Food Self-Sufficiency Not Enough for Food Security, New Research Suggests

Does Africa need food self-sufficiency to achieve long-term food security?

Not necessarily, according to new research from IFPRI.

With food security continuing to deteriorate across the region and an estimated 600 million people expected to be chronically undernourished by 2030, shoring up Africa’s food and nutrition security has become a priority for the region’s policymakers. This perceived need has been further highlighted by recurring shocks to global food markets, including the 2008 food crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Russia-Ukraine war.

For many, policies to promote and protect domestic food production—including subsidies as well as export restrictions and other limiting trade policies—have proven to be attractive options. Such policies, proponents argue, can lower Africa’s food import bills and reduce domestic consumers’ risk from shocks on international food markets.

But such self-sufficiency in food production only appears to impact two out of the four dimensions of food security, according to IFPRI’s findings: food availability and utilization. It does not seem to have an effect on food access or food stability. In fact, international or regional trade can often contribute more strongly to food stability in domestic markets.

In addition, at a certain point, government subsidies to the agricultural sector no longer positively impact domestic food self-sufficiency and may in fact have negative impacts. While these thresholds are higher in Africa than in more developed regions, they still exist and need to be taken into consideration.

Overall, the research finds, the link between food self-sufficiency and food security is not one-size-fits-all. Much depends on a country’s level of development and net trade position (i.e., whether they are a net food exporter or net food importer).

What are the implications for Africa? Efforts to protect domestic markets and bolster domestic food security need to be context-specific. While they may seem attractive, “second-best” policy options like trade restrictions often do not take these specifics into consideration. As a result, they may not target the underlying drivers of Africa’s growing food insecurity and may end up doing more harm than good to both domestic and international markets.

Sara Gustafson is a freelance communications consultant.