses all of the African struggles. The peasant movement is present on all fronts. It fights against the inextricable power of the corporate-state, notably through popular tribunals; pressure on the governments; a procession for the seeds, water and land which traversed West Africa this Spring; and the campaign for the dismantling of the multinationals’ power and impunity. Climate related actions enable peasants to build alliances and to strengthen the movement. Regional consultations on peasant rights have involved other members of civil society. The aim of La Via Campesina’s organisations is to reach the critical mass of young people who believe that a dignified life and another world are possible. Consequently, numerous political and ideological training sessions have been set up to promote a peasant agroecology based on autonomy and knowledge sharing.

RELATED NEWS:

  1. African Youth Participate in Formation Sessions in South Africa, Ethiopia, and Mauritius
  2. Peasant Youth in Africa Organize Collective Study at Nkrumah School, South Africa
  3. The Peasant Women of La Via Campesina in Africa are saying NO to the WTO and the FTAs
  4. “Through feminism, we understand LGBT+ rights better.” – Peasant struggles in South Africa offers hope

Post navigation

Previous Previous
VII Conference: Solidarity with the Honduran People and Family of Berta Caceres
NextContinue
Notes from the VII Conference: Political context and struggles in Middle East and North Africa
SUPPORT THE PEASANT MOVEMENT

LATEST NEWS FROM ARTICULATIONS

  • Voices from Dominican Republic: ‘Food Sovereignty is the Right to Life and the Right to Live Well.’13 May 2025
  • Kenyan Peasants League: GMOs and Hybrid Seeds Trap Peasant Women in a Cycle of Debt and Depression9 May 2025

LATEST STATEMENTS & PRESS RELEASES

  • Unified Call to Confront Famine in Gaza: Launch the Diplomatic Humanitarian Convoy, Now!16 May 2025
  • Peasants Belong on Farms, Not in Prisons. Release South Korean Peasant Leader Hyun Jin-hee Immediately!29 April 2025
  • Food sovereignty is not possible without financial sovereignty, warn small-scale food producers and grassroots organisations21 April 2025
Organizations
Countries
Peasants
Regions

GET INVOLVED

Donate to La Via Campesina
Subscribe to Our Newsletter

LVC POLICY ADVOCACY

  • FAO – CFS
  • Seed Treaty (ITPGRFA)
  • UN Decade of Family Farming
  • Food Systems for People
  • UN Human Rights Council

LVC Missions

  • Palestine Solidarity
  • Haiti Mission
  • Colombia Peace Process
  • Peasant Alerts
  • Global Solidarity Statements

Social networks

Facebook X Instagram Vimeo Telegram
  • Home
  • About Us
  • LVC Schools
  • Regions and Members
  • Privacy Policy
  • Sitemap
  • Search
  • Contact us
Scroll to top
  • Topics
    • Land, Water and Territories
    • Agroecology, Biodiversity and Peasants’ Seeds
    • Trade Markets and Income
    • Public Policies
    • Peasants’ Rights
    • Climate and Environmental Justice
    • Migrants and Waged Workers
    • Transnational Companies and Agribusiness
  • Articulations
    • Youth Articulation
    • Women’s Articulation
    • Diversities
  • Publications
  • Multimedia
    • Videos
    • Podcasts
  • Campaigns
    • Global Campaign for Agrarian Reform
    • Global Campaign for Peasant Seeds
    • Campaign to Stop Violence against Women
    • Campaign against Agrotoxics
    • Campaign for a Binding Treaty