Climate-Smart Agriculture in West Africa
The challenges of climate change and food security are closely intertwined, with agriculture both driving and being impacted by extreme weather events. Policymakers around the globe are faced with the need to increase food production to feed growing populations while reducing that production’s negative impacts on the environment. According to a recent article in Global Environmental Change, climate-smart agriculture (CSA) provides an effective way to enhance countries’ climate resilience while simultaneously ensuring food and nutrition security.
Nutrition-Sensitive Irrigation in Mali: Guidance for Progress on Water, Food, and Nutrition Security
Irrigation contributes to agricultural intensification and farm profitability, helps farm households extend the growing season, and is increasingly important for farmers' resilience to climate shocks and stressors. Until recently, less attention was paid to the other benefits of irrigation, including improvements in household food security and nutrition, health, and women's empowerment.
Research Findings on Resilience & Social Cohesion in Burkina Faso and Niger
Security in the Sahel is deteriorating rapidly. The number of violent events jumped from 580 in 2018 to over 1,000 in the first half of 2022 alone. Associated fatalities are also up dramatically, from about 2,800 fatalities to almost 6,500. Insecurity is also becoming more widespread, especially in Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger. As a result, people are fleeing their homes – the region now hosts over 3 million internally displaced people and over 1 million refugees and asylum seekers.
Bringing back neglected crops: A food and climate solution for Africa
As the food and climate crises continue to cause suffering around the world, one under-appreciated solution—neglected crops—could be a powerful tool to alleviate both crises in one of the worst affected regions: Africa.
Feeding Africa: how small-scale irrigation can help farmers to change the game
Unlike large-acreage government irrigation schemes, small-scale irrigation is typically farmer led. Farmers decide what technologies to use to extract water, be it manual lifting or solar water pumps. They also choose the mode of irrigation, whether by buckets or drip kits. Farmers purchase, run, and maintain the operation themselves on their own farms or as part of small groups of farmers.
Rainy Season Begins in Kenya But Food Security Challenges Remain
The long rainy season in Kenya got off to a relatively good start in March, according to an update from FEWS Net. While the precipitation has begun to replenish water levels reduced by five consecutive seasons of below-average rainfall, however, much of the country continues to struggle with the high food prices, reduced agricultural productivity, and reduced livelihoods caused by the prolonged drought.
Groundwater: Potential and Pitfalls for Africa
Groundwater development is key to accelerating agricultural and overall economic growth, fight climate change, and generate employment in Africa. However, there is also a need to improve groundwater institutions to grow equity and environmental sustainability in groundwater use. This session discusses the African Ministers' Council on Water’s (AMCOW) groundwater program with case studies on the benefits of groundwater development as well as institutional advances in several African countries.
The importance of groundwater development for water and food security in Africa
Ukraine One Year Later: the impact of the war on agricultural markets and food security
One year after Russia invaded Ukraine, the war continues to affect global markets. World stock levels remain tight, and while prices have fallen back to pre-war levels, much uncertainty remains. This seminar will examine how the war has affected global markets, particularly wheat markets. Speakers will discuss the war’s impacts on Ukraine’s producers, wheat buyers and importers in the MENA region, and households in Egypt and Yemen. In addition, the discussion will address export restrictions and sanctions that have exacerbated price levels and volatility.
Introducing pro-WEAI complementary indicators for nutrition- sensitive agriculture and market inclusion projects
The Women’s Empowerment in Agriculture Index (WEAI) is the first-ever direct measure of women’s empowerment and inclusion in the agriculture sector. In response to demand from designers and implementors of agricultural development projects, IFPRI developed the project-level Women’s Empowerment in Agriculture Index (pro-WEAI) to track the impacts of these projects on women’s empowerment.
Taking Stock of Africa’s Agrifood Processing Sector: Key findings of the 2022 ReSAKSS Annual Trends and Outlook Report
A high-performing, resilient, and competitive agrifood processing sector can create remunerative employment opportunities, link producers to growing and lucrative urban markets, and help to ensure that consumers have access to sufficient and healthy food. Africa’s food processing sector is growing in response to growing demand for processed and high-value foods in the continent. However, processing firms, many of them small and informal enterprises, still face serious constraints.