Why it makes sense to invest in agriculture

Those of us who went to school a few decades ago were brought up on knowledge that agriculture was the backbone of African economies. That understanding sort of marked Africa apart from the industrialized world whose mainstay was manufacturing. It was even implied that Africa was doomed to remain that way. Yes, there were suggestions of inferiority – no doubt because of the backward implements of African agriculture, the taxing physical labour and the deliberately cultivated contrasting comfort of non-agricultural work.