Launched this week, the latest issue of the IDS Bulletin examines the politics of cereal seed systems in Africa's Green Revolution.

The journal examines how the new Green Revolution in Africa (where technology is used to increase agricultural production) is unfolding in Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi and Zimbabwe, highlighting both the diversity of experiences and the common challenges and pitfalls. Moving beyond the generic hype of much policy discussion, the articles draw out historical lessons, as well as contemporary experiences from the field.

Edited by IDS Research Fellows Ian Scoones and John Thompson, the IDS Bulletin builds on a collaborative research project carried out during 2009–11 supported by the Future Agricultures Consortium, a partnership of African and UK researchers working on African agricultural policy issues.

Launching the IDS Bulletin, Professor Ian Scoones said:

'As calls for a Green Revolution in Africa gain momentum, a focus on seeds and seed systems is rising up the agricultural policy agenda. Much of the debate stresses the technological or market dimensions, but misses out the political economy of policy processes behind this agenda. This IDS Bulletin aims to address the question of whose interests are being served in the current agricultural policy agenda in Africa.'

Read abstracts or subscribe to the IDS Bulletin: The Politics of Seed in Africa's Green Revolution