Food crisis and class formation in Shaba

This article explores issues of agricultural change as they have been played out in the Lufira Valley in south‐eastern Shaba. It indicates some of the interconnections between peasants, the State and capitalist class interests, showing how measures taken in favour of capitalist enterprise contribute to deepening underdevelopment of the peasantry. It also casts doubt upon the assumption that capitalism — monopoly, state or private — can lead to development of productive forces in agriculture. A re‐examination of this issue is pertinent in view of recent Left criticism of ‘underdevelopment’ theory and the notion that African development is being advanced by national bourgeoisies.