Water & Food in Africa

In last week's blog we touched upon the importance of considering competing demands in freshwater provision within the context of virtual water trade. Here, I will explore the ways in such demands have been balanced through Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM) in South Africa  whilst also ensuring food security. Defining IWRM First of all, what is IWRM? The most commonly used definition is that which was coined by the  Global Water Partnership :  "a process which promotes the co-ordinated development and management of water, land and related resources, in order to maximise the resultant economic and social welfare in an equitable manner without compromising the sustainability of vital ecosystems" .    Put simply, IWRM is a holistic strategy that incorporates management of the physical environment within that of the wider political and socio-economic framework .  Since the  1992 World Summit on Sustainable Development , IWRM has been widely advocated as an effective

Kenya is said to be in crisis: a water crisis . This has veritable implications for the country's food production and security.  It is therefore  imperative that freshwater resources are better managed and distributed . This  post will consider the potential of Virtual Water Trade (VWT) in achieving both water and food security in Kenya.  Water in Kenya Kenya is generally characterised as water scarce. This has been attributed to a combination of  poor infrastructure, recurrent droughts and most notably, population pressures . With the nation's population predicted to   more than double by 2050 t o 85 million ,  per capita renewable blue water will diminish to 316m 3 , significantly below the quantity needed for an adequate diet. Moreover,  Kenya's freshwater resources are unevenly distributed  ( Figure 1 ). This is especially true for green water: arid northern and eastern regions have  annual precipitation rates as low as 200mm , less than one sixth of that experienced i

  Welcome to my blog where I will be exploring the complexities of water and food in Africa. I hope to offer insight into some of the strategies being employed to address both water and food security in countries across the continent.   Water  Water is integral to humanity. It covers 71% of the Earth's surface but only 0.5% of this is  available  freshwater .  Different climates and physiography have produced an inequitable distribution of freshwater worldwide. Africa is home to 20% of the world’s population but has just 9% of total renewable freshwater .  To put this into perspective, the United States accounts for only 4.5% of the population yet 8% of renewable freshwater . Although freshwater levels have remained relatively stable (~3% of all water) since the Mesozoic era, population growth has resulted in a threefold increase in its use .  Faced with the growing uncertainty resulting from climate change, it is now more important than ever that water is used and manage