GIEWS Special Alert No. 348 - East Africa, 18 November 2021
18/11/2021
Severe dryness in October and in the first half of November 2021 in several areas of Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia had a negative impact on crop planting and germination. According to weather forecasts, the remainder of the October–December rainy season is likely to be characterized by below-average rainfall amounts, as a result cereal production is expected at below‑average levels. Significant rainfall deficits since early October 2020 have severely affected pastoral areas and drought is causing widespread shortages of water and pasture with an increase in animal emaciation and deaths. The food insecurity situation is expected to deteriorate in the coming months, with the number of severely food insecure people estimated at 2.4 million in Kenya and 3.5 million in Somalia in late 2021. Further increases are likely in early 2022. It is urgently needed to scale up livelihood support and food assistance interventions as recurrent climatic shocks have largely undermined household resilience.
Food Outlook – Biannual Report on Global Food Markets - November 2021
11/11/2021
Despite generally favourable supply prospects, international prices of most food commodities continue to remain high on robust trade with demand holding firm. Larger imports and soaring freight costs are expected to push up the world food import bill to over USD 1.75 trillion in 2021, a rise of 14 percent (USD 218 billion) from 2020 and 12 percent from the previous report in June. This report provides supply and demand forecasts for basic foodstuffs, fish and fishery products along with price analysis and policy information. TheSpecial Feature examines the pathways and impacts of rapidly rising input prices, especially those of energy derived from fossil fuels, which can have detrimental effects on the global food economy in terms of their influence onfood prices and future price developments, as well as their likely consequences for global food security. Food Outlook is published by the Markets and Trade Division of FAO as part of the Global Information and Early Warning System (GIEWS). It is a biannual publication (November and June) focusing on developments in global food markets. Food Outlook maintains a close synergy with another major GIEWS publication, Crop Prospects and Food Situation, especially with regard to the coverage of cereals. Food Outlook is available in English. The summary section is also available in Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian and Spanish.
GIEWS Update - The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, 11 November 2021
11/11/2021
In northern Tigray Region and neighbouring Amhara and Afar regions, conflict has severely damaged rural livelihood systems and displaced about 3.2 million people. In Tigray Region, crop production of the main 2021 “Meher” harvest, currently underway, is estimated to be 58 percent below the already poor 2020 main harvest, resulting in the third consecutive season with reduced production since the start of hostilities in November 2020. About 15 percent of the heads of livestock in Tigray Region has been looted or slaughtered. In June 2021, about 4.4 million people in conflict-affected areas were projected to face severe food insecurity (IPC Phase 3 [Crisis] and above) between July and September, including 401 000 people in IPC Phase 5 (Catastrophe). The current prevalence and severity of food insecurity are likely to be higher as the projection could not be carried out for all areas affected by the conflict in June and due to the expansion of hostilities to most of Afar and Amhara regions since July. Unimpeded humanitarian access is urgently needed to support vulnerable households in conflict‑affected areas to avert the risk of famine.
Food Price Monitoring and Analysis (FPMA) Bulletin #9, 10 November 2021
10/11/2021
International prices of all major cereals increased month on month in October. Wheat prices led the increase, with prices of rice, barley and maize being also firmer. In East Africa, prices of coarse grains followed mixed trends in October and were generally higher than one year earlier, with exceptionally high levels still prevailing in the Sudan and South Sudan. Prices were well above their year-earlier levels also in Uganda and Somalia, due to reduced availabilities, and in Ethiopia, mainly due to macro-economic difficulties and conflict‑related trade disruptions in some areas. In West Africa, prices of coarse grains decreased seasonally in October for the second consecutive month. However, prices were still significantly above their year-earlier values across the subregion, particularly in central Sahel and Lake Chad Basin, where increased conflicts continued to disrupt agricultural livelihoods, trade and markets.
Summary note prepared by FAO and OECD to the G20 Presidency of Italy
08/11/2021
This summary note was prepared by FAO and the OECD at the request of the G20 Presidency of Italy. It compiles and summarizes 18 responses filled by 18 G20 countries to the Presidency’s questionnaire titled Survey on Resilience and Risk Management. The results of the survey were presented to the G20 at the 2nd Agriculture Deputies meeting in July 2021.
The State of Food and Agriculture 2021
01/11/2021
The COVID-19 pandemic exposed the vulnerability of agrifood systems to shocks and stresses and led to increased global food insecurity and malnutrition. Action is needed to make agrifood systems more resilient, efficient, sustainable and inclusive.
No. 48 Changing patterns of agrifood trade: the rising importance of developing countries
29/10/2021
This policy brief analyses trends in agrifood trade globally and by country group, with a focus on trade patterns of developing countries.
No. 47 Trade and sustainable agrifood systems: pathways of interaction
28/10/2021
This policy brief examines the relation between trade and the three dimensions of sustainability (economic, social, and environmental). Moreover, it investigates the complementary policies to achieve sustainability outcomes and analyses the role of certification schemes in addressing sustainability.
No. 46 Public food stockholding: objectives, experiences and main issues
27/10/2021
This policy brief discusses the different objectives and types of public food stockholding (PSH) programmes, as much as some of the main PSH related issues under discussion in the agricultural negotiations at the World Trade Organization.
No. 45 Enhancing transparency in agrifood trade
26/10/2021
This policy brief aims at informing Members about the importance of transparency in reducing uncertainty and enhance the predictability and stability of international agrifood trade.
No. 44 How can agrifood trade support climate change mitigation?
25/10/2021
This policy brief investigates the links between climate change and food security, examines the trade measures used to combat climate change in the agricultural context, and discusses the challenges ahead.
No. 43 How can trade and trade policies help shape adaptation to climate change?
24/10/2021
This policy brief provides information on the relation between climate change and trade, the role that trade can play as a climate change adaptation instrument, and the trade policies that can be used to strengthen the adaptive role of trade.
No. 42 Medium-term prospects and challenges for global agriculture
23/10/2021
This brief presents an assessment of the ten-year prospects and challenges for agricultural commodity and fish markets at national, regional and global levels based on the OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook 2021-2030.
No. 41 Recent trends and prospects in the world cotton market and policy developments
22/10/2021
This policy brief provides an overview of the key market, trade and policy drivers shaping the international cotton market, including developments prospects and challenges for the sector.
Public food stockholding
21/10/2021
The paper investigates the basics of public stockholding, exploring the objectives of such programmes, the policy instruments used to achieve them, and their possible market impacts. It also synthesizes country experiences in implementing public stockholding programmes in different regions and presents the evolution of administered and international prices over the last decade. Finally, the paper highlights the main elements of the WTO negotiations on public stockholding for food security, and some of the issues that need to be resolved to help achieve consensus in this area.
No. 40 Leveraging digital trade for efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable agrifood systems
21/10/2021
This policy brief aims to inform Members about the opportunities offered by digitalization in enhancing more efficient and transparent agrifood trade, while discussing the challenges of scaling up digital trade.
Major Tropical Fruits - Market Review 2020
19/10/2021
The Major Tropical Fruits Market Review is issued on an annual basis to Members and Observers of the Sub-Group on Tropical Fruits of the Intergovernmental Group on Bananas and Tropical Fruits and offers an overview of recent developments in international trade in mangoes, pineapples, avocados, and papayas.
Impact tokenization and innovative financial models for responsible agrifood supply chains
15/10/2021
This report provides a comprehensive summary and analysis on how impact tokenization and innovative financial models can promote responsible agri-food supply chains. Recent advances in the development of impact tokenization techniques, distributed ledger technology, and innovative financial models have created new opportunities to improve transparency, verification, and incentive alignment across multiple stakeholders in agri-food supply chains. This report outlines those opportunities and describes how practitioners and policymakers can implement enhanced methods for efficiently defining and verifying impact in agri-food supply chains. The report concludes with an analysis of the most promising financial models for promoting responsible agri-food supply chains.