Dutch cooperation focused on research to improve productivity and on provision of chemical fertilizers, the latter mainly as budget support to a limited number of countries[. In the context of the Green Revolution, Dutch cooperation efforts also focused on water management and irrigation infrastructure.
Critics of the Green Revolution emphasize the negative environmental impact and the fact that the poorest farmers and regions often did not directly benefit. In the late ‘70s this led to a movement to promote agro-ecology and low external input agriculture (LEIA)[2] with a focus on sustainability and small farmer access to inputs.
In Africa, where there was a ‘land surplus’ in many areas, production increases were mainly through extension of the surface area under production rather than intensification; the main constraints were a shortage of labour and poorly developed infrastructure[3].
[2] At a later stage there was increased focus on sustainability. The acronym became LIESA to reflect the increased focus on sustainability.
[3] Although population growth has reduced the availability of land for farming and livestock, and conflicts have emerged in recent years between farmers and herders, the main constraints in most African countries to this day are considered to be a skewed land distribution as well as low productivity