Chinese and African scientists on Monday renewed their call to improve agricultural systems in harmony with nature and resilient to climate shocks in order to overcome hunger and malnutrition.
Speaking at a forum in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, scientists acknowledged the growing hunger crisis in Africa, stressing that a durable solution depends on the transition to climate-smart food production methods.
Yan Zhuang, director of the International Cooperation Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said tackling the climate crisis and other ecological threats in Africa will put the continent on the path to long-term food security, adding that greater South-South cooperation is needed. to boost Africa’s climate response and accelerate the achievement of UN Sustainable Development Goal 2, which calls for eradicating hunger on the continent by 2030.
About 100 Chinese and African scientists are attending the third climate, ecosystems and livelihoods conference in Nairobi to discuss innovative ways to improve food and nutrition security in Africa.
Convened by the United Nations Environment Program-International Ecosystem Management Partnership (UNEP-IEMP), a joint initiative between UNEP and the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the two-day forum will also discuss sustainability environment as a foundation for Africa’s ability to feed its citizens in the future.
Aggie Konde, vice president of Innovation and Delivery Program at the Nairobi-based Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), said there was an urgent need for climate-proof agricultural systems on the continent to regenerate. soil and increase crop yields at the smallholder level. Konde noted that 20% of Africa’s population, or 282 million people, suffer from food insecurity and malnutrition, and emphasized that increasing funding for climate adaptation and habitat restoration would be the key to sustainable food production.
Rapid action on the triple planetary crises of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution will be a prerequisite for strengthening the resilience of Africa’s food systems, said Susan Gardner, director of UNEP’s Ecosystems Division.
According to Gardner, greater acceptance of nature-friendly farming methods will not only ensure food security in Africa, but also accelerate the continent’s transition to a greener and more resilient future.
Clemens Breisinger, Kenya country program leader and senior fellow at the Washington D.C.-based International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), said establishing agri-food systems resilient in Africa in the face of climate change, pandemic disruptions and conflicts must be anchored on policy reforms, better governance and smallholder empowerment.
