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Despite much research on large land deals for plantation agriculture in Africa, reliable data remain elusive, partly because of limited access to information and practical and methodological challenges. International debates are still shaped by misperceptions about how much land is being acquired, where, by whom, how and with what consequences. This article aims empirically to test some common perceptions through an analysis of findings from research conducted in three African countries: Ethiopia, Ghana, and Tanzania. The article presents new evidence on the scale, geography, drivers and features of land deals, relates findings to data from earlier research and international efforts to monitor land deals, and outlines possible ways forward for ongoing monitoring of the deals.

This paper explores the predictors of HIV/AIDS awareness and knowledge among older and younger Ghanaian women of reproductive age. Logistic regression was estimated using the 2014 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey data. Results indicate that older Ghanaian women are significantly different from their younger counterparts in terms of the selected socio-economic and demographic characteristics that influence awareness and knowledge of the epidemic. In all, the respondents’ age, region of residence, wealth status, education, marital status and religious affiliation were found to significantly predict knowledge and awareness of HIV/AIDS among women. In addition, pregnancy status and place of residence proved to be significant correlates of HIV/AIDS awareness among Ghanaian women. The study suggests that higher social status is critical in determining whether women of reproductive age are aware of and knowledgeable about the epidemic. Thus, there is the need for policies and interventions to target messages taking into account the varied socio-economic and demographic backgrounds of women in Ghana. Further, health education interventions should be sensitive to the changing technological landscape in order to develop messages that can be delivered via mobile phones, whether as reminders or ringtones, and therefore enhance health knowledge and promote behaviour that brings about desirable health outcomes.

Diets are changing globally, as agricultural and food systems have become globalised. Understanding how patterns of globalisation affect welfare is a key development question, but we know little about the way that the globalisation of food systems impacts different groups. This study explores food security and consumption among schoolchildren in Accra. We use a novel approach based on triangulation of primary data on food consumption and a synthesis of secondary literature on food trade, policy and urban food environment. Thus, we bridge a divide between micro-level analyses of food consumption and macro-level studies of food systems. We find that socioeconomic status is a critical dimension, with poorer children more vulnerable to food insecurity and narrow dietary diversity. However, consumption of packaged and processed foods, often sugar-rich and nutrient-poor, cuts across wealth groups. We argue that the urban food question today is defined by two intersecting phenomena: inequality and dietary change. The urban poor continue to face the fundamental challenge of adequate food access amidst a food environment that provides consumers with unhealthy and cheap food options. Therefore food policy needs to regulate imports of cheap, unhealthy and enticing food.

Abstract With malnutrition recognised as a key public health issue, attention has been placed on how individuals can make better decisions to attain food and nutrition security. Nevertheless, food practice entails a complex set of decisions that are not fully understood. This paper interrogates the focus on food choice by investigating how socio-economic relations shape practices of food provisioning. Given the surge of behavioural approaches in development economics and our focus on a middle-income country, we contextualise food choice in the transformations of the conceptualisations of decision-making in development economics. We draw on mixed-method evidence on food consumption practices among schoolchildren in Accra, Ghana. We find that the food decision-making process is complex in that it entails multiple moments and people, and embodies contradictory motivations. Decisions are negotiated outcomes reflecting social relations of power among the actors involved. Socio-economic inequality fragments the urban food environment and material living conditions. Furthermore, the concentration of capital gives the food industry the power to shape material and cultural relations to food in ways that extraordinarily limit the scope for individual choice. This is a critical case study to understand the contemporary dynamics of malnutrition in the urban Global South, with broader relevance for the analysis of food poverty elsewhere.