The Arab region must prioritize food security
In the face of increasing global food insecurity, a transformative shift in approaches to food systems is urgently needed. We are at a crossroads, and the path we choose today will have a profound impact on our collective future.
Current food systems are characterized by inefficiencies and unsustainable practices, contributing to environmental degradation, climate change, and widening inequalities in food security. However, recent analysis suggests that global transformation of these systems could yield trillions of dollars worth of economic benefits each year while simultaneously addressing these critical issues.
Transforming food systems in the Arab region is rapidly emerging as a critical strategy amid converging global challenges across health, poverty, inequality, climate change and biodiversity loss.
This transformation is essential to achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, and to ensure food systems are resilient, equitable, sustainable and deeply integrated within national and global frameworks. A comprehensive rethinking of our food system is required.
The enormity of this ambition reflects the critical role food systems play in addressing some of the world's most pressing problems and highlights the need for a wide range of actions, practices and policies.
The urgent need for such change is particularly acute in the Middle East and North Africa, vast regions that are warming at almost twice the rate of the global average. Unmitigated, this environmental change will further exacerbate existing vulnerabilities, especially in terms of livability and agricultural sustainability, and will be challenged by socio-economic evils such as high inflation, rising energy prices, and geopolitical turmoil. will get even worse.
Moreover, the region's history of mass migration and displacement, rooted in conflict and limited economic opportunities, is likely to further intensify as a result of the intertwined challenges of climate change and deepening food insecurity.
Food security, or the lack thereof, stands out as a major driver of conflict in the Arab region. Historically, macro- and household-level food security has had a significant impact on the potential for long-term insecurity and ultimately caused major disruptions.
Moreover, the region is not immune to rising global food prices. Indeed, the dangers were clear in 2008 and 2011, when food insecurity increased in countries such as Egypt, Libya, and Yemen, contributing to major social unrest and political turmoil. is expensive.
The risk of continued food-related eruptions in the region looms large, given the combined effects of rapid population expansion, limited agricultural potential, water scarcity, and a planet on the brink of runaway global warming.
Effectively addressing food security challenges in the Arab region requires a multifaceted approach that combines immediate interventions with long-term resilience-building measures.
In stark contrast to the dire consequences of a profit-driven food system, complete reform has the potential to generate significant socio-economic benefits. This is not only a question of the region's survival, but also its prosperity.
A key objective of the formidable challenges facing governments in the Arab region is therefore to ensure that future food systems do not destroy more value than they create.
After all, the environmental, social, and health costs of our current agricultural system are estimated to exceed $10 trillion, a grave indictment of the practices, inactions, and failures that have produced this status quo.
A multifaceted approach is needed, combining immediate interventions and long-term resilience-building measures.
hafed al ghwell
If the planet's current food system is left unchecked, more than 500 million people will remain underweight by 2050, while the obesity crisis will worsen by a dire 70%. Worse, doing nothing will ensure further increases in greenhouse gas emissions from the agricultural sector, paradoxically magnifying the impacts of climate change that will make our food systems even more vulnerable.
Current food production and consumption patterns are completely unsustainable, and doing nothing will push us towards a cliff of enormous economic and human costs. Inaction will not only erode the potential gains from climate-related transitions and transformations, it will erode natural resources and increase food insecurity in the world's most vulnerable regions. Become.
It is a path to borrowing from the future to satisfy the present, leaving future generations with ballooning budget deficits as the means to deal with food-related and other crises dwindle. .
However, alternatives exist. It is a food system transformation approach that promises not just to alleviate challenges, but to reverse them. Underpinning this transformative approach is the integration of sustainable practices across the entire food value chain, from production to consumption.
This includes adopting farming methods that minimize environmental impact, such as reducing the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, and technological innovations that can increase efficiency and reduce waste.
Furthermore, this involves a significant dietary change to a predominantly plant-based diet, which research suggests may explain most of the health and environmental benefits of this change. This change is not just about reducing meat consumption, but is about promoting a global food culture that values diversity, sustainability and health.
Achieving this transformation will require concerted action from all stakeholders: governments, businesses, civil society and individuals. Policy-making will play a key role, with strategies such as taxing unsustainable food products, subsidizing sustainable agricultural practices, and investing in agricultural innovations being key tools.
However, these policies need to be carefully designed to avoid negative impacts such as higher prices and job losses to ensure that the transition to a sustainable food system is fair and inclusive. there is.
The economic case is compelling. The costs of transforming food systems are dwarfed not only in monetary terms but also by the potential benefits, such as conserving natural resources, improving public health, and mitigating climate change. High-income countries could benefit from adopting this innovative approach by avoiding significant economic damage that could exceed the cumulative losses from past financial crises.
But the path to a sustainable food future is not uniform. Tailored strategies will be required that respect the unique circumstances of different countries and regions. In some regions, the focus may be on reducing consumption of animal products. The aim may also be to improve access to more nutritious foods to address nutritional deficiencies.
But the most important goal remains the same. It's about building food systems that are resilient, sustainable, and able to feed a growing world population without compromising the health of the planet.
The call to transform the world's food system is both a challenge and an opportunity. This is difficult because it requires major changes in the way we produce, consume and think about food. But this is also an opportunity to redefine our relationship with food and build a future where food systems contribute positively to human health, the environment and sustainable prosperity.
The next few decades will be critical, and we must spearhead progress one step at a time.
• Hafed Al Ghweir is a senior fellow and executive director of the North Africa Initiative at the Foreign Policy Institute at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies in Washington, DC.
X: @HafedAlGhwell
Disclaimer: The views expressed by writers in this section are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Arab News.
