Opinion

Drylands are home to two billion people, many of whom are poor and depend directly on the land’s resources for food and energy. Drylands also generate crucial environmental services and contain 35% of the world’s biodiversity hotspots. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations explains the importance, and challenges, of conserving drylands.

Food and agriculture laws hamper food security in Africa and elsewhere, say Tigist Gebrehiwot, Steve Cornelius and Lise Korsten in the journal article ‘Impact of global food and agriculture laws on Africa’sfood security’.

In a recent study, published by the World Resources Institute, researchers explored 10 scaling interventions that could help reduce food loss and waste across supply chains and geographies. According to the report, ‘Reducing Food Loss and Waste: Ten Interventions to Scale Impact’, governments, businesses, farmers, consumers, and everyone in between need to play a role in implementing these interventions.

I love swimming in the ocean and even as a child I would swim out far behind the breaking waves to where the water was calm. Sometimes, though, I misjudge my own ability and the power of the waves, and I have had a few narrow escapes.

As the South African economy limps its way through the various lockdown levels, all of which are aimed at slowing the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) infection rate, we’re getting to learn more about the fragile links that enable the various sectors to trade and operate.

Dr Louis du Pisani, national manager for production advice and development at the National Wool Growers’ Association, explores how livestock farmers can mitigate the negative effects of climate change on their operations.

Land reform should aim to address poverty and create livelihood opportunities for those at the lower end of the historically disadvantaged spectrum. This isn’t happening, according to the Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies. Instead, land allocation and access to resources are skewed in favour of well-off beneficiaries.

The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak has already had serious implications for many South Africans, as well as a negative economic impact on the country at large.

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic is dominating the news, with fears emerging about the widespread effect on the economy in general, and the food system in particular.

Fears about potential disruptions to global supply chains due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak have raised questions about whether South Africa could experience food shortages in the short to medium terms.

For many of my generation, the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, which is bringing everyday life to a grinding halt, will be one of the most enduring and disruptive experiences of our lifetime.

Media reports and public debate often simplify and blur the sensitive issue of evictions. Typically, evictions are seen solely from the perspective of the landowner or from that of landless people, and there is a failure to distinguish between lawful and unlawful evictions. Annelize Crosby, policy head for land affairs at Agri SA, explains the various perspectives and the relevant laws.

South African farmers are finding their businesses increasingly at risk due to the effects of climate change. Broad-based access to a state-supported agricultural insurance scheme would enhance food security in the country, writes Dr Sifiso Ntombela, a senior agricultural economist at the National Agricultural Marketing Council.

While still considered by many foreign investors as the ‘gateway into Africa’, South Africa’s dismal economic performance has been a drag on the rest of the continent, which, in 2019, was home to six of the world’s 10 fastest-growing economies, namely Rwanda, Ethiopia, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Tanzania and Benin.

According to Mike Muller, a visiting adjunct professor at the University of the Witwatersrand’s Graduate School of Governance, low and unpredictable rainfall is not the only cause for South Africa’s water crisis. As a result, no single solution can address water challenges across the country.

Global agriculture has to increase its output dramatically to meet the needs of a rapidly growing human population. John Hassell, Koch Agronomic Services’ customer support manager for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, highlights the challenges and urgently required solutions for meeting this unprecedented demand.

Many South Africans will be watching President Cyril Ramaphosa deliver his State of the Nation Address (SONA) on 12 February, some hoping against hope and some with enthusiasm and renewed hope.

For the last year or so, I have often thought about what occurred in South Korea in 1997 and 1998 when the country faced economic ruin due to the impact of the Asian economic crisis.

Over the past couple of decades, we have enjoyed plenty of benefits because of the progress made in farming. More people than ever before are now able to access sufficient food that can help them live longer and healthier lives.

In theory, South Africa has strong laws to protect the property ownership and inheritance rights of all women. However, a 2018 study conducted by Bongi Owusu for her master’s dissertation in social science at the University of KwaZulu-Natal found that these laws are often not implemented in rural Zulu-speaking communities. She explains how this prejudices widows in particular.