Climate Change
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- ItemLegumes for Households Food Security in Zimbabwe's Semi-Arid Areas - Implications Child Nutrition(African Economic Research Consortium, 2020-01) Foti, Richard; Chivheya, Renias; Mwanza, EstelleFood and nutrition security have become an increasingly important area of policy debate in developing countries. Children in the semi-arid areas of Africa are most vulnerable because of the poor socio-economic status of their parents especially their mothers. In Zimbabwe, frequent droughts, the decreasing performance of the agricultural sector since the onset of the land reform program and severe economic underperformance have resulted in high levels of child malnutrition. Because legumes are protein and calorie rich, are cheap to produce (do not require heavy input use), are drought resistant and increase soil fertility through biological nitrogen fixation, they have often been considered as the best cropping innovation for increasing food and nutrition security for the most vulnerable children in the country. However, no comprehensive studies have been carried out in the country to estimate and ascertain this contribution. In this study, using household farming data from the Department of Agricultural and Extension Services (AGRITEX) and from community level health institutions, a two stage instrumental variable probit model was developed to establish the factors affecting the level of legume production at farm level and to estimate the contribution of legume cultivation to child nutrition in Zimbabwe. Results from the study show a significant positive increase in the chances of a household not having a malnourished child as the level of legume cultivation increases. By instrumenting legume production levels by the aggregated quantity of legume seed available for planting, the study found that a 1Kg increase in the quantity of legume seed cultivated was found to have an 11.6% marginal increase in the chances of a household not having a malnourished child. The results, backed by focus group discussions and key informant interviews also show that, lack of legume producing inputs especially seed and land heavily constrain the production of legumes at a larger scale. Formal education and agricultural extension (both government and private sector provided) generally discourage legume cultivation in favour of livestock and other crops. Markets were found to be week in driving legume production because legume markets are not well developed and organised in the study areas. Policies that seek to achieve better child nutrition through legumes should aim to increase availability of legume production inputs especially seed and land to women and to sensitize men, extension workers and school agricultural education curriculum developers on the value of legumes in reducing child malnutrition. Also, women empowerment projects that focus on agricultural resource allocation between men and women have a potential to improve legume production and thus child nutrition. Legume production can be stimulated by the creation and development of legume markets through a value chain system.
- ItemClimate Change and Migration in West African Coastal Zones(2021-09) Mbaye, Ahmadou Aly; Gueye, Adama; Gueye, Fatou; Sarr, Khady Yama; Gueye, FamaGlobal trends in migration show a predominance of internal over external flows. The African continent is the world’s most vulnerable region to climate change due to its higher levels of exposure and its scarcer financial resources for adaptation. Therefore, climate change presents in Africa some peculiar challenges to livelihoods, and security. In this paper, we assess the climate-induced migration in African coastal zones, accounting for many different factors such as conflict, demography, social networks, economic opportunities, and geographical factors such as the terrain. We also provide a critical review of major strands of models of climate-induced migration, namely agent-based models, choice-centred models, gravity model, and household allocation models. The most used data in climate change analyses are also analyzed.
- ItemAddressing the Challenges of Sustainable Electrification in Africa through Comprehensive Impact Evaluations(African Economic Research Consortium, 2021-10-04) Muchapondwa, Edwin; Jeuland, Marc; Shimeles, AbebeAccess to electricity leads to overall economic growth through improved agricultural and firm productivity, public service delivery, and enhanced household investment in human capital, net income, and general quality of life. Yet more than 540 million people in Africa still lack electricity today, and many more suffer from unreliable power supply. The considerable untapped renewable energy potential, and the associated rapid reductions in cost, make sustainable and decentralized electricity service a promising option for the continent, for transforming these deficits into opportunities. However, knowledge on how to finance and implement new models of electrification remains limited, because the results from prior impact evaluations are inconclusive and do not cover all relevant interventions or dimensions. Following a review of policy and research issues, we propose that five essential principles should guide future research efforts in this domain: (i) use of mixed/multi methods that adequately cover the varied implications of electricity access, (ii) choice of econometric methods that provide more credible estimates of impacts, (iii) use and combinations of more informative treatment data, (iv) careful theorizing and consideration of the potential for heterogeneous treatment effects, and (v) accounting for effects from treatments of different magnitudes. We demonstrate the last three of these with an illustrative application of the World Bank Multi-Tier Framework data for Kenya. New insights emerge as research moves from a focus on average treatment effects to heterogeneous and multi-valued treatment effects. Notably, the impacts of electrification may depend on the extent to which households and other economic agents can make complementary investments to benefit from an electricity connection. Thus, electrification may need to be combined with complementary programmes, for example, those that make appliances more accessible and affordable. A greater focus on holistic impact evaluation approaches is needed to make economic research on sustainable electrification more informative and policy-relevant.
- ItemClimate Variability and Urbanization in sub-Saharan Africa: Mitigating the Effects on Economic Growth(African Economic Research Consortium, 2021-09-30) Dia, Kamgnia Bernadette; Beaudelaire, Djezou WadjamsseThis study sought to analyze the interactions between climate variability, urbanization, and economic growth in Sub-Saharan Africa. Specifically, it analyzed the extent to which climate variability could maintain the interaction between economic growth and urbanization a virtuous one. An empirical strategy combining a literature review, a descriptive analysis, and a PSTR model, was designed to achieve the specified objectives. More specifically, the PSTR model was estimated using a panel data of 32 Sub-Saharan African countries over the period 1990-2018 to obtain some interesting findings. The literature review pointed to several research avenues, of which: i) multivariate analyses of economic growth, urbanization, and climate variability; (ii) measurement challenges with urbanization and climate change; and (iii) modelling approaches. Quantitative results indicated that in Sub-Saharan Africa, urbanization only has a positive effect on economic growth if the temperature variability is below the threshold of - 0.4501, while the average temperature variability is around 0.5470.
- ItemImplications of Climate Mitigation Measures for Poverty and Inequality in Sub-Saharan Africa: Framework for Multiple Country Research Study(African Economic Research Consortium, 2021-09-28) Hassan, Rashid Mekki; Mabugu, RamosThis research report developed a framework for studying the implications of climate mitigation measures for poverty and inequality (P&I) in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The framework paper undertook a comprehensive survey of relevant literature to examine how much attention has been given in climate mitigation science and policy analysis to aspects of P&I. The paper then proposed an analytical framework and empirical methodology for conducting multi-country investigations of the P&I implications of the various climate mitigation policy measures introduced or proposed at national and global scales. The paper mapped the main channels through which climate mitigation measures get transmitted or mediated to P&I impacts. Mediation analysis enables identification of appropriate methods to measure and evaluate the merits of alternative mitigation policy measures. Approaches that can be used to model and quantify the impacts of climate mitigation on P&I were presented. The paper concluded with proposing datasets to use and suggesting a pilot case studies’ approach that can be followed. To guide selection of countries to conduct studies that will be implementing the analytical framework and empirical methods proposed, the paper examined the extent to which SSA countries have participated in global and regional climate mitigation initiatives. The results indicate that while all countries in SSA ratified major climate mitigation agreements, the degree of participation varies significantly between the different protocols. The largest amount of funding to mitigation in SSA came from the International Emissions Trading instruments, exceeding US$ 57 billion in 2018. The results obtained from implementing the framework for the selected countries are expected to inform the design of climate mitigation measures that aim to maximize co-benefits and avoid negative P&I outcomes.