Fri, 08/28/2009

Feature written by Dr. Babatunde Omilola, ReSAKSS-Africa Wide Coordinator

Staying focused in a constantly changing environment and balancing critical short-term issues versus long-term issues are crucial as agriculture and food security become increasingly prominent on the global agenda. The political and policy environments governing agriculture and food security are continuously and rapidly changing. These changes require new analyses, knowledge and information in order to better respond to critical and emerging issues. One such issue that has emerged over the past two years is increasing and volatile international food prices. Two new ReSAKSS publications released this month focus on the causes and impacts of high food prices in Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA). These reports find a slight divergence between national and international food prices in some ESA countries due to policy responses employed by governments of these countries. Several upcoming events attempt to further shed light on issues such as the implementation of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) and the new pledges to address global food security. In early September 2009, donors and partners of CAADP will meet in Addis Ababa to take stock of the progress made towards implementing CAADP. The Borlaug Dialogue Symposium will take place in October 2009. It will bring together experts to discuss food security and nutrition’s role in national and international security in the face of economic, political, and environmental crises worldwide. The World Summit on Food Security will take place in November 2009 at the FAO Headquarters and it aims to create a new declaration for eliminating hunger by 2025.

For more information on these events and others, please visit the ReSAKSS website at www.resakss.org.