What's New

Extreme weather events and the long-term impacts of climate change pose a major risk for Africa south of the Sahara, threatening agricultural production and economic growth and hindering efforts to reduce poverty and food insecurity. Climate-smart agricultural practices (CSAPs) can help farmers better adapt to and mitigate these risks; however, the adoption of such practices in the region remains low.

Strong agricultural cooperatives could be a powerful pathway to protect vulnerable populations from food insecurity caused by shocks like the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a recent paper in Agriculture & Food Security.

As noted in the Global Report on Food Crisis Mid-Year Update, conflict remains one of the major causes of food crises worldwide. Two recent alerts from FEWS Net echo this finding in both East and West Africa, where conflict is driving acute levels of food insecurity and hunger in both Sudan and Burkina Faso.

Africa’s progress toward hunger and poverty reduction has faced significant setbacks in recent years. Multiple shocks, including global and regional conflicts and the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, have increased the prevalence of undernutrition and child malnutrition; in addition, significant micronutrient deficiencies persist in the region.

The CGIAR Initiative on National Policies and Strategies Nigeria has released the new Nigeria Food Security Simulator. This Excel-based tool allows users to estimate short-term impacts of household-level income or food price shocks and related policy decisions on diets and food security in the country.