Climate Change and Food Security in Sub-Saharan Africa

Abstract

Abstract Climate change affects food security directly through temperature levels and water availability in agriculture and indirectly through its impact on disease vectors and pests. This paper investigates the economic impact of climate change on food security in SSA. Panel data of all SSA countries are used in the analysis, to analyze the impact of temperature and precipitation on food security. Their coefficient of variation is used to analyze their impact on food security. The results from the analysis indicate that the coefficient of variations in both temperature and precipitation affects food security negatively. The climate variables affect food security directly through its impact on food production and indirectly through its impact on other food security indicators. The study recommends ecosystem management and production system improvement. According to the findings, the impact of climate change on food security in the SSA region is damaging. To overcome the impact, the study suggests appropriate land use policy formulation, natural resource conservation, implementing best agronomic practices and maintaining the number of population at an optimum level in the region.