by Noora-Lisa Aberman and Radhika Lal Throughout much of Africa south of the Sahara, rural households earn their incomes primarily from agriculture and rapid rural population growth is putting pressure on governments to create jobs. In Ghana, agriculture employs over 40% of the population, but average farm productivity remains low, a problem for rural livelihoods […]
To transform the global food system and feed the world sustainably, start at the local level
BY SURESH BABU In a recent meeting with a developing country policy maker, I was asked which among a flurry of recently-published global reports on achieving food and nutrition security would be best for her county to adopt as a road map for reform. Who, she asked, will be translating the global paradigms outlined in […]
A global rural crisis: Rural revitalization is the solution
By Achim Steiner and Shenggen Fan Rural areas are in crisis. Rural residents make up 45 percent of the world’s population but bear a disproportionate burden of poverty, malnutrition, and poor quality of life. The global rural poverty rate is 17 percent (compared to 7 percent in urban areas). Rural people comprise 70 percent of […]