Agricultural productivity is a key element for development and structural transforma- tion, and it remains dramatically low in most developing countries. This paper assesses the interaction between extractive resources exploitation and the performance of the agricultural sector in Sub-Saharan Africa. The impact of natural resources on agricultural productivity is shown to be negative in the region, in contrast to other developing regions. Further estimates suggest that this is due to a dutch disease effect where resources exploitation is associated with a weak manufacturing sector, whereas this one has the potential to increase the use of fertilisers. Therefore these results suggest that extractive rents dampen indirectly the adoption of modern inputs and thus agricultural productivity.