On 22 April 2024, the Centre for African Studies at the Nanyang Technological University Singapore published NESA Center alum and regular speaker Professor Michael Tanchum's article, "How can Asian fertiliser producers craft a win-win investment strategy for Africa?"

The article analyzes fertilizer production and critical resources across several nations in Africa – with implications for African food security and the geopolitics of Africa's partnerships with major Asian actors. The article comes ahead of the 2024 Africa Fertilizer and Soil Health Summit next week in Kenya.

"Africa’s population boom, particularly its youth bulge, has prompted international businesses to relocate factories to the continent, finding a competitive advantage in the greater availability of affordable labour, as well as affordable land and energy. According to United Nations’ projections, one-quarter of the world’s population will live in Africa by 2050, becoming home to 2.5 billion people. Already by 2030, Africa will be home to 42% of the world’s young people. Yet the economic blessing of Africa’s youth bulge could turn into a curse if food security on the continent is not adequately ensured. Currently, an estimated 282 million Africans are undernourished. Ultimately, Africa’s population boom means that Africa’s prosperity depends on expanding the output of the continent’s agricultural sector, which in turn depends on the greater availability of affordable fertiliser. For Asian fertiliser companies, market opportunities exist for those companies willing to locate production facilities on the continent. These opportunities are based on a win-win, Africa-Asia business synergy that helps Asian nations enhance the security of their supply of mineral nitrogen fertilisers while expanding the production of these fertilisers on the African continent. Singapore, India, and more recently China, are leading this trend, which is likely to expand with the imminent advent of large-scale green ammonia production in Africa, using the continent’s abundant renewable energy resources," writes Tanchum.

Read the full article

About the Author

Professor Michael Tanchum is a research fellow with NTU-SBF Centre for African Studies, a non-resident fellow with the Middle East Institute's Economics and Energy Program, and teaches at Universidad de Navarra, Spain. You can follow him on X/Twitter @michaeltanchum.

About the Publisher

The NTU-SBF Centre for African Studies (CAS) is a practice-oriented think tank that conducts research, fosters networks, and builds capacity for doing business in Africa. The aim of the Centre is to study the economic landscape of the continent and disseminate knowledge that enhances the understanding of Africa from a trade, business, and investment perspective.

The views presented in this article are those of the speaker or author and do not necessarily represent the views of DoD or its components.