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School feeding programmes are recognized as a key part of food assistance and relief in emergency and development programmes.  They are principally concerned with transfer of food to school to alleviate hunger, meet daily consumption needs and encourage attendance and retention.  Home-Grown School Feeding programmes (HGSF) in particular have received attention in recent years because of the links to agricultural development and have therefore been widely viewed as a means to address food insecurity while promoting rural development goals in Africa. Locally procured school meals, form an important part of HGSF programmes, and when coupled with food and nutrition education (FNE), [...]

This report analyses the impacts of violent conflicts on food security, including on coping and consumption patterns, long-term consequences of early-life exposure to conflict, and the linkages between food insecurity and anti-social behaviours.  

This document summarizes the online discussion Youth employment in agriculture as a solid solution to ending hunger and poverty in Africa, which was held on the FAO Global Forum on Food Security and Nutrition (FSN Forum) from 16 July to 10 August 2018. The discussion was organized to gather views in advance of the 20-21 August regional conference “Youth Employment in Agriculture as a Solid Solution to Ending Hunger and Poverty in Africa: Engaging through Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) and Entrepreneurship” in Kigali, Rwanda. The major thematic areas of the conference focused on youth and entrepreneurship, digital innovation, and [...]

Migration is an expanding global reality, one that allows millions of people to seek new opportunities. But it also involves challenges for migrants and for societies, both in areas of origin and of destination. This report analyses migratory flows – internal and international – and how they are linked to processes of economic development, demographic change, and natural-resource pressure. The focus is on rural migration, the many forms it takes and the important role it plays in both developing and developed countries. The report investigates the drivers and impacts of rural migration and highlights how related policy priorities depend on [...]

Since its introduction to Libya in December 2015, Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza has spread to a number of farms in the country, causing serious economic losses to poultry farmers and affecting public health. Between 2014 and 2015, the losses to farmers caused by the disease were estimated at over USD10 million. The lack of qualified human resources and appropriate equipment meant that the outbreaks were not deeply investigated, while the absence of biosecurity measures and awareness enabled the evolution of the disease in the country, reaching over 60 percent in backyard farms and leading to an increase in the number [...]

Ethiopia is vulnerable to many natural hazards, and years of below-average rainfall, coupled with the 2015 El Niño-induced drought, resulted in deteriorating food security in 2016. In some regions crop losses, mainly cereals, were between 30 and 95 percent. Many households had to eat their seed reserves, leaving them without means of production in future seasons. This project –part of the largest emergency seed response in Ethiopia’s history –focused on providing seed aid to vulnerable smallholders: 13 875 households were helped, over a third more than the 10 223 initially targeted, to resume their agricultural livelihoods. Find more Project Highlights here.

After heavy and above-average rains fell in September 2015 in the Southern Province and Western Area, an estimated 22 000 people were affected and thousands of hectares of land were destroyed. The worst of the damage occurred in Bo, Bontheand Pujehundistricts. Because many households in Sierra Leone depend on agriculture for their food and income, the loss of crops and seeds devastated the food and nutrition security of farmers in these areas, who were already at the peak of the lean season. This project was implemented to immediately improve household food security while allowing farmers to restart agricultural production during [...]

The Boko Haram insurgency in Cameroon’s Far North region has led to a large influx of refugees from neighbouring Nigeria and of internally displaced people. Local communities, already disproportionately affected by years of low socio-economic development, have suffered from the impact upon the environment, food security, nutrition and basic social services. In an attempt to prevent radicalization of youths and women, the project aimed to build the capacity of local, traditional and religious auth orities to better understand the vulnerabilities, plan the response, tackle the crisis, contribute to the dialogue for peace and constitute a solid basis for peaceful coexistence [...]

Nearly 75 percent of Lesotho’s population live in rural areas and depend on farming for their livelihoods. The proportion of people living below the poverty line is increasing, and arable land is extremely limited (9 percent of the total area). When the El Niño-induced drought struck in 2015, the agricultural sector was strongly impacted, and the Government of Lesotho declared a state of drought emergency. Many households did not plant at all, leading to a drastic decline in food availability and harvest. In partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (MAFS) and the Bureau of Statistics, this project provided [...]

Political disputes and the deterioration of the economic and security situation in Libya continue to threaten the agricultural sector and its infrastructure. The cereal sector and, above all, wheat production, the most important crop for food security, are particularly affected. To improve food security conditions, farmers need to have access to improved seed, especially wheat seed. The wheat seed assistant programme was implemented to help small farmers in selected governorates to increase wheat production and productivity by distributing improved seed to producer households affected by the political situation, and by providing training and extension. Find more Project Highlights here.