Climate change is severely impacting our food systems, making it increasingly challenging to provide food security and healthy diets for all people. At the same time, food systems contribute 25–30% of all greenhouse gas emissions. The livestock sector alone contributes about half of these GHGs, and has a large land and water footprint.

Climate change is projected to cause an increase in average temperatures in Zambia and a decline in rainfall, particularly in the southern and western regions. The country experiences high rainfall variability, which climate change is expected to exacerbate, resulting in likely higher frequency and intensity of already reoccurring extreme weather events, such as droughts and floods.

The Shamba Showdown project emerges in response to a critical, yet under-addressed issue in Kenya's agriculture sector: the aging farmer population and the disinterest of the youth in farming. Despite the fact that 85% of Kenya's food supply is domestically grown, primarily by smallholder farmers, there is a looming food crisis driven by the aging demographic of these farmers. The median age of Kenyan farmers is now over 60, and the younger generation, educated in urban areas, shows little inclination to return to rural farming.

Mozambique is already vulnerable to extreme weather events and climate change is projected to exacerbate their frequency and intensity. The occurrence of cyclones and flooding has increased in recent years and the trend is expected to continue. The country’s coast—where 60 percent of the population, the three biggest cities, and critical infrastructure are situated—is most exposed to climate change-related risks, including damage from cyclones and projected sea level rise.

Open-pollinated varieties (OPVs), such as beans, sorghum, and groundnuts, are important for increased income, job creation, food security, and nutrition of both urban and rural households in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). However, the main constraint is underdeveloped seed systems, which contribute substantially to dwindling productivity among small-scale farmers due to limited access to reliable and quality planting materials.

Striga hermonthica is the most widespread and destructive plant parasite infesting maize and other major crops in sub-Saharan Africa where it causes severe yield losses and threatens food security. Several tolerant maize lines supporting reduced S. hermonthica emergence have been deployed. However, the molecular bases of such resistance are yet poorly understood.

This study investigates the effect of married couples’ joint decision-making on rice variety selection on rice productivity—a measure of food security. The study uses the 2016 Rice Monitoring Survey and the endogenous switching regression (ESR) method. Results show that rice farms with joint decision-makers (husband and wife) would have higher yields, particularly in households that adopted MRVGen1 (before 1986) rice varieties. Thus, families with joint-decision making have higher food security.

In many countries in Southern and Eastern Africa, input subsidy programmes are common, often focussing on inorganic fertiliser. These programmes often do not achieve their food security objectives, partly because soil health is in decline as a result of years of application of inorganic fertilisers in the absence of other soil ameliorative measures.

Climate change remains a major threat to Ghana’s agricultural productivity and food security especially in developing countries. One of the promising pathways to achieving sustainable food production is building communities resilience to climate risk through technology parks which can serve as platforms to promote climate-smart agricultural technologies.

Over the past 60 years, food systems in South Asia have undergone rapid economic and socio-cultural transformations, with both considerable similarities and differences within and between nations (Pingali and Abraham, 2022). Early agrifood systems transformations were led by an intensification paradigm that has increased crop productivity by heavily relying on intensive input and resource use, particularly chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and groundwater.

The growing complexity of the relationship between climate information and agricultural decision-making necessitates the development of relevant and timely climate services for farmers. These services can effectively support risk management strategies in agriculture by fostering a comprehensive understanding of the intricacies involved in farmer decision-making dynamics. This paper addresses this critical gap by analyzing the drivers influencing decision-making processes that shape adaptation strategies for staple grain and coffee farming systems in Central America.

Prescribed burning is gaining attention as a vital tool for managing rangeland ecosystems in Sub-Saharan Africa, offering benefits for ecological restoration, biodiversity conservation, and overall land management. While fire is a natural and essential process that many ecosystems depend on, suppressing it can lead to the elimination of species and disrupt the ecological balance. Different ecosystems require varied approaches to fire management, with fire-sensitive ones needing protection and fire-dependent ones necessitating the right type and frequency of fire.