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While Africa south of the Sahara has largely avoided severe health impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic (fewer than 5 percent of globally confirmed cases and approximately 89,000 COVID-related deaths), the region is experiencing economic fallout due to national and global pandemic policy responses. Economic growth, value chain functioning, incomes, trade, poverty, and consumption have all been negatively affected, according to IFPRI’s 2021 Global Food Policy Report.

Africa South of the Sahara is currently experiencing several regional challenges to food security, according to FEWS Net. These include two of the most common drivers of increased food insecurity: conflict and weather-related shocks.

Food security has been a significant concern for Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), even before the onslaught of challenges brought about by COVID-19. As the pandemic started spreading to the region, one concern has been that of its possible impacts on food security, as the crisis has the potential to exacerbate an already fragile food security environment.

The COVID-19 pandemic is undermining food and nutrition security on a global scale. IFPRI estimates show that globally, 80-140 million people were at risk of falling into extreme poverty in 2020, more than half in Africa south of the Sahara. The World Food Programme estimated that globally, the number of people facing acute food insecurity could double in the same period. These impacts—stemming from lost incomes due to lockdowns, fear of exposure, and medical expenses, as well as disruptions in food markets and value chains—are severely testing social protection systems in many countries.

Fourth in a series of posts on a research project in Guatemala and Burundi that evaluated how to optimize food assistance programs for the maximum impact. Read the first piece here, the second here , and the third here.