Could Africa be Brazil's competitor in the production of soybean?

Abstract

This paper assesses whether Africa will be a business competitor of Brazil into the soybean international market in the next years. Secondary data set organized into tables and charts have been used to evaluate both Brazilian and African production and exports of soybeans as well as the available literature has been reviewed to study the possibility of technology transfer from Brazil to Africa. The results show that Africa cannot supply its domestic market nowadays; however, its extensive available Savanna area, with similar soil and climate characteristics such as Brazil´s cerrado, would permit Africa to take benefits from the Brazil´s soybean technology transfer and to enlarge its production in order to be a major producer of soybeans. However, environmental, social and political bottlenecks need to be previously solved if soybean plantation expansion is a target for African countries.