Towards sustainable food systems in the humid and temperate regions of Africa: insights from Nigeria, Malawi and South Africa

Transcription

1 Towards sustainable food systems in the humid and temperate regions of Africa: insights from Nigeria, Malawi and South Africa by A. Obi and E.O.C. Ijeoma

2 Outline Introduction Explaining sustainable food systems Defining food security The Gap Tackling the problem Productivity issues and inequality Market Access issues Success stories and priority value chains Issues and responses Mechanism for effective change agenda the innovation platform

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4 A sustainable food system is a collaborative network that integrates several components in order to enhance a community s environmental, economic and social well-being. It is built on principles that further the ecological, social and economic values of a community and region. Characteristics of a sustainable food system are outlined below (based on Pothukuchi and Jufman, 1999):

5 Food Systems Food systems encompass all the people, institutions and processes by which agricultural products are produced, processed and brought to consumers. They also include the public officials, civil society organizations, researchers and development practitioners who design the policies, regulations, programmes and projects that shape food and agriculture. The industrial food systems started with the factory system of fast food which changed how food was produced. The food system is complex and involved many steps.

6 When food security issues were first highlighted in the seventies, the question was whether a nation or a region could command enough food to meet the aggregate requirements of its people. Special attention was paid to fluctuations in aggregate food supply, and food security interventions were primarily concerned with providing effective buffer mechanisms against such fluctuations. In this context, food security measures came to be identified with macro-level instruments such as national and international storage of food and balance-of-payments support for countries facing temporary food shortages (see Valdes 1981). 6

7 It was soon realized, however, that this gave a very limited view of the food security problem. A large segment of a population could be living in hunger even if the country had sufficient food in the aggregate during normal times. Likewise, a sizeable section of the population could plunge into hunger during moments of crisis, even if the nation had an adequate cushion to maintain aggregate food availability. Adequacy at the aggregate level does not necessarily ensure adequacy at the household or individual level. 7

8 This point seems obvious enough, but it took some time to redirect the discussions on food security away from the macro level towards the household, and still further towards the individual. While the focus on the disaggregated has now become common, the various definitions of food security still differ. The following definition offered by a special committee of the United Nations seems reasonably comprehensive: "A household is food secure when it has access to the food needed for a healthy life for all its members (adequate in terms of quality, quantity and culturally acceptable), and when it is not at undue risk of losing such access" 8

9 A formal definition Food Security Food security exists when all people, at all times, have physical, social and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life (Committee on World Food Security, 2009).

10 Food Security as seen by IDAM Cohort 2 Food security is access to adequate nutritious food at all times. Food security consists of 4 dimensions: Availability-Sufficient Access- Physical, economical and social Utilization- safe and nutritional Stability- all the time

11 Tackling the problem Governments could pursue two kinds of policy action: they could either change the behaviour of farmers, consumers, food processors, and other economic agents in the system through incentives, regulations, and knowledge; or they could accept present behaviours and introduce health-specific and nutrition-specific interventions to compensate for any nutritional damage done or improvements forgone. Although changing of behaviour is likely to be more cost-effective and sustainable, the second option is the most common. The priority...is too heavily focused on increasing production. While food production needs to increase, there are many problems with this shortsighted supply-side approach. It encourages the expansion of industrial agriculture rather than more sustainable and affordable methods. It treats current demand trends, e.g. biofuels, meat-based diets, post-production food waste, etc., as given rather than challenging the policies that encourage them. Also unchallenged are the inequities in the distribution of the food we produce, which is more than enough to feed everyone.

12 Tackling the problem Food system interventions for better nutrition Keeping up the momentum of growth in agricultural productivity will be key to meeting demand. Production interventions that are gender sensitive and combined with nutrition education are more effective. Agricultural research and development priorities need to have a greater emphasis on nutrient-dense foods such as vegetables and fruits. Source: FAO The State of Food and Agriculture 2013

13 A look at the gap

14 State of Africa Agriculture [a decade ago...] Agricultural productivity was low, reflecting the failure to find, adopt and use more productive technologies Poor market linkages. Inadequate infrastructure and poor land tenure arrangements Some Statistics <5% suitable agricultural land in production Only 4% land in production is irrigated (30% in S Asia) Low fertilizer use/high depletion of soil nutrients Agricultural productivity was 25% of global average Only 1% of commercial lending in Africa goes to agriculture

15 State of Africa agriculture [a decade ago ] Weak private sector Underinvestment in research; leading to ineffective R&D models; weak and unaccountable institutions Inappropriate policies External influences [globalization etc.]

16 The Root Problem Failure to convert research outcomes into socio-economic benefits/real impact/development outcomes Market Productivity NRM Policy

17 Little wonder that on Dec 6th 2007

18 How did we get here? Population growth Unstructured intervention Required Investment Farming Behavior gap Actual investment

19 Technological and Institutional Barriers Often untamed Institutional issues will prevent socioeconomic benefits from the best-bet technologies Common institutional barriers Land tenure Access to credit Access to information Availability of seeds Access to inputs Availability of fertilizer Market access Trade policies Product regulations infrastructure etc.

20 Problem tree analysis Most interventions target the effects and not the cause of the problem

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25 In the face of the disappearing supplies and markets, it was not surprising that many countries experienced hyper-inflationary trends at scales that had never been seen anywhere else

26 . Gini coefficients and Lorenz Curve

27 Farm workers strike in South Africa in

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29 Market access issues

30 but it is not a laughing matter

31 W.O. Jones (1960) presents David Livingstone s description of a typical market scene: the Market is a busy scene; everyone is in dead earnest; little time is lost in friendly greetings; Vendors of fish run about potsherds full of snails or small fishes

32 Tomato Production and Marketing in the Kano-Katsina-Maradi Vegetable Innovation Platform

33 Road side vending & Hawking in South Africa What would make the buyers go here instead of Fruit & Veg Town?

34 Table: Assessment of sub-regional socio-economic differences, Indicators Southern Africa Western Africa Eastern Africa Human resource availability ** ** * * Infrastructure ** * * - Policy framework ** ** ** Existence of civil society organisations Central Africa * (a) ** *** - Sufficient entrepreneurial skills *** **** * Availability of organised markets *** ** * Modest agricultural finance * * Existence of good natural endowments ** *** ** -

35 Dual requirements for agricultural growth: Results of a survey of pockets of sustained agricultural growth in Africa Increased productivity: on farm and post-farm + Market incentives Source: Haggblade 2016

36 Some Success stories - Setting Targets for 15 Priority Value Chains Commodity supply demand demand improved target input total yield area cost investment x 1000 t t/ha x 1000 ha $/ha $ x million rice 17,477 26,047 34, , ,881 cassava 137, , , , ,763 sorghum 32,142 32,018 42, , ,554 millet 21,323 20,877 27, , ,565 cowpea 5,928 5,669 7, , beef 7,332 7,545 11,138 na na na 2,198 maize 58,863 78, , , ,342 soybean 1,428 2,797 3, , milk (dairy) 41,725 51,598 64,165 na na na 3,335 poultry 4,595 5,420 7,725 na na na 5,077 cacao 3, , coffee , vegetables 44,500 48,491 68, ,963 1,240 2,434 wheat 23,707 24,645 32, , ,407 fish 1,485 2,706 3, ,

37 Aflasafe Development in Africa Senegal Nigeria The Gambia Rwanda Uganda Burkina Faso Ghana Zambia Kenya Burundi Tanzania Malawi Mozambique Strain development in progress Products under testing in farmers fields Product ready for registration Product registered

38 Aflasafe The efficacy of Aflasafe to combat contamination of food crops by aflatoxins from the field up to storage has received further recognition from the Partnership for Aflatoxin Control in Africa (PACA), a flagship program on the African Union Commission

39 Award certificate with (left-right) Alejandro, Victor, Abdou, and Lawrence.

40 Challenge to scale up Aflasafe

41 President making cassava bread a national policy

42 Promotion of Cassava bread by President Obasanjo - IITA Ambassador

43 IITA s Cassava Bread supported by AfDB

44 Trade-offs and synergies Dealing with Trade-Offs & Synergies Research and policy priorities Impacts Capacity Strengthening through Training and enhanced access to improved technology Improved food security priorities Improving access to inputs through subsidization Improved livelihoods of farmers Improved environmental benefit Market Access Adaptation of Lucy Holt s framework

45 Sustainability implies consideration of health & wellbeing in social dimension waste

46 Managing the nexus Sustainability is about maintaining ecosystem services at a global and local scale appropriate to place, societal needs and ethical values

47 Issues and responses Institutions factor Implication/outcome Interventions needed 1. Policy Lack of operational policy and specific Balanced operational policy with realistic targets objectives 2. Planning Lack of decentralized/participatory agricultural planning Establish participatory agricultural planning systems and procedures 3. Rural infrastructure Poor water distribution, roads, communication, Planned piped water, schemes, roads, etc. etc. 4. Inputs/services Lack of readily available inputs/services Establish rural service centers in various districts of the country 5. Marketing/prices Lack of organized marketing and price Marketing and pricing policy for major products incentives 6. Credit Lack of credit facilities Provide selective controlled credit 7. Research Lack of local agricultural research Develop suitable applied research structures. 8. Extension Ineffective and inefficient extension Reorganize in-time bound Training and Visit System. Then, balanced use of communication channels 9. Land tenure Lack of security and negotiability of land rights. Uncontrolled communal grazing Registration and negotiability of arable land rights. Cooperative grazing schedules 10.Development coordination Uncoordinated rural development approach Decentralized control and coordination policy at District & regional level 11. Regulations and standards Lack of clarity; costly compliance requirements Farmer education programmes. Extension services providing support to producers. 12. Cooperation and collection action Absence of mechanisms for inter-household and inter-institutional cooperation Civic education on value of cooperation and collective action; demonstration schemes

48 A Cost-effective and Rapid Response the innovation platform An Innovation Platform is a physical or virtual forum established to facilitate interactions, and learning among stakeholders selected from a commodity chain analysis. Their interaction leads to participatory diagnosis of problems; joint exploration of opportunities and investigation of solutions leading to the generation of agricultural innovation along the targeted commodity chain 48

49 Output categories from Research Action Innovation Platform Research Themes Productivity Natural Resource management Market Policy Product Development Nutrition Technological Innovation Institutional Innovation Infrastructural Innovation Socio-economic Benefits Gender 49

50 Illustration of an Innovation platform 50

51 Innovative extension system Swanson (2011) 1 Research on HV Markets & Value Chains 6 Develop Value Chains 5 Expanding High-Value Markets An Innovative Extension System Train Interested Farmers 4 2 Identify Innovative Farmers 3 Organize Self-Help Groups On-farm research on HVC/Ps (e.g. KVKs) Farmer-to Farmer Assessment 51

52 How to set up a functional Innovation platform Innovation platform can be set up in different ways, but to be effective, it must have the following qualities; It must have cohesion Unite the stakeholders on the commodity where they have mutual interest. The platform must have potentials to meet the interest of stakeholders on board. All stakeholders must have a definite contribution to make and benefit to derive from the platform. 52

53 THANK YOU