A century ago, agriculture was the dominant economic sector in much of Africa. By the 1990s, African farmers had declining incomes and were worse off. Offering a study of the Igbo region of south-eastern Nigeria, the author shows that regional dynamics and local responses played vital roles in the era of transformation.

A century ago, agriculture was the dominant economic sector in much of Africa. By the 1990s, however, African farmers had declining incomes and were worse off, on average, than those who did not farm. Colonial policies, subsequent 'top-down' statism, and