Food Systems Transformation and the Sustainable Development Goals in Africa
A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050).
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (1 July 2021) | Viewed by 24064
Special Issue Editors
Interests: social transitions; empirical research on society and economy; sustainable consumption; mobility; corporate responsibility; community development; mixed methods research
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the interconnectedness of global sustainability challenges, and how shocks and interventions in one system have far-reaching impacts on others. It has also reaffirmed the need for systems thinking and approaches to solve complex challenges. The pandemic has exposed the inadequacies prevalent in the global food system, highlighting the glaring inequalities in food system resilience across regions. These inefficiencies are particularly salient in African food systems, where the pandemic’s ripple effects have significantly affected two dimensions: food supply chains and food security.
Much research has focused on understanding global food systems. However, little attention has been paid to the particularities of and within the African context. One critical challenge has been a limited contextual and comprehensive conceptualisation of the African food system and how it is similar to and different from other global systems. This Special Issue addresses key aspects of African food systems, specifically in the COVID-19 context.
Amid the pandemic, there are important questions to ask about the robustness and sustainability of African food systems. Looking ahead, it is necessary to reflect on how food systems need to change if the interconnected Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) related to the food systems are to be achieved. Key sustainability challenges such as climate change, gender equality, and nutrition will be addressed in the Special Issue as critical elements in achieving interrelated SDGs.
The Special Issue includes a focus on partnerships and policy to achieve sustainable food systems transformation, with a focus on key policy considerations ahead of the United Nations 2021 Food Systems Summit.
The Special Issue will accept theoretical and empirical research papers. Studies employing qualitative methods, quantitative methods, and mixed-methods research will be considered.
Prof. Dr. Frans Swanepoel
Dr. Stefano Marras
Dr. Simeon Ehui
Prof. Dr. Lise Korsten
Prof. Dr. Manfred Max Bergman
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- Africa
- food systems
- climate-smart agriculture
- nutrition-sensitive agriculture
- COVID-19
- gender
- food security
- SDGs
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