Lesotho’s Food Insecurity and the US AIM for Climate

Is climate change a driver of food scarcity in South Africa? And if so, to what extent? Food security is becoming a serious concern, especially in poor and developing countries.

Data from the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (UNFAO) shows that by 2019, two billion people will experience moderate to severe food insecurity. UNFAO has four interconnected pillars to measure food security:

1. food availability, which is linked to the amounts of food production,
2. access to food or whether people can afford to buy food,
3. food use or how food is prepared and consumed, and lastly,
4. food stability in terms of food supply and consumption.

An article from the Conversation explains the relationship between climate-change-induced droughts and the 2007 food crisis in Lesotho. The article mentions that droughts can negatively impact these four pillars, creating food insecurity or scarcity in the area.

When scientists examined the relationship between climate change-induced drought and food production in Lesotho, they found that climate change was a significant driver of the country’s food crises in 2007.

The country’s primary product is maise, but it only produces 30% of its demand by importing the rest from its neighbouring country, South Africa.

When a severe drought hit in 2007, both countries suffered crop failure. Maise exports to Lesotho dropped sharply, causing its price to double. Ultimately, Lesotho’s government had to ask for emergency food assistance for 20% of its population.

To determine the effects of climate change on food production, scientists devised two scenarios: the factual and counterfactual worlds.

• The first is the factual world—a warming world—and the one we live in today. Scientists predict that droughts will increase fivefold and double the chances that they will impact both countries.
• In contrast, the counterfactual world—one without climate change—finds that food shortages are much less likely to occur and that there are even scenarios where they could be prevented entirely.

Climate change’s adverse effects on Lesotho’s farming households

Researchers also found that climate change decreased the self-sufficiency of farming households in Lesotho by half and decreased their household purchasing power by 37%. 

Climate change is also worsening the country’s already vulnerable food situation. Other factors that affect Lesotho’s declining agriculture production are soil erosion, poor land-use practices, and decreasing soil fertility.

United States AIM for Climate

USe US rejoining the Paris Agreement is a significant boost for the international climate accord, which consists of 175 countries uniting against climate change. 

On 23 April 2021, the US announced its latest climate action initiative in partnership with the United Arab Emirates: the Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate (AIM for Climate).

According to the US Department of State:

“The goal of AIM for Climate, which will be advanced at the U.N. Food Systems Summit in September 2021 and launched at COP26 in November 2021, is to increase and accelerate global innovation research and development (R&D) on agriculture and food systems in support of climate action.”

John Kerry, the US presidential Envoy for Climate, calls this program “pioneering,” adding that “we all stand to benefit by sharing best practices and raising innovation ambition when it comes to climate-smart agriculture.”

This initiative will mobilise more significant investments in agriculture research, development, and innovation, specifically in new ways to increase agricultural activity sustainably, improve livelihoods, conserve nature and biodiversity, and adapt to and build resilience to climate change while reducing GHG gas emissions and sequestering carbon.

The announcement states, “The world’s growing population is increasingly dependent on vulnerable food production as the climate crisis undermines longstanding agricultural practices – threatening to damage the sector and keep millions of people in poverty. Innovative climate-smart technologies and approaches are urgently required to improve food security and drive economic growth.”

AIM for Climate will undoubtedly create a platform for sharing best practices and science-based solutions to adapt to and mitigate climate change effects, benefiting climate-vulnerable and food-scarce countries like Lesotho.

Click the link to read more on AIM for Climate.