by CARE Austria Team, on behalf of FoSTA-Health
December 5, 2024

World Soil Health Day: EU and UKRI-funded FoSTA-Health project researches solutions for improved food security

Southern Africa has experienced serious impacts from the 2023-2024 weather phenomenon, El Niño, and is facing the risk of a deepening and widespread hunger crisis from the worst drought in a hundred years.

The government of Malawi declared a national state of emergency in March 2024, as almost 40 per cent of the population is at risk of starvation. The combination of recurring weather extremes, environmental degradation, overreliance on maize, climate change, and economic crisis means that 6.1 million people in the country are in urgent need of humanitarian aid.

FoSTA-Health colleague Willem Colenbrander (Kulima Integrated Development Solutions), calls for broadening the concept of One Health from animal and human health, to include soil and plant health, in this poster presented at the 8th World Health Congress (Cape Town, 20-23 September 2024). View the PDF: https://tinyurl.com/ye2xtwyp 

Ruth Smith and Susannah Sallu (University of Leeds) organised a two-day ‘Research into Practice’ workshop in Muheza District, Tanga Region, Tanzania. The workshop was co-funded by Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy (CCCEP) and organised together with local NGO the Tanzania Forest Conservation Group (TFCG).

The objective of the workshop was to a) share and critically engage with the outcomes of 8 years of University of Leeds-led research (including FoSTA-Health and AFRICAP) on climate change resilience, agricultural development and conservation-climate-development programming in the Amani-Nilo landscape, and b) co-develop ways forward to achieve more inclusive, equitable and sustainable benefits from programmes.

FANRPAN regional dialogue, updating of district-level stakeholder databases, dispatch from the One Health symposium, new blogs and videos, and much more! Read here: https://fosta-health.eu/images/Documents/fostahealthmwnewsletter04102024.pdf

The project organised its first round of consultations with regional-level stakeholders on August 6, 2024; as part of the FANRPAN Annual Regional Multi-Stakeholder Policy Dialogue (August 6-9; Lilongwe).  

FoSTA-Health Team Members Abhigya (CzechGlobe) and Stacia Nordin (KIDS) carried out a food systems mapping exercise with representatives of organisations responsible for agricultural research and policy at the Southern African/ African level. In a parallel session, Mapenzie Tauzie and Peter Yiga (University of Leeds) presented and received feedback on preliminary results of their research on gender empowerment, nutrition, and dietary transition (in Malawi and Zambia). Simultaneously, Emmanuel Likoya (Malawi University of Science and Technology) shared initial insights from his ongoing work on irrigation development in Malawi, to a group of stakeholders working on the theme in Malawi and across Southern Africa. 

The fieldwork for data collection on the risks and rewards of engaging in the emerging value chain for the export market has started in the districts of Muheza, Lushoto, and Korogwe. The data collection involves a focus group discussion, an in-depth interview, and a household survey of oranges, snow peas, and avocado value chains.

Observation indicates that post-harvest losses pose a high risk to farmers in the orange value chain. Post-harvest losses are contributed by stringent selection of oranges for the export market, with the leftovers having nowhere to go. On the other hand, the loan default challenge to the exporter in the snow pea value chain has trickled down to farmers, where production has dropped to more than 95%. The land used for snow peas cultivation has been changed to cultivate other horticultural crops such as cauliflower and sweet pepper.
The field work is expected to end by early August 2024.

(Clockwise from top left: Focus Group Discussions with the youth in Kilulu Ward, Muheza; Oranges left in the farm after buyers' selection; Snow peas cultivated in Bombo village- Lushoto; Cauliflower in the areas used for snow peeas cultivation)

On May 28 and 30, FoSTA-Health’s Kulima Integrated Development Solutions (KIDS) worked with Zomba and Mangochi District stakeholders to review the stakeholder databases they developed in February to improve on them and create plans for keeping them updated.

The purpose of the work is for districts to have their own food systems databases using open-access software that all stakeholders can have access to.

FoSTA-Health partners CARE Austria (and other CARE Affiliates) and FANRPAN organised the virtual event to brief the media on the scale and impact of the disaster, reflections upon the humanitarian response, future impact, and long-term responses. Highlights, details, and the recording can be viewed here.

Czech Globe researchers are leading this effort in East Usambara Mountains in Muheza district (Tanzania), and Zomba and Mangochi districts (Malawi). Details in this blogpost.

The brief was produced by Emmanuel Likoya and David Mkwambisi (Malawi University of Science and technology), and Andrew J Dougill and Ajay Bhave (University of Leeds). Click here to download