L political instability in countries such as congo

l) Political instability in countries such as Congo, Ethiopia, Eritrea Rwanda, Sudan
etc have prevented people from concentrating on food production
m) There has been declining popularity of food crops e.g. cassava, yams, sorghum,
millet which are disease and drought resistant
n) Poor economic planning. Most third world countries have got poor agricultural
policies that do not encourage farming.
o) Poor land tenure systems have also led to low productivity e.g. in Zimbabwe
where most of the land has been owned by the minority white population. The
majority African people have very small pieces of land which are exhausted due
to over cultivation.
p) Many third world countries have affected by the HIV/Aids pandemic. It has led
to the death of many people who are economically productive. It has led to the
loss of agricultural labour in many third world countries. Sick people are too
weak to work, and healthy people spend a lot of time nursing the sick at the
expense of agriculture.
Effects of food shortages
a) Loss of lives e.g. the 1884 famine in Ethiopia which led to the deaths of
thousands
b) It has led to suffering of many people due to malnutrition and starvation.
c) Food shortage has led to several problems e.g. stealing of food. A more violent
form is the stealing of livestock (cattle rusting) among some communities e.g. the
Maasai, Pokot, Turkana, Karamajong etc.
d) It has also led to the refugee problem. Many people have migrated to other
countries due to drought and famine.
e) Lack of food hampers efforts towards economic development. A lot of money is
spend on importing food at the expense of other sectors of the
economy.Children’s education has been disrupted in many countries.

f) It has also made third world countries to depend much on aid from developed
countries
g) Stagnation of agro-based industries also affected by food shortages e.g. banking,
sugar etc.
Remedies/possible solutions to food shortages
a) Agricultural research should be encouraged especially in developing drought and
disease resistant crops. Research should also be conducted in the control of pests.
In Kenya, KARI carries out research.
b) Land reclamation should be encouraged. This should be both desert and swamp
reclamation to buy more land under cultivation.
c) Farmers need to be educated on better farming methods e.g. afforestation,
intercropping, terracing. This can be through extension education
d) Governments should also channel more funds into agriculture e.g. by giving
farmers loans to buy inputs.
e) African countries also need to reduce taxes on farm inputs as this will encourage
the farmers to increase production.
f) Storage facilities should be built so as to minimize losses after harvest. Farmers
should also be educated on how to control pests and diseases after harvesting
g) Self sufficiency should be emphasized. Families should be encouraged to have a
sizeable portion of land under food crops.