Climate change, food security, and livelihoods in sub-Saharan Africa

Abstract

Sub-Saharan Africa is particularly vulnerable to climate change. Multiple biophysical, political, and socioeconomic stresses interact to increase the region's susceptibility and constrain its adaptive capacity. Climate change is commonly recognized as a major issue likely to have negative consequences on food security and livelihoods in the region. This paper reviews three bodies of scholarship that have evolved somewhat separately, yet are inherently interconnected: climate change impacts, vulnerability and adaptation, food security, and sustainable livelihoods. The paper develops a conceptualization of the relationships among the three themes and shows how food security's vulnerabilities are related to multiple stresses and adaptive capacities, reflecting access to assets. Food security represents one of several livelihood outcomes. The framework shows how several research paradigms relate to the issue of food security and climate change and provides a guide for empirical investigations. Recognizing these interconnections can help in the development of more effective policies and programs. The framework is applied here to synthesize findings from an array of studies in subSaharan Africa dealing with vulnerability to climate change, food security, and livelihoods.

Bibliometric analysis of peer-reviewed literature on climate change and human health with an emphasis on infectious diseases

“…The increase in the number of mosquitoes increased the opportunity for both Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax parasites to proliferate and place more people at risk of contracting malaria [113,114]. Aside from malaria, the AFRO region is expected to suffer from hunger and food insecurity due to climate change [115,116]. The climate change in the AFRO region is worsened by the weak economies, lack of resilient health systems, and lack of political stability in certain African regions.…”

Impact of Climatic and Non-climatic Factors on Sustainable Livelihood Security in Gujarat State of India: A Statistical Exploration

“…Livelihood is defined as the capability and assets which maintain and it make a better living standard of the peoples [2,3,9]. Livelihoods also include food system outcomes which contribute to food security and social welfare [10]. The capability of an individual comprises selfesteem, security, happiness, stress, vulnerability, power and exclusion [3,11].…”

“…While, SLS is a specific situation in which peoples are capable to mitigate the negative impact of all activities such as natural disaster, climate change, economic crisis and social conflicts [9,10,14]. Sustainable livelihood is a necessary condition to achieve sustainable development that includes ecological security [9].…”

Spatiotemporal Analysis of Precipitation in the Sparsely Gauged Zambezi River Basin Using Remote Sensing and Google Earth Engine

“…In sub-Saharan Africa, nearly 90% of staple food production is provided by rain-fed farming systems [1]. Both the totals and the variations of annual, seasonal and sub-seasonal precipitation have major effect on crop productivity [2,3]. As a result of climate change, precipitation variation may turn into extremely intense rainfall or prolonged drought [1,4,5], and both will reduce food production and lead to hunger and human malnutrition.…”