Commentary: Cassava and African food security: Some ethnographic examples

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Abstract
Cassava (Manihot esculenta), a starchy root crop, provides food security in much of Africa. Though it is most productive in areas of high rainfall, it also survives drought and locust attacks better than most crops. Hence, its use has increased greatly in dry areas of East and Southern Africa. We speculate that it may become an important food reserve in the Sahel, and we suggest why that has not happened yet. Information presented is drawn from agricultural and social science data from a geographic information system, anthropological sources indexed by the Human Relations Area Files, agronomic research, and FAO statistics. This is an exploratory paper for the Collaborative Study of Cassava in Africa (COSCA), a multi‐country survey of cassava production, processing and marketing.