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This study explores poverty dimensions and negative experiences of households living in secondary cities of Kenya with the aim of understanding the determinants of the willingness to pay to access water services. Our findings suggest that negative experiences of households related to poor access to water, like water crises, water borne diseases, and daily time to fetch water, seem to play an important role. Conversely, poverty dimensions are not necessarily influential. More specifically, while daily income of the household is an important factor, other variables, namely, education, food shortages, and access to information do not have significant effects. Our evidence suggests that to raise the awareness of this public good's value, local governments should focus on improving citizens' information especially in poor areas, as well as the ability to pay. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Precision agriculture generally refers to the methods of crop, livestock and fish farming that are meant to eliminate or minimize uncertainty and maximize products with relative accuracy that matches predetermined expectations. Amidst these, the relevance of space assets such as satellites for remote sensing, navigation and communication in guaranteeing food security is increasingly gaining attention. This development cannot be ignored in Africa, a region that is infamously known as a hotspot of drought, famine, malnutrition and attendant death. Using a combination of post-colonial and modernization theories, this article examines the need for Africa to embrace, adopt and adapt space supported precision agriculture to address its enduring food production shortages and related insecurity. This study used a mixed-method to analyze data collected from secondary sources. Despite the involvement of over 50% of the population in agriculture, most African countries have a poor record of food production, because they rely on smallholdings with little technological support, making them vulnerable to food insecurity. Hence, there is an overriding need to adopt modern techniques, such as space supported precision agriculture that are relevant to overcome the challenges that continue to undermine food production capacities and potentials of the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Utilizing survey information obtained from five irrigation schemes in southeastern Africa, we investigated the influence of agricultural innovation platforms (AIPs) and monitoring tools on a range of farm and household outcome indicators. Doubly robust estimation was used to measure the effects of these interventions, with a variety of other methods used for robustness checks. Involvement in AIP activities and using monitoring tools was found to be statistically associated with increased on-farm income together with an increased capacity to fund child education. Participation in AIPs also had a significant positive influence on off-farm income and reduced food shortages. Moreover, spillover effects were accounted for in the estimations and statistically significant positive effects were found regarding on-farm income for non-participants. These findings suggest that interventions with strong agricultural innovation system approaches in irrigation schemes in Africa could provide significant societal benefits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mycotoxins are among the major food contaminants, especially in Africa and in many developing countries. Contamination by mycotoxins has greater consequences in terms of both human and animal health as well as economics of these countries. This phenomenon may impact negatively Africa's food availability and food security scenarios. This review evaluated mycotoxins in foods, safety of foods, consumer health and Africa's food security. This review also gave comprehensive information on socio-economic implications of mycotoxins of foods and the effects on food security in Africa. In Africa, information concerning food contamination by mycotoxins is very scanty and the problem of storing agricultural produce under poor storage conditions that may predispose food to fungal infestation and subsequent mycotoxin contamination are common in African countries. Consumption of moldy produce or food contaminated with mycotoxins and the dangers of mycotoxicoses as well as the impact on public health necessitated a comprehensive approach to reduce the impact on public health and consumer safety. The challenges of food shortages, wars and conflicts, poor governance and planning in African countries have increased the problems of mycotoxins in Africa. In order to improve food safety, consumer health and availability of needed food by the teeming African population, education and enlightenment of Africans on the economic and health implications of mycotoxins are very crucial. The major techniques for control and mitigation of mycotoxins need to be explained to consumers. A robust regulatory control and effective analyses and detection of mycotoxins as well as good produce handling and storage are important to stem the tides of effects of mycotoxins in foods in Africa countries to improve consumer health and food security. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In southern Africa, climate change is increasing drought severity and duration. One way to mitigate drought‐induced food shortages is supplementary feeding, but ungulate responses are largely unstudied. Here, we analyse ~250 h of video footage from camera traps at feeding stations in South Africa during a year when rainfall was ~50% of the decadal average. Feeding station usage was highly uneven: eland (Taurotragus oryx), greater kudu (Tragelaphus strepsiceros), sable (Hippotragus niger) and white rhino (Ceratotherium simum) were over‐represented relative to their local population; and impala (Aepyceros melampus), blesbok (Damaliscus dorxas phillipsi) and zebra (Equus quagga) were under‐represented. In total, 81% of individuals at feeding stations fed (0%–90% for different species). Guarding behaviour was observed, especially by eland and kudu, potentially excluding other (smaller) species. Overall, 17% visits involving ≥2 individuals involved intraspecific aggression (highest for sable (40%) and eland (27%); low/absent otherwise); there were very few (n = 6) inter‐specific encounters. Lucerne and teff hay were consumed more frequently than Boskos (pellets), which was favoured by non‐target primates and ungulates showing guarding behaviour. As benefits of feeding are unequal, and can encourage guarding and intraspecific aggression, we suggest feeding should be done with caution, especially if the aim is to benefit specific species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Africa has the world's fastest rate of population expansion, making it vulnerable to food shortages. Africa cultivates two types of rice (Asian rice; Oryza sativa and African rice; Oryza glaberrima). Native African rice called O. glaberrima has some intriguing characteristics, including resistance to several biotic and abiotic regional restrictions in Africa. However, O. glaberrima is solely employed as a tool to increase the production of O. sativa, which cannot grow in Africa, due to its low yield, lodging, grain breaking, and poor tissue culture ability. Enhancing breeding efforts for O. glaberrima is therefore critically important. The protocols for transformation and regeneration, however, are mostly for O. sativa and not O. glaberrima. This study examines the present problems with transformation and regeneration for African rice species as well as potential solutions for using modern breeding methods in O. glaberrima. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Precipitation extremes and associated hazards often cause agricultural losses and infrastructure damage and even exert negative impacts on human health. It is thus crucial to assess future changes in precipitation extremes and exposure under future warming scenarios to improve the mitigation of climate change. On the basis of Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phase 6 simulations, we find that occurring probabilities of precipitation extremes that exceed the 99th percentile threshold are projected to increase over global lands in the coming century, especially under the no‐mitigation scenario of SSP5‐8.5. Under this scenario, by the end of this century, occurrences of aggregations of precipitation extremes over global lands are expected to increase by approximately 1.8 times. Increases are also expected even if early mitigation is conducted via SSP1‐2.6. Accordingly, global aggregate exposure would increase by at least 50% in the future under SSP5‐8.5. Changes in precipitation extremes will exert a substantial influence on population exposure, of which contribution will be up to 46% under SSP5‐8.5 by the end of this century. The future maximum centers of exposure are concentrated over East Asia, South Asia, the Mediterranean basin, and eastern North America, as in the current state. However, the rapid increase in population over some parts of Africa plays a larger role than climate change and significantly increases the exposure in these regions. As a result, regions of Africa will become other high‐exposure global centers in the future. Climate change mitigation should be thus the key policy response to reduce population exposure in the future over most global regions. Plain Language Summary: Risks of precipitation extremes and associated hazards have been reported to increase in the past decades around the world, which often caused agricultural losses, food shortages, infrastructure damage, and even human deaths. With further warming in the future, results from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phase 6 simulations show that the occurring risks of precipitation extremes are expected to obviously increase across the world over the coming century, especially under the no‐mitigation scenario of SSP5‐8.5. Correspondingly, there would be more population exposures to precipitation extremes across the world in the future, with the high exposure mainly centering over East Asia, South Asia, the Mediterranean basin, Eastern North America, and Africa. By the end of this century, the global aggregate exposure would increase by at least 50% with respect to the current climate under the SSP5‐8.5 scenario. Further analyses reveal that climate change exerts a substantial influence on the increased exposure though it varies from region and scenario. Climate change mitigation should be thus the key policy response to reduce population exposure to precipitation extremes in the future. Additionally, population growth also plays a great role in the increase of exposure over some regions, such as Africa. Key Points: The occurring probabilities of precipitation extremes are projected to significantly increase over the coming century across the worldThe global aggregate exposure is expected to increase by at least 50% in the future if there is no mitigation to climate changeClimate change exerts an increased influence on future exposure across the world and population growth also plays a great role in some regions [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Multi-Knowledge Electronic Comprehensive Journal For Education & Science Publications (MECSJ) is the property of Multi-Knowledge Electronic Comprehensive Journal For Education & Science Publications (MECSJ) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The continued food insecurity, despite the teaching of agriculture amidst the novel coronavirus (Covid-19), is a major global concern especially in Africa. There is food shortage in Africa and Kenya in particular despite the teaching of agriculture as a major subject in secondary schools. Many youth who have graduated from Kenyan secondary schools cannot adequately employ the agricultural skills developed during and after school for food security. The teaching approaches employed in secondary school agriculture should be able to develop skills of students on the aspects of food production, its accessibility, food safety, and nutrition as well as production economics. Towards this direction, this paper investigates the relationship between the agricultural teaching approaches employed in secondary schools and food security in Kenya. The study adopted descriptive survey design where data were collected using an Agriculture Teachers' Interview Schedule, a Students' Focus Group Discussion Guide, and a Parent's Questionnaire and were then analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The research findings established that the lecture method, class discussions, class projects, problem solving, and tours and field trips were the common methods in agriculture classes. Though recommended in the literature review section, digital learning was hardly mentioned as a teaching approach for this study. A major conclusion for this study is that there is statistically insignificant relationship between the teaching approaches and food security. There are other factors not in the scope of this study that could be affecting food security and can be tackled at secondary school level. This paper makes a contribution to the growing body of knowledge by highlighting research gaps worth investigation on the relationship between the agricultural teaching approaches and food security that were beyond the scope of the study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

African Oryza glaberrima and Oryza sativa landraces are considered valuable resources for breeding traits due to their adaptation to local environmental and soil conditions. They often possess superior resistance to endemic pests and tolerance to drought and nutrient deficiencies when compared to the "imported" high production Asian rice varieties. In contrast, "domestication traits" such as seed shattering, lodging, and seed yield are not well established in these African landraces. Therefore, the use of these African varieties for high production agriculture is limited by unpredictable yield and grain quality. We are addressing this shortcoming by developing protocols for genetically transforming African landraces to allow the use of CRISPR-Cas mediated breeding approaches. Here we use as proof of concept the cultivated African landrace Kabre to target selected known "domestication loci" and improve the agronomic potential of Kabre rice. Stable genetic transformation with CRISPR-Cas9-based vectors generated single and simultaneous multiple gene knockouts. Plants with reduced stature to diminish lodging were generated by disrupting the HTD1 gene. Furthermore, three loci shown to control seed size and/or yield (GS3, GW2 and GN1A) were targeted using a multiplex CRISPR-Cas9 construct. This resulted in mutants with significantly improved seed yield. Our study provides an example of how new breeding technologies can accelerate the development of highly productive African landrace rice varieties, an important advancement considering that Africa is a hotspot for worldwide population growth and therefore prone to food shortage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Droughts in Africa cause severe problems, such as crop failure, food shortages, famine, epidemics and even mass migration. To minimize the effects of drought on water and food security on Africa, a high-resolution drought dataset is essential to establish robust drought hazard probabilities and to assess drought vulnerability considering a multi- and cross-sectional perspective that includes crops, hydrological systems, rangeland and environmental systems. Such assessments are essential for policymakers, their advisors and other stakeholders to respond to the pressing humanitarian issues caused by these environmental hazards. In this study, a high spatial resolution Standardized Precipitation-Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI) drought dataset is presented to support these assessments. We compute historical SPEI data based on Climate Hazards group InfraRed Precipitation with Station data (CHIRPS) precipitation estimates and Global Land Evaporation Amsterdam Model (GLEAM) potential evaporation estimates. The high-resolution SPEI dataset (SPEI-HR) presented here spans from 1981 to 2016 (36 years) with 5 km spatial resolution over the whole of Africa. To facilitate the diagnosis of droughts of different durations, accumulation periods from 1 to 48 months are provided. The quality of the resulting dataset was compared with coarse-resolution SPEI based on Climatic Research Unit (CRU) Time Series (TS) datasets, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) calculated from the Global Inventory Monitoring and Modeling System (GIMMS) project and root zone soil moisture modelled by GLEAM. Agreement found between coarse-resolution SPEI from CRU TS (SPEI-CRU) and the developed SPEI-HR provides confidence in the estimation of temporal and spatial variability of droughts in Africa with SPEI-HR. In addition, agreement of SPEI-HR versus NDVI and root zone soil moisture – with an average correlation coefficient (R) of 0.54 and 0.77, respectively – further implies that SPEI-HR can provide valuable information for the study of drought-related processes and societal impacts at sub-basin and district scales in Africa. The dataset is archived in Centre for Environmental Data Analysis (CEDA) via the following link: 10.5285/bbdfd09a04304158b366777eba0d2aeb (Peng et al., 2019a). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Carta Internacional is the property of Associacao Brasileira de Relacoes Internacionais and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Droughts in Africa cause severe problems such as crop failure, food shortages, famine, epidemics and even mass migration. To minimize the effects of drought on water and food security over Africa, a high-resolution drought dataset is essential to establish robust drought hazard probabilities and to assess drought vulnerability considering a multi- and cross-sectorial perspective that includes crops, hydrological systems, rangeland, and environmental systems. Such assessments are essential for policy makers, their advisors, and other stakeholders to respond to the pressing humanitarian issues caused by these environmental hazards. In this study, a high spatial resolution Standardized Precipitation-Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI) drought dataset is presented to support these assessments. We compute historical SPEI data based on Climate Hazards group InfraRed Precipitation with Station data (CHIRPS) precipitation estimates and Global Land Evaporation Amsterdam Model (GLEAM) potential evaporation estimates. The high resolution SPEI dataset (SPEI-HR) presented here spans from 1981 to 2016 (36 years) with 5 km spatial resolution over the whole Africa. To facilitate the diagnosis of droughts of different durations, accumulation periods from 1 to 48 months are provided. The quality of the resulting dataset was compared with coarse-resolution SPEI based on Climatic Research Unit (CRU) Time-Series (TS) datasets, and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) calculated from the Global Inventory Monitoring and Modeling System (GIMMS) project, as well as with root zone soil moisture modelled by GLEAM. Agreement found between coarse resolution SPEI from CRU TS (SPEI-CRU) and the developed SPEI-HR provides confidence in the estimation of temporal and spatial variability of droughts in Africa with SPEI-HR. In addition, agreement of SPEI-HR versus NDVI and root zone soil moisture – with average correlation coefficient (R) of 0.54 and 0.77, respectively – further implies that SPEI-HR can provide valuable information to study drought-related processes and societal impacts at sub-basin and district scales in Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite globalization and the scale of international food trade, access to sufficient food remains a major challenge in Africa. The most effective way to mitigate food insecurity is to increase crop production. To answer the question that whether African countries have the capacity to mitigate food shortages by best cultivating practices observed on current cropland, in this study, we use the local net primary productivity scaling (LNS) method to evaluate the currently attainable potential yield-gap (CAYgap). The CAYgap is initially used to suggest steps towards best regional agricultural practices and provide an indicator of regional divergence of cropland productivity in each homogeneous agro-climatic zone. Results indicate that under current climatic conditions, improving each countries' productivity to the zonal optimal level, around ~ 90% of all African countries have the capacity to mitigate their current energy shortages independently. Thus, to achieve ending hunger, possible efforts are needed which include (1) clarifying what and how socio-economic and institutional factors cause yield divergence across agro-climatic zones and establishing relevant practical policies; (2) strengthening the resilience of food access to make national food availability favors households and individuals; and (3) establishing systematically monitoring platforms on dynamics of crop yields from pixel to regional and from growth phrase to decadal scales. Furthermore, our study demonstrates the feasibility of applying satellite-derived indicators for the maximum yield achieved method to quantify and map the current cropland yield divergence by LNS method, and this method could be applied on different spatial level from regional to global scale with reasonable homogeneous zone scheme. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agriculture in Africa currently stands at the crossroads of persistent food shortages compounded by food losses and climate change threats. Communities in several African countries are battling food security, as many are encountering huge number of food losses therefore the need for preservation cannot be emphasized. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of time-based oven-drying on proximate chemical composition of cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.) leaves. A study was conducted at Limpopo Agro- Food Technology Station laboratory with a constant oven-drying temperature of 52°C. Two separate experiments were conducted for raw and cooked cowpea leaves with four treatments viz., 0 (sun-dried), 24, 48 and 72 h of oven-drying arranged in a randomized complete block design with five replications. Relative to control (sun-drying), 72 h ovendrying period significantly decreased protein, moisture, ash, fibre and carbohydrate by 10, 29, 18, 0.5 and 7% respectively. In contrast, relative to control, 72 h oven-drying period significantly increased energy and fat by 3 and 46%, respectively. Similarly, relative to control, 72 h oven-drying period decreased protein, moisture, energy, ash, fat, fibre and carbohydrate by 8, 14, 1, 13, 19, 0.4 and 10%, respectively. Seventy-two hours of ovendrying period was observed to have detrimental effect on the proximate composition of both raw and cooked cowpea leaves, therefore, oven-drying period should be limited to 24 h during oven-drying of leafy vegetables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background : Geophagy, the consumption of soil, is well documented in Africa and other continents, but is rarely investigated in Asia and even less so in India. The main aim of this exploratory qualitative study was therefore to understand the motivation for clay consumption, the social perception of the habit, the mode and quantity of consumption, as well as subjectively perceived effects of clay consumption in Himachal Pradesh, North India. Methods : We conducted semi-structured interviews with 27 female geophagists aged 18–80 years. Results : We could show that geophagy exists across all ages and social groups. The main type of consumed soil is yellow clay used for house wall plastering. Geophagy is usually practised because of a craving for soil despite various fears of negative health effects. It is normally done secretly and under-reported to local doctors. The most common self-reported positive effect of geophagy was the feeling of relief. Geophagy was generally considered as harmful to health and various complaints were associated with it. It is not practised because of food shortages or as a remedy. On the contrary, it is generally seen as an addiction detrimental to health. Conclusions : Awareness of geophagy has to be ameliorated in the Indian population and specifically among health workers to improve support for affected individuals. Geophagy should be routinely included in national antenatal care guidelines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Konzo is a distinct neurological entity with selective upper motor neuron damage, characterized by an abrupt onset of an irreversible, non-progressive, and symmetrical spastic para/tetraparesis. Despite its severity, konzo remains a neglected disease. The disease is associated with high dietary cyanogen consumption from insufficiently processed roots of bitter cassava combined with a protein-deficient diet. Epidemics occur when these conditions coincide at times of severe food shortage. Up to 1993, outbreaks in poor rural areas in Africa contributed to more than 3,700 cases of konzo. The number of affected people is underestimated. From unofficial reports, the number of cases was estimated to be at least 100,000 in 2000, in contrast to the 6,788 cases reported up to 2009 from published papers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Strychnos spinosa Lam. is among the top nutrient-dense indigenous fruit species that are predominant in Southern Africa. It is a highly ranked indigenous fruit based on the nutrition and sensorial properties, which make it an important food source for the marginalized rural people. On the basis of the high vitamin C, iron, and zinc content, it has the capacity to improve the food- nutrition and the socioeconomic status of individuals, especially those in the rural areas of the developing nations. The nutritional composition of Strychnos spinosa compare favorably with many of the popular fruits, such as strawberries and orange. Additionally, Strychnos spinosa has antioxidant activity similar to well-known antioxidant fruits, which keeps it in the class of the popular fruits, giving it added nutrition–health-promoting benefits. In order to improve the availability of Strychnos spinosa, more research on the domestication, processing, preservation, value chain, and economic potential need to be further explored. Therefore, we recommend more concerted efforts from relevant stakeholders with interest in Strychnos spinosa fruit production as a possible sustainable solution to food shortage, food-nutrition insecurity, malnutrition, and austerity, mainly in the rural communities of the developing countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dolichos bean (Lablab purpureus) and Bambara groundnut (Vigna subterranea) are two traditional crops from Africa with important economic values. The study of such neglected or underused crops (orphan crops) should contribute to the resolution of food shortage in Africa. Here we assembled and described the complete plastid genome of the two Fabaceae orphan crop species. The length of the complete plastomes of L. purpureus and V. subterranea is 151,753 bp and 152,015 bp, respectively. Maximum-likelihood (ML) phylogenetic analyses indicated that L. purpureus and Phaseolus vulgaris are closely related, and V. subterranea and other Vigna species are clustered in one clade, which is congruent with former studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reports on the food crisis in South Africa, with key topics including building resilience, food imports, and humanitarian assistance.

In this article the author discusses that while millions of people in Africa face food insecurity, the debate over the possible use of genetically modified crops continues as of 2015. Topics include increase in the number of people in the continent classified as absolutely hungry rose from 217 million in 1990 to 227 million in 2014 and author's view that scientists, and especially those from the National Biosafety Authority, should be able to confound sceptics about genetically modified crop.