An outlook: water and food in Africa

Hello and welcome to my blog. Over the next few months, we will be exploring the subject of water and food in Africa. 

A general note 

Before we begin， I would like to reflect on the article  “How to write about Africa” written by Binyavanga Wainaina. She argues that mainstream media and other writings tend to "treat Africa as if it were one country": a place full of malnutrition, drought, famine and in need of saving. After reading this article, I began reflecting on the perception I had about Africa before choosing the topic of Water and Food, and what was expected from me to think about water security from a privileged position where water is always available. With this in mind, I will be cautious to avoid assumptions and stereotypes, and I am determined to uncover the complexities and potentials of water and food in Africa. 

Why water and food? 

Water is imperative for basic sanitation, drinking water, industrial and agricultural usages and a luxury that many of us has taken for granted. However, 2.3 billion people are living in water-stressed countries today, 450 million children live under high or extremely high water vulnerable areas (UN-Water, 2021,UNICEF, 2021). This lack of access to water lies at the heart of many major problems (Jone and van der walt, 2004) and challenges remain to achieve water sustainability in Africa. 

Interdependence between water and food is obvious; irrigation requires water supplies. Globally, irrigated agriculture is by far the largest water user, accounting for more than 70% of freshwater withdrawals. Since the importance of agricultural withdrawal is highly dependent on other factors such as climate, this portion can reach up to >80% in Africa (Stephan et al., 2018). Therefore it makes sense to link these two topics by recognising that water security, food security and food production are in fact, inseparable. 

Furthermore, the concern and importance of water management and distribution especially in relation to food has been recognised with its inclusion in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGS) set by the UN back in 2015. SDG2 “end hunger, achieve food security and improve nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture globally by 2030) and SDG6 “ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all”, both to be achieved by 2030. 

Complexity of Africa 

As mentioned above, the reflection on the article is to ensure that you do not treat Africa as a single country with variability or complexity. Africa is a continent that not only accommodates a range of climate zones, biomes, landscapes but also different histories, cultures and people. The reason why we must recognise heterogeneity is crucial is that it allows us to get a more complete picture of Africa's water and food crises and assist us to find more appropriate solutions. 

The freshwater resources available in Africa is beset by a critical issue, distribution and reliability of resources. Sub-saharan African’s water resources are affected and defined by the substantial variations in seasonal and inter-annual rainfall. Such variability produces the highest variable river discharge in the world (McMahon et al., 2007). Moreover, the temporal and spatial variability of rainfall has important implications in affecting food production in terms of altercating crop yields and the type of crop. It is further compounded by the fact that food production in Africa relies heavily on "green-water" (water entering soil from precipitation) (Damkjaer and Richard, 2017).

The diagram below should get you some ideas that rainfall is incredibly uneven in Africa.

            Map of Africa showing mean annual rainfall (Masih et al. 2014)

Climate change adds further challenges and complexity into the picture. The frequency and intensity of droughts particularly in the Sahel region have appeared to have increased, affected by El Niño (Jones and van der Walt, 2004). At the same time, there have been extreme weather events such as more intense cyclones and rainfall (Taylor, 2012). Due to the large spatial and geographical extent of Africa, water resources will respond to climate change effects differently. Climate change is adding further pressure to already variable resources in Africa, threatening food security especially among the rural poor (Collier et al. 2008; Funk and Brown, 2009).

Understanding food security and water access may not be as straightforward as you might have previously thought. In the following weeks, this blog will aim to explore the intrinsic link between food and water, exploring the notion of virtual water and exploring  methods of sustainable irrigation and agriculture. Lastly, I would recommend this short video that gives a rounded level view of the issues of food production and large scale agriculture in Africa. 

Stay tuned!