As part of our research for our Rich Appetites film series, AGRA Watch has conducted an analysis of Gates Foundation agricultural development grants specifically targeting Africa–now published as a report: African Agricultural Development … for the US? An Analysis of the Distribution of Gates Foundation Grants. Looking at grants through July 2021, we have found […]
Category Archives: Agra Watch Blog Posts
FUJ Tour Report-back: Fighting for Farmworkers in the US and Beyond
This fall CAGJ worked with farmworker union Familias Unidas por la Justicia and other community organizations based out of Seattle to organize the FUJ Farmworker Solidarity Tour. Over two days in October, we convened a rally, march, dinner, teach-in and AGRA-Watch action in Seattle that highlighted how issues faced by farmworkers are connected to the […]
What’s wrong with the Africa Food Prize?
This week the titans of agribusiness will shine a spotlight on their favorite tech-based approaches to food production by awarding the World Food Prize in Iowa, as they do every year, in the home of Norman Borlaug, credited as the “father of the green revolution.” When Yara International, the Norwegian fertilizer company, decided that it […]
CAGJ Executive Director, African farmers’ organizations featured in Seattle Times article!
On September 8, 2022, the Seattle Times published excellent and critical coverage of the Gates-funded Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA). The article also made the front page of the print newspaper on September 9! Nina Shapiro writes: As an annual African farming summit takes place this week in Rwanda, activists, farmers and […]
Watch CAGJ’s Webinar: Farming for a Hot Planet
Watch CAGJ’s Webinar: Farming for a Hot Planet Organized for Rise-Up Summer School with AGRA Watch In response to climate change, powerful individuals and institutions are pushing so-called “climate smart” agriculture, which serves corporate agendas. Yet grassroots movements have already been implementing grounded, people-led solutions to build climate-resilient food systems. In this webinar, we heard […]
“Privatization is not the Answer”: 2nd film companion guide just released!
We’re delighted to announce that we’ve published our companion guide to Rich Appetites Episode 2 (Seeds)! This guide is available in three formats: as a page on the film website, a Google Doc, and a PDF (available for download on the film webpage). The companion guide goes into more detail on topics covered in the second film, diving deeper into the research […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE-USAID and Congress: Stop funding industrial agriculture in Africa
For immediate release: August 30, 2022 Contact: Ashley Fent, [email protected], 253-686-6081 Community groups and taxpayers call on USAID and Congress to stop funding industrial agriculture in Africa In solidarity with African civil society groups, more than 1,100 letter signers demand that taxpayer money no longer be spent on the failing Alliance for a Green Revolution […]
AGRA Watch releases position statement
Over the past few months, AGRA Watch’s core members have developed a position statement, responding to the appropriation of our analysis to serve causes we do not agree with (including right-wing and anti-vaccine agendas). We strongly object to baseless conspiracy theories about Bill Gates and the Gates Foundation, which detract from our research and organizing […]
Announcing Ep4 of Rich Appetites docuseries!
We are SO EXCITED to announce today’s launch of “Science,” the fourth episode in our Rich Appetites docuseries, co-produced with the Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA). Watch Episode 4 now!! (10min) Rich Appetites details how American billionaires and philanthro-capitalists like Bill Gates and his Foundation are underwriting the corporate control of African food systems under the […]
Backlash Against GMO Cowpeas Being Released Commercially in West Africa
Summary by AGRA Watch intern Sarah Muniz As reported by the African Centre for Biosafety, in the spring of this year, a coalition of NGOs, research experts, and farmer groups demanded that the Nigerian government prohibit the release of genetically modified cowpeas (Bt Cowpea) for public sale. Cowpeas, popularly known as black-eyed peas in the […]
