This two-part newly published report from the African Development Bank (ADB), on the policy aspects of stregthening food systems in response to COVID19, will probably be of interest to many within our networks.

GODAN Deputy Executive Director Eliane Ubalijoro sat on the Task Force, and was involved with editing and reviewing the publications; advising on the role of Open Data in reinforcing food systems, and how data can help mitigate the worst effects of the crisis.

The studies were based on the information and insight shared by speakers during the ADB Group's e-Policy Seminar on “Building Resilience in Food Systems and Agricultural Value Chains: Agricultural Policy Responses to COVID-19 in Africa” held on 18-19 May, 2020, and the preceding and subsequent Task Force Webinars and discussions. Both the online Seminar and the Task Force were made up of multidisciplinary experts from across the globe, offering their expertise to help with this very timely issue.

Events of the past year threaten to topple an additional 230 million people into food poverty and insecurity. International Government response to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the global economy have been many and varied, reflecting a mixture of individual economic, political, scientific and cultural considerations. The newly published ADB reports consider these factors in the context of short-term and longer-term national responses to the crisis, offering a frame of reference and policy advice focusing on the African Continent, where they argue the majority of the shock of COVID-related events will be felt.

Click on the images to read the reports.