Climate change will affect food security in southern Africa directly and indirectly. Current gains in food production look likely to reverse, adding to increasing reliance on food imports. People at risk are those who are already food-insecure.
“Food security exists when all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and
food preferences for an active and healthy life.” (World Food Summit, 1996)
Climate change will affect food security directly through production shortfalls, and indirectly through damage to infrastructure, environment and the social fabric (Easterling et al., 2007). It will impact mostly on people who are already food-insecure, who are subject to existing high levels of climate variability and stress, and who can’t cope with or adapt to the added pressure.
