INCREASING FOOD INSECURITY; A CONSEQUENCE OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON FOOD SUPPLY
Climate change has become a developmental problem in most countries across the world. Due to rising global temperatures, changing rain patterns, and extreme weather conditions, food production has been adversely affected. As a factor that is threatening reliable food supply to homes, climate change is increasingly affecting food security.
Food security
according to the World Food Summit (1996) exists when all people, at all times
have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food that
meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life.
Hence, to ensure food security, there must be
adequate food production to ensure food availability, accessibility, usability,
and stability. The absence of this results in food insecurity.
Food insecurity on
the other hand is defined as a situation of “limited or uncertain availability of
nutritionally, adequate and
safe food or limited or uncertain ability to acquire acceptable foods in
socially acceptable ways” (United
States Department of Agriculture, 2000). It refers to the lack of
financial resources for food at the household level. Food insecurity has been
on the rise in many countries as climate change continues to worsen the decline
in global food production and prices.
In Ghana, the environmental menace has significantly retarded local agricultural food production; leading to reduced crop yields and increased prices, which is gradually increasing food insecurity in most rural homes.
Agriculture, as a thriving sector, generates revenue for Ghana’s economy but sadly, climate change is not only affecting revenue generation but also contributing to hunger. The 2022 Annual Household Income and Expenditure survey from the Ghana Statistical Service revealed that almost 50% of Ghana’s population experiences food insecurity. The survey found that 49.1% of the Ghanaian population was food insecure in the first quarter of the year. This represented 15.1 million of the 308 million persons in Ghana at the time of the study.
According
to the Ministry of Food and Agriculture and Alliance for Green Revolution for
Africa (MoFA and AGRA 2010), 450 million dollars worth of rice is imported
annually into the country as a result of the inability of local food production
to meet the demand of the population. The deficiency is partially a consequence
of extreme weather conditions like changing rainfall patterns, floods, and
droughts affecting food production and supply.
This
is a burden for the Ghanaian economy as much is spent on importation to ensure a
moderate food supply to various consumers in the country.
Also,
it is devastating to local communities as it reduces their access to affordable
and quality food crops. In Northern Ghana,
for instance, droughts have retarded the growth of food crops like cereals,
maize and yam. The inconsistent weather patterns have left local farmers and
their crops exposed and vulnerable to extreme climatic conditions.
A
stable food supply (the availability and distribution of food) is essential for
food security in a country. Disrupted food supply leads to increased price
hikes and consequently contributes to a food insecurity problem that is inimical
to Ghana’s desire to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) goal two
(2) which seeks to reduce hunger in a country.
It
is therefore imperative that climate change be addressed; as it is retarding
Ghana’s effort at ensuring food security in the country and rather, contributing
to nationwide hunger.
References
Climate
change and food security: risks and responses
Almost
50% of Ghana’s population experiences insecurity-GSS Survey
The
implications of climate change on food security and rural livelihoods:
Experiences from Northern Ghana
Analysis of Incentives and disincentives for rice in Ghana.
Written by: Vordzogbe Eyram
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