Poverty at the household level, bad governance/high levels of corruption in most African countries, inadequate service delivery, drought, especially in cattle corridors, environmental degradation, low precipitation, infertile soils
Climate change impacts food security through more frequent and intense extreme weather events, such as droughts, floods, and heatwaves, leading to crop failures and livestock losses. Shifting rainfall patterns and rising temperatures alter growing seasons, reduce crop suitability, and negatively affect yields of major staples. Ocean warming and acidification also pose a threat to vital fish stocks.
Simultaneously, resource scarcity intensifies the challenge. Declining freshwater availability for irrigation, a consequence of altered rainfall and over-extraction, severely limits food production. Widespread land degradation—driven by unsustainable farming, deforestation, and climate change itself—reduces arable land and its productivity. The loss of biodiversity, including essential pollinators and diverse crop varieties, weakens the resilience of agricultural systems to shocks.
These two forces are deeply interconnected. Climate change often worsens resource scarcity, for example, by causing droughts that deplete water sources and accelerate land degradation.
The most prominent challenges emerging from this crisis include:
- Reduced agricultural output due to lower yields and crop failures.
- Increased food price volatility, making food unaffordable for many.
- Disrupted food supply chains due to extreme weather and resource conflicts.
- Worsening malnutrition, especially among vulnerable groups.
- Heightened competition and potential conflict over scarce resources like water and land.
- Severe impacts on smallholder farmers and other vulnerable communities who have fewer resources to adapt.
- Increased forced migration as livelihoods are destroyed by environmental changes.
The prominent challenges include: access to the latest technologies in agriculture, which is often hindered by several factors, including financial constraints, extreme weather conditions, and insufficient support for climate-smart agricultural practices. These challenges can significantly impede the adoption of innovative techniques that are essential for enhancing productivity and sustainability in farming. Addressing these barriers is crucial for promoting resilience in agricultural systems and ensuring food security in the face of climate change.
Having most resources in the hands of a few rich people and politicians breeds resource scarcity. This is a fact and is evident in many East African countries. Also, resource capture by the army, without forgetting some sensitive agricultural sectors/organizations, which have been captured and controlled by the army. This one, in a way, does not open space for a participatory approach.
The most prominent challenges to achieving food security amid climate change and resource scarcity include:
Crop diseases and pests resulting from climatic changes, both natural and human disasters. Erratic rains.
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