The virtual collapse of the agricultural sector in tropical Africa has been the subject of great concern over the last decade. An interesting overview of the search for solutions has recently been provided in this Journal by Michael F. Lofchie and Stephen K. Commins, ‘Food Deficits and Agricultural Policies in Tropical Africa’, 20, I, March 1982, pp. 1–25. My purpose here is to suggest an alternative account, based on a somewhat different classification of the relevant theories and the policy prescriptions which are based on them.