For more than two months, there have hardly been any merchant ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz amid the ongoing blockade. Africa is being hit by the  full brunt of the conflict in the Middle East , with canceled flights, long lines at petrol stations, and barren fields across the continent. Left without access to a significant portion of their global supply chain, fertilizer industries have also been deeply affected by the crisis. Any resumption of free maritime traffic through this strategically important strait — as was the case prior to the US-Israeli strikes on Iran earlier this year — is still a long way off; and even then, it would likely take months for markets to stabilize and for production lines and logistics to return to normal . It's understandable that African institutions and governments are currently operating in crisis mode , with no end to the blockade in sight.…