Crises such as the current COVID-19 pandemic often hit poor and marginalized people and communities the hardest. IFPRI’s ninth Global Food Policy Report, launched virtually on April 7, focuses on how to make food systems more inclusive so that they can build vulnerable populations’ resilience to such shocks and meet global goals to end poverty, hunger and malnutrition. Malawi features in Chapter 3 on Including Africa’s Young People in Food Systems and in Chapter 6 on Inclusive Transformation for Healthier Diets.
The report is divided into three sections. The first section examines the imperative of inclusion in shaping food systems, challenges faced by smallholders, youth, women, and conflict-affected people, and inclusive transformation of national food systems for healthier diets. The second part of the report discusses problems, policies and prospects for regional and national food systems in 2020 and beyond across regions. The report concludes with trends in key food policy indicators to provide a comprehensive overview of food policy and systems at country and regional levels.
Results for Africa show, that income growth, economic dynamism, and demographic change are transforming food systems and changing opportunities for farmers, entrepreneurs, and employees along the agri-food value chain. Recent economic growth in most African countries has created broadly shared benefits, including higher incomes, improved nutrition, and reductions in the prevalence of poverty and in the poverty gap (a measure of the severity of poverty among those who remain poor). Income inequality, while high, has not increased over time. But poverty, hunger, and vulnerability are persistent, and growth has also led to perceptions of exclusion among regions, communities, and individuals benefiting less. Large farmers are best placed to take advantage of the opportunities created by increased food demand from urban markets, the rapidly expanding food processing sector, and the modernization of distribution chains. Smallholders are at risk of exclusion from value chains if they are not able to meet the demands of high-value markets.
Great effort is needed to ensure that the benefits of growth are broadly shared. Upgrading physical and social infrastructure will not only improve livelihoods today but also boost future capacity to create wealth and reduce vulnerability in rural areas. Social protection, skills development and training, and other interventions, particularly targeted toward women and youth, can help vulnerable groups contribute to and benefit from agricultural transformation. Finally, inclusiveness requires a better understanding of exclusion and vulnerability and their drivers. African countries, so the authors of the Africa Chapter, should prioritize generating evidence on inequalities and on the winners and losers of major policy changes. The 2020 second CAADP Biennial Review of progress toward the commitments of the Malabo Declaration offers an opportunity to assess countries’ success in tracking progress and in increasing the inclusion of smallholders, youth, and women.
Download the Africa Section of the report here. (PDF 2.7MB)
Click here to visit the Global Food Policy Report website.
Full video recording of the event and presentation slides available here.
