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22. The Evolving Singapore Agrifood Ecosystem
- Author:
- Paul Teng, Jose Ma, Luis Montesclaros, Rob Hulme, and Andrew Powell
- Publication Date:
- 08-2019
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
- Abstract:
- The Singapore agrifood ecosystem is fast changing from one focused primarily on food security to one which also addresses a new economic sub-sector for export of processed food and “disruptive technologies”. Recently there has been a marked convergence of various technologies including FoodTech, AgTech, FinTech and MedTech. In 2019, exciting initiatives were announced which included the development of a new 18 ha AgriFood Innovation Park (AFIP), a new food security strategy of 30% food self-sufficiency by 2030, the launch of the Enterprise Singapore backed Seeds Capital investment for several new AgriFoodTech Accelerators and the launch of the new Singapore Food Agency (SFA) under the Ministry of Environment and Water Resources (MEWR). All these have come at a time when there is an increasing number of new startups and commercial enterprises engaged in farming and food processing, including indoor plant factories growing a range of fruit and vegetables and land-based fish farms. How do all these developments compare with similar ecosystems in successful agrifood countries like the Netherlands? Building on a previous NTS INSIGHT on developing a successful urban food cluster, this INSIGHT will explore ways to successfully integrate the key elements such as research and development; retail and consumers; human resources and education; financing; and policy. It concludes with some foresighted insights on the future direction of the ecosystem.
- Topic:
- Agriculture, Environment, Science and Technology, and Food Security
- Political Geography:
- Singapore and Southeast Asia
23. Africa’s Unresolved Conflicts a Key Driver of Food Insecurity
- Author:
- Africa Center for Strategic Studies
- Publication Date:
- 10-2019
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Africa Center for Strategic Studies
- Abstract:
- Conflict is a central factor in the geography of Africa’s food insecurity. The acuteness of this insecurity deepens the longer a conflict continues.
- Topic:
- Humanitarian Aid, United Nations, Food Security, and Conflict
- Political Geography:
- Africa, Sudan, Nigeria, Burundi, South Sudan, Cameroon, and Central African Republic
24. Climate Change and the Syrian Conflict?
- Author:
- Marwa Daoudy
- Publication Date:
- 11-2019
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Center for Contemporary Arab Studies
- Abstract:
- Over the past few decades, a new narrative has emerged that seeks to link climate change with political and social unrest. This idea of a climate-conflict nexus is similar to the “water wars” scenario of the 1990s, in which the media and some scholars predicted that water scarcity would be the major driver of inter-state conflict in the twenty-first century. More recently, this climateconflict narrative has been applied to the Syrian case. According to this logic, climate change caused the 2006-2010 drought in Syria, the drought caused agricultural failure, agricultural failure caused poverty, and the resulting displacement and discontent culminated with the 2011 uprising. My forthcoming book, The Origins of the Syrian Conflict: Climate Change and Human Security (Cambridge University Press, spring 2020) questions this line of reasoning, arguing that government policies were at the heart of Syria’s vulnerabilities in the buildup to the uprising. Although global warming is real and international action is urgently needed, climate change was not what was at the forefront of the minds of Syrians in 2011. Instead, most people were focused on a moral ideal: the end of repression and injustice.
- Topic:
- Agriculture, Climate Change, Environment, Water, Food Security, Inequality, Syrian War, and Revolution
- Political Geography:
- Middle East and Syria
25. Food security and land use in the 21st century: the return of Malthusianism
- Author:
- Timothy M. Swanson
- Publication Date:
- 12-2019
- Content Type:
- Research Paper
- Institution:
- Centre for International Environmental Studies, The Graduate Institute (IHEID)
- Abstract:
- The coming century is set to pose many important problems regarding population, food requirements and land use. In many ways, the problem facing us is a stark reminder of Malthus’ predictions regarding the importance of resource constraints in the face of population growth. Despite questions concerning the core of the problems to be solved, there is little issue concerning the manifestations of these problems. First, we are seeing the culmination of a long-term process of human population growth, which commenced in earnest about 250 years previously (about the time of Malthus) and escalated thereafter, continuing to this day. A global population that was only about a million individuals in 1750, escalated to about two billion individuals in 1950, and has since increased to approximately seven billion.
- Topic:
- Agriculture, Food, Population, Food Security, Land Rights, and Population Growth
- Political Geography:
- United Nations and Global Focus
26. Famine Early Warning and Information Systems in Conflict Settings: Challenges for Humanitarian Metrics and Response
- Author:
- Daniel Maxwell
- Publication Date:
- 11-2019
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Feinstein International Center, Tufts University
- Abstract:
- Attention to the growing number of people caught in crises characterized by extreme and often protracted levels of food insecurity, malnutrition, and mortality is increasing. The information systems that track these conditions and inform humanitarian decision-making have expanded substantially in the past two decades and in many cases have reached a degree of unprecedented sophistication. These famine early warning systems have become increasingly sophisticated in the past decade, but they still tend to be based on several assumptions that are important to understand. This paper briefly describes existing famine early warning systems and outlines some of the assumptions on which they are based— both in theory and in practice. Then it gives four brief case studies of recent famine or “famine-like” events and pieces together the formal analysis process with an attempt to reconstruct events on the ground from a conflict analysis perspective—highlighting the extent to which the formal famine analysis did or did not deal with conflict analyses and the political kryptonite around the discussion of “intent.” It closes with a summary of gaps in the current system and an assessment of the risks of trying to address those gaps through famine EWS or alternative means.
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, Humanitarian Aid, Food, Famine, Food Security, and Conflict
- Political Geography:
- Kenya, Middle East, Yemen, North Africa, and Ethiopia
27. Highlights on the resilience and vulnerability of populations affected by conflict
- Author:
- Helen Young, Elizabeth Stites, and Anastasia Marshak
- Publication Date:
- 11-2019
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Feinstein International Center, Tufts University
- Abstract:
- This is the third in a series of three briefing papers that form part of the Mind the Gap: Bridging the Research, Policy, and Practice Divide to Enhance Livelihood Resilience in Conflict Settings project. The first two briefing papers accompany regional case-study reports on Chad, South Sudan and the Sudan, and on Uganda that challenge many long-held assumptions about nutrition and livelihoods in countries struggling to recover from conflict, violence and fragility. FAO reviewed these regional case-studies on resilience and vulnerability at a two-day high-level workshop in Rome in November 2018. This brief summarizes the report highlights on the resilience and vulnerability of populations affected by conflict, including insights from the workshop participants and some implications for policies, programs, and future research.
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, Conflict Prevention, Food, Famine, Food Security, and Conflict
- Political Geography:
- Uganda, Africa, Sudan, North Africa, Chad, and South Sudan
28. Comparative analysis of livelihood recovery in the post-conflict periods in Karamoja and northern Uganda
- Author:
- Elizabeth Stites, Frank Muhereza, and Claire McGillem
- Publication Date:
- 11-2019
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Feinstein International Center, Tufts University
- Abstract:
- This is the second in a series of three briefing papers that form part of the Mind the Gap: Bridging the Research, Policy, and Practice Divide to Enhance Livelihood Resilience in Conflict Settings project. This briefing paper accompanies a report that examines the parallel but separate trajectories of peace-building, recovery, and transformation over post-conflict periods in northern (Acholi and Lango subregions) and northeastern (Karamoja) Uganda. Parallels between these areas include a history of marginalization from the central state, underdevelopment and endemic poverty, and vulnerability to climate change and crossborder incursions. We argue that throughout the post-conflict periods, the initial peace processes in both locations were largely top-down in nature, with little participation from the affected populations. While keeping in mind the key differences in these areas, we highlight the nature of recovery, the ongoing challenges, and the need for external actors to be cognizant of the continuing fragility as they design policies and interventions for these locations.
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, Conflict Prevention, Food Security, Conflict, and Pastorialism
- Political Geography:
- Uganda, Africa, and North Africa
29. Twin peaks: the seasonality of acute malnutrition, conflict, and environmental factors
- Author:
- Helen Young, Anastasia Marshak, and Aishwarya Venkat
- Publication Date:
- 11-2019
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Feinstein International Center, Tufts University
- Abstract:
- This report highlights major new findings on the seasonal patterns of child malnutrition and their links to climate variability, conflict, and livelihood systems in Chad, Sudan, and South Sudan. Contrary to long-held assumptions about acute malnutrition escalating in the lean season, our data show that there are two peaks of acute malnutrition. The first and larger peak occurs at the end of the dry season, followed later by a second, smaller peak after the lean season. Our analysis demonstrates a significant relationship between acute malnutrition, conflict trends, and environmental factors. The findings underscore the importance of environmental variability and the persistence of climate, conflict, and other shocks in relation to livelihood resilience and transformation over time. The findings raise specific considerations for data collection, future research, programming, and policy, which are detailed in the report and briefing paper.
- Topic:
- Food, Children, Food Security, Youth, and Conflict
- Political Geography:
- Africa, Sudan, Chad, and South Sudan
30. Apolou Baseline Report: Household Wealth and Market Quality
- Author:
- Anastasia Marshak, Nate Ives, Elizabeth Stites, Kimberly Howe, and Barbara Athieno
- Publication Date:
- 07-2019
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Feinstein International Center, Tufts University
- Abstract:
- This report reflects findings from the baseline quantitative study of a four-year research project in the Karamoja sub-region of Uganda. We describe different aspects of wealth, such as animal-related wealth and farm-related wealth, and how they relate to two indices of wealth that we created as part of this study. We then examine how different wealth indices correlate with geographical and household characteristics, including food insecurity. We further explore market access and quality, and the relationship between these factors, Mercy Corps program layering, and wealth. The findings draw on survey research in a sample of Mercy Corps programming communities in Karamoja. A team from the Feinstein International Center, Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University in collaboration with Mercy Corps conducted this research between November 2018 and January 2019 as part of the USAID/FFP-funded Apolou Activity. Midline and endline data collection are expected to take place in 2019 and 2020. The overall study, which also consists of a qualitative component, explores how the recent transformations in the Karamoja sub-region, including expansion of markets, increase in trade, and monetization, are affecting households and communities.
- Topic:
- Gender Issues, Children, and Food Security
- Political Geography:
- Uganda and Africa