Introduction

Hello and welcome to my blog all about water & food in Africa!

I have chosen to talk about water and food because it is a topic that I have a personal interest in and have covered in my previous years at university. In this blog, I will be looking at different approaches to farming and irrigation systems that have been implemented (either new innovations or passed on knowledge), and could be the future of mitigating the problem of water scarcity in agriculture on the continent. My goal through talking about these topics is to educate my readers (and myself) on the topics related to agriculture in Africa and look at them critically. I also join you, as a reader, to leave your ideas and comments down below! 

There is a clear connection between water scarcity and food production - the less water is available the less food is produced. Africa is the perfect continent to discuss the topic of food and water because it is the continent where water scarcity is one of the biggest threats to food security as around 2.9 million hunger-related deaths are recorded every year (FAO, 2008). In extreme cases, which have occurred in many parts of Africa, water scarcity can lead to famine. As straight forward the relationship between water and food is, there are several other factors that can influence access to water such as climate change, politics, population growth etc., and all of these need to be taken into consideration when looking at agriculture in Africa. One of the prominent factors has been population growth. It is estimated that by 2050 the population in Africa has reached 2.4 billion from 1.1 billion today (United Nations, 2015). The more population grows, the more constraints it puts on the goals to achieve food security as agriculture is the sector with the most consumption of water and the intense use of land and improper farming practises can lead to degraded land.

Another thing I would like to add is that I believe Africa does not lack water, but the lack of infrastructure and right management of this resource. The lack of management can be influenced by the lack of knowledge of foreign aid or the lack of knowledge by farmers. If degraded land can be transformed into fertile land, a real change in African agriculture can be achieved.

I hope you enjoy this blog!

Irrigation on a field in Sub-Saharan Africa