CHAPTER ONE
Introduction
- : Background to the Study
As reflected in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), one of the global challenges is to end poverty and hunger in the world and achieve food security (SDG I&II). Available data show that the number of people who suffer undernourishment in the world has been growing since 2015 (FAO, 2018).Increasing from783.5 million in 2014to 820.8 million people in 2017 (FAO, 2018). The situation is worsening in most regions of Africa. Almost 21 percent of the population (more than 256 million people) are undernourished. Under-nutrition in Africa has continuously increased since 2005, rising from196 million people to 256.5millionin 2017 (FAO, 2018).
Under-nutrition and food insecurity are often used interchangeably. In Africa, the number of people facing severe food insecurity rose from 260.1 million people in 2014 to 374.9 million people in 2017, accounting for 51.3 percent of the 769.4 million people facing severe food insecurity globally (FAO, 2018). Sub-Saharan Africa is the hardest hit in the world, in terms of food insecurity (Darfour et al, 2016).
There continue to be major threats to food security in Ghana notwithstanding the overall increase in its wealth measured by GDP (MoFA, 2015). World Food Programme (2009) estimated that food insecurity affects about 5% of Ghana‘s population. And about 2 million people are likely to become food insecure (MoFA,2016). Poor agricultural performance and poverty are the major cause of this crisis in Africa (AfDB, 2016). The three regions in the north have continued to record higher incidences of poverty, food insecurity and malnutrition (Ghana Statistical Service, 2015).
(Source: FAO, 2018)
The Wa West District of the Upper West Region has the highest proportion of households who are either severely or moderately food insecure (CFSVA, 2012). However, in the era of the PFJ programme, how is the food security situation changing in rural Ghana and the Wa West District in particular?
Ghana has adopted policies and programmes to achieve food self-sufficiency, reduce poverty and create jobs. During the first republic, agriculture policy focused on the formation of state farms along corporative lines (Ward, 1966).There was the establishment of seed processing centres, disease and pets control, improvement of livestock and subsidies and tractor services among others (Buah, 1998). Attention was equally paid to livestock and deliberate efforts made to reduce the importation of meat products (Jotie, 2017).The National Liberation Council (NLC) that overthrew the Nkrumah regime in 1966 sought to support farmers by way of providing ready market, infrastructural development and offering credit to farmers. The regime described these policies as necessary for the rapid increase in the production of food and other crops (Boahen, 1996).The ―Operation feed yourself policy‖ in 1972 under the National Redemption Council was a continuation of earlier
efforts at achieving food self-sufficiency.
