African Journal of Agriculture and Food Security

African Journal of Agriculture and Food Security ISSN 2375-1177 Vol. 7 (4), pp. 001-007, April, 2019. © International Scholars Journals

Review

Potential of traditional food plants in rural household food security in Botswana

G. M. Legwaila, W. Mojeremane*, M. E. Madisa, R. M. Mmolotsi and M. Rampart

Department of Crop Science and Production, Botswana College of Agriculture, Private Bag 0027, Gaborone, Botswana.

Accepted 13 February, 2019

Abstract

Botswana is endowed with a variety of traditional food plants which grow annually despite erratic rainfall. The most common traditional food plants are leafy vegetables (for example, Amaranthus, Cleome, Conchorus and Vigna species) and indigenous fruits (for example, Azanza garckeana, Strychnos cocculoides, Sclerocarya birrea etc.) . They provide an important source of food for people with either low or middle income and have been consumed for years to supplement diets. They are also a source of income; thereby improve the standard of living conditions for local communities. Traditional food plants contain vital nutrients and essential vitamins important for the proper maintenance of human health, especially for children who are often vulnerable to malnutrition and diseases. Some traditional leafy vegetables are very nutritious with protein contents of up to 36%. Indigenous fruits such as S. cocculoides and A. garckeana contain more than 30% fat and about 45% crude fibre and total carbohydrates. S. birrea fruits and juice contain four times more vitamin C than orange juice. Traditional food plants play an important role in food security because they yield a crop even in poor rainfall years when arable crops fail. The objective of this is synthesis existing information on the status and contribution of indigenous food plants to rural household food security in Botswana.

Key words: Botswana, indigenous fruit trees, leafy vegetables, food security.

African Journal of Agriculture and Food Security ISSN 2375-1177 Vol. 7 (3), pp. 001-015, March, 2019. © International Scholars Journals 

Full Length Research Paper

Food access and interventions:  A case study of the urban poor in Namibia

Larry Williams¹* and Kelvin Smith²

^1,2School  of  Animal  Plant  and  Environmental  Sciences,  University  of  Witwatersrand  Johannesburg,  Private  Bag  3,  WITS  2050,  South  Africa.

Accepted 25 February, 2019

Abstract

Food  security  is  at  the  forefront  of  the  global  agenda  as  seen  in  the  newly  developed  Sustainable  Development  Goals  (SDG’s).  For  much  too  long  the  urban  crisis  of  food  security  has  remained  in  the  shadow  of  rural  food  insecurity.  In  southern  Africa  the majority  of  food  security  interventions  are  focused  on  the  rural  poor,  but  it’s  been  recognized  that  the  urban  poor  are  facing  serious  challenges with regards  to  reaching  a  food  secure  state.  In  light  of  market  prices  increasing  at  an  alarming  rate,  the  state  of  the  urban  poor’s  ability  to  access  these  markets  need  to  be  investigated,  in  order  to  facilitate  problem  specific  interventions.  Household  Food  Insecurity  Access  surveys  were  conducted  to  assess  the  state  of  food  security  in  informal  settlements  of  Windhoek;  furthermore  dietary  diversity  and  month  of  adequate  food  in  households  were  also  investigated.  It  was  found  that  food  insecurity  is  high  (>80%)  amongst  households,  dietary  diversity  low  (maize  and  sugar  being  the  most  dominant  foods)  and  coping  strategies  severe  (e.g. fewer meals  per  day).  Furthermore,  market  access  appears  to  be  hindered  mainly  by  lack  of  finance.  Urban  interventions  were  reviewed  which  showed  that  context  specific  interventions  are  few  and  mostly  unsustainable.  This  confirms  the  limited  attention  the  urban  poor  receive  with  regards  to  food  security  and  that  much  more should  be  done  to  improve  the  situation  in order to  reduce  food  insecurity  and  achieve  the  Sustainable  Development  Goals.

Keywords:  Urban, food security, market, access, interventions.

African Journal of Agriculture and Food Security ISSN 2375-1177 Vol. 7 (3), pp. 001-013, March, 2019. © International Scholars Journals

Full Length Research Paper

Livelihoods diversifications and implications on food security and poverty levels in the Maasai plains: The case of Simanjiro district, Northern Tanzania

Pius Z. Yanda^1* and Christopher William²

¹Institute of resource assessment, University of Dar Es Salaam, P.O. Box 35097, Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania.

²Department of Geography, University of Dar Es Salaam, P.O. Box 35049, Dar Es salaam, Tanzania.

Abstract

This paper presents findings of a study that examined livelihood strategies that have evolved in the pastoral area and whether these strategies help the people in alleviating their poverty while ensuring food security. Participatory rural appraisal and wealth ranking exercise were used for data collection, while descriptive statistics was used for the data analysis. The findings show three wealth categories in the three villages studied; the Arkasisi/Altajiri; Menati/Dorpu and Oltoroboni/Lepai; as the rich (high class people), moderately rich (middle class people) and the poor (low class people) respectively. The wealth groups are dynamic as they try to maintain their status and or increase it, while those at the lower categories make deliberate attempts to join the wealthier on the wealth spectrum. The pastoralists strategically diversify their livelihoods through engaging in agriculture, charcoal selling, retail shops and restaurants and trading in minerals. However, resources accrued from these activities are re-invested in livestock. The study suggests that poverty alleviation efforts should target the people as perceived by the people themselves.

Key words: Semi-arid, pastoralism, agriculture, ecosystem change, Maasai Plains.

African Journal of Agriculture and Food Security ISSN 2375-1177 Vol. 7 (3), pp. 001-002, March, 2019. © International Scholars Journals

Editorial

Technology-Assisted Environmentally-Sustainable Food Production

Can we produce sufficient food to satisfy Africa’s population without incurring irreversible “damage” to the environment? What is the appropriate role of biotechnology in supplementing subsistence agriculture that still dominates food production on the continent? What are the tradeoffs in balancing productivity, technology, and environmental sustainability? These are questions raised by the 2009 World Food Prize awarded to Dr. Gebisa Ejeta of Ethiopia (World Food Prize. 2009 Laureate Gebisa Ejeta. http://www.worldfoodprize.org/press_room/2009/june/ejeta.htm. Accessed on 17 October 2009). Dr. Ejeta was formally recognized on 15^th October for his research to produce sorghum hybrids that are drought-resistant, and that survive against the scourge of parasitic witchweed, Striga asiatica. Withweed literally sucks the life out of food crop plants such as sorghum, causing $6 - 7 billion loss in harvests in Africa.