Should African Governments Subsidise Their Farmers?

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Groundnut farm

QUESTION OF THE DAY

The trade war between China and the US administration has started to impact on soya bean producers in the US.

Instead of accepting the consequences as the natural outcome of the market and leave the US farmers to shoulder the consequences as they often advise African governments to do, the Trump administration has decided to allow the U.S. Department of Agriculture to provide 7.7 Billion Dollars in aid to soybean farmers to compensate them for losses suffered because of tariff barriers imposed by China to counter tariff barriers imposed by the US.

History has confirmed that trade war leads to a loss–loss relationship rather than a win-win relationship.