insert_link Africa More than half of Zimbabwean population needs food aid Zimbabwe’s cabinet has revealed that more than half of the nation’s population of about 15 million people will immediately need food aid until March next year, as the country reels from the impact of the El Niño weather phenomenon that’s already slashed corn output and led to a national state of disaster being declared. Bloomberg reports that the southern African nation’s rural areas are the most affected with 6 million […] todayMay 16, 2024 3
Africa South Africans are abandoning smallholder farming – history and policy can help explain why By Klara Fischer, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences South African smallholders are abandoning farming. The decline in field cultivation is a problem, since many of these smallholder households struggle to make ends meet. If people were able to produce more of their own food this would improve their lives. The current situation is a combined effect of the country’s historical legacy and the negative impacts of recent […] todayMay 10, 2024 8
insert_link Africa Kenya floods: as the costs add up pressure mounts on a country in economic crisis By Timothy Njagi Njeru, Egerton University There were early warnings that Kenya’s long rain season – between March and May – was going to bring above-normal rainfall. The extreme intensity of the rain has resulted in devastating floods in many parts of the country. Forty of the country’s 47 counties have been affected. More than 230 people have died and about 40,000 households, so far, have been […] todayMay 10, 2024 9
insert_link World Global hunger set to rise amid record displacement, warn FAO, UNHCR Dangerous levels of acute hunger affected a staggering 281.6 million last year, the fifth year in a row that food security worsened. According to the latest global report on the food crisis, more than 1 in 5 people in 59 countries face acute insecurity in 2023. The Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organisation Dominique Burgeon meanwhile says conflict in Sudan has created a hunger crisis. todayApril 25, 2024 15
insert_link Environment Agriculture Ministry calls for national drought emergency The Ministry of Agriculture, Water, and Land Reform has advised the government to declare a national drought emergency following its assessment of crop prospects and food security. According to Nampa, the recommendation was made after monitoring the situation in the seven major northern communal crop-producing regions from 12 February to 11 March 2024. Executive Director Ndiyakupi Nghituwamata highlighted significant distress grazing in the southern, western, and eastern parts of the […] todayApril 23, 2024 11
insert_link Africa Senior FAO official warns of real risk of famine in Sudan Sudan’s food security crisis is a matter of deep concern with a very real risk there could be famine there, Rein Paulsen the Director of the Food and Agriculture Organisation’s Office of Emergencies and Resilience has told UN News. The FAO is supporting vulnerable farms to boost crop production and is implementing famine prevention strategies, including vaccinating animals. todayApril 22, 2024 12
insert_link World Fasting is a key part of Ramadan, but for many Muslims, climate change is making food scarce all year By Nasya Bahfen, La Trobe University Every Ramadan, volunteers at Westall Mosque and OneSpace in Melbourne hold free weekly iftars (communal dinners to break the fast in Ramadan). This year, volunteers say numbers are up. To cut down on the resulting landfill, attendees are asked to bring their own reusable food containers and water bottles. In dedicated bins, bottles and cans are collected and recycled under the […] todayApril 2, 2024 10
insert_link Namibia Governor says Zambezi Region could feed Namibia Zambezi Governor, Lawrence Sampofu, has called on investors to take advantage of the fertile land available in the region and invest in agriculture and other potential tourism activities. Pointing to an abundance of water, wildlife, fish and other natural resources including rivers such as Zambezi, Kwandu, Linyanti and Chobe, Sampofu insisted that the region has the potential to provide employment opportunities and food security for Namibia. todayMarch 22, 2024 2
insert_link Uncategorized Malawi and maize: prices have spiked on the back of bad weather and trade bans By Simon Roberts, University of Johannesburg and Namhla Landani, University of Johannesburg Maize is the leading staple food in Malawi and crucial for food security. Typically, local production from smallholder farmers meets and exceeds annual requirements of around 3 million metric tonnes. The country, however, is currently facing a crisis with 4.4 million Malawians (22% of the population) being food insecure. This is due firstly to a […] todayMarch 19, 2024 2
Paying it forward: Kenyan coastal doctor Bashrahil Mohammed Mafudh has made it his life’s work to care for the most vulnerable in his community, at no cost.
