Introduction Food Security Issues in Developing Economies

Proceeding of 2013 International Seminar on Climate Change and Food Security ISCCFS 2013 Palembang, South Sumatra -Indonesia, 24-25 October,2013 1 Food Security and Climate Change in Developing Economies: Evidences and Policy Responses Mad Nasir Shamsudin 1 1 Faculty of Agriculture, Universiti Putra Malaysia

1. Introduction

The challenge of food security is to assure that all people have access to enough food to lead productive lives. Food production, however, is vulnerable to climate change. The general consensus is that changes in temperature and precipitation will directly result in changes in land and water regimes that will subsequently affect agricultural productivity. It also indirectly impacts on human development, economic growth, and trade flows . The impact of climate change on food security is therefore a vital challenge and a particularly critical one for vulnerable regions such as tropical developing countries. This paper elucidates some evidences of the impacts of climate change on food production, and hence food security and policy responses to minimise its impacts.

2. Food Security Issues in Developing Economies

The food security agenda in the twenty-first century faces a totally new set of challenges. Domestically, the competition for resources land, labour and capital continues to intensify as urbanisation and industrialisation grow rapidly. Lack of innovations and technology in food production merely depletes food sector‘s ability to compete. Limited investment in food and agriculture have made this sector lagged on all fronts; productivity, efficiency and development. The effect of climate change is showing, aggravated further by unsustainable practices such as overuse of chemical fertilisers, and poor water management. The interna tional market also poses the bigger challenge to developing countries‘ food security in particular ―extreme volatility‖. The trajectory of the global food system is no longer in the main determined by the resolution of demand and supply fundamentals. External shocks are emerging from a complexity of sources and are having a profound influence in causing vulnerability in food systems. The detrimental impact of volatility is further magnified by structural problems such as: poor infrastructure, poor supply response, inefficient market, and susceptibility to climactic disturbances. The conventional fundamental framework is still applicable as demand is chasing over stressed supply due to serious resource constraints. The awakening of the populous Indian and Chinese economies has put pressures on food supply of the world. The volatility of the crude oil prices, for instance, as well as its increasing trend has increased the demand for biofuel feedstock which leads to lesser resources for food production and competition for land. Lurking actively is the climatic changes which are affecting the four dimensions of food security include: food availability, stability of food supplies, access to food, and food utilisation.

3. Evidences of Climate Change Impacts