The United Nations Food Systems Summit aimed to chart a path toward transforming food systems toward achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Despite the essentiality of water for food systems, however, the Summit has not sufficiently considered the role of water for food systems transformation. This focus is even more important due to rapidly worsening climate change and its pervasive impacts on food systems that are mediated through water. To avoid that water “breaks” food systems, key food systems actors should 1) Strengthen efforts to retain water-dependent ecosystems, their functions and services; 2) Improve agricultural water management; 3) Reduce water and food losses beyond the farmgate; 4) Coordinate water with nutrition and health interventions; 5) Increase the environmental sustainability of food systems; 6) Explicitly address social inequities; and 7) Improve data quality and monitoring for water-food system linkages.

Timothy O. Williams, 'Managing water for food and agricultural transformation in Africa: key issues and priorities', pp.pp.470-487, 2020

Tafadzwanashe Mabhaudhi et al., 'The Water?Energy?Food Nexus as a Tool to Transform Rural Livelihoods and Well-Being in Southern Africa', International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, vol. 16(16), p.2970, MDPI AG, 2019 | About 60% of southern Africa�??s population lives in rural areas with limited access to basic services and amenities such as clean and safe water, affordable and clean energy, and balanced and nutritious diets. Resource scarcity has direct and indirect impacts on nutrition, human health, and well-being of mostly poor rural communities. Climate change impacts in the region are manifesting through low crop yields, upsurge of vector borne diseases (malaria and dengue fever), and water and food-borne diseases (cholera and diarrhoea). This study applied a water�??energy�??food (WEF) nexus analytical livelihoods model with complex systems understanding to assess rural livelihoods, health, and well-being in southern Africa, recommending tailor-made adaptation strategies for the region aimed at building resilient rural communities. The WEF nexus is a decision support tool that improves rural livelihoods through integrated resource distribution, planning, and management, and ensures inclusive socio-economic transformation and development, and addresses related sustainable development goals, particularly goals 2, 3, 6 and 7. The integrated WEF nexus index for the region was calculated at 0.145, which is marginally sustainable, and indicating the region�??s exposure to vulnerabilities, and reveals a major reason why the region fails to meet its developmental targets. The integrated relationship among WEF resources in southern Africa shows an imbalance and uneven resource allocation, utilisation and distribution, which normally results from a �??siloed�?? approach in resource management. The WEF nexus provides better adaptation options, as it guides decision making processes by identifying priority areas needing intervention, enhancing synergies, and minimising trade-offs necessary for resilient rural communities. Our results identified (i) the trade-offs and unintended negative consequences for poor rural households�?? livelihoods of current silo approaches, (ii) mechanisms for sustainably enhancing household water, energy and food security, whilst (iii) providing direction for achieving SDGs 2, 3, 6 and 7

With adverse impacts of climate change growing in number and intensity, there is an urgent need to reduce emissions from food systems to net zero. This can only be achieved if rural areas in low- and middle-income countries gain access to clean energy. A review of the research and capacity building contributions of the CGIAR Research Program on Water, Land and Ecosystems (WLE) over the last 10 years suggests important contributions in the areas of energy policy and energy investment planning, cost and feasibility frameworks, and business models for clean energy technology uptake. WLE has also conducted successful pilot projects on solar irrigation to provide an evidence base for scaling up innovative energy initiatives. Finally, the program also considered non-agricultural uses of energy where relevant to food systems, and implemented capacity building activities. Going forward, CGIAR has a key role to play in providing information, supporting access and piloting innovative, scalable clean energy interventions to support the achievement of multiple impacts for the poorest and most food-insecure women and men farmers and entrepreneurs. | Non-PR | IFPRI5; CRP5 | EPTD | CGIAR Research Program on Water, Land and Ecosystems (WLE)

With adverse impacts of climate change growing in number and intensity, there is an urgent need to reduce emissions from food systems to net zero. This can only be achieved if rural areas in low- and middle-income countries gain access to clean energy. A review of the research and capacity building contributions of the CGIAR Research Program on Water, Land and Ecosystems (WLE) over the last 10 years suggests important contributions in the areas of energy policy and energy investment planning, cost and feasibility frameworks, and business models for clean energy technology uptake. WLE has also conducted successful pilot projects on solar irrigation to provide an evidence base for scaling up innovative energy initiatives. Finally, the program also considered non-agricultural uses of energy where relevant to food systems, and implemented capacity building activities. Going forward, CGIAR has a key role to play in providing information, supporting access and piloting innovative, scalable clean energy interventions to support the achievement of multiple impacts for the poorest and most food-insecure women and men farmers and entrepreneurs.

Agriculture remains the primary livelihood in Ghana, marked by a growing emphasis on cocoa production nationwide. Existing research highlights the importance of supplementing rainfed cocoa production with irrigation. Simultaneously, mining has emerged as a key driver of the country's economic growth. However, there is an urgent need to assess the measurable impacts of cocoa production with supplemental irrigation and mining on water resources sustainability and quality. This study aims to investigate how the supplementary irrigation of coca and mining affects the water balance components and water quality, with a focus on sediment yield in Ghana. It builds upon a baseline study in the Upper Offin sub-basin and an upland watershed of the Mankran microwatershed using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model. The analysis indicates that applying supplemental irrigation to 15% of the cocoa area from shallow groundwater would not significantly affect basin water yields. However, the impacts of supplemental irrigation on 5% of the cocoa area from shallow groundwater would significantly affect the groundwater flow in the Upper Offin sub-basin. Conversely, expanding supplemental irrigation to 38% of the cocoa area (with landscape slope less than 8%) and encompassing the entire cocoa area in the Mankran microwatershed significantly influences hydrology. In the Mankran micro-watershed, supplemental irrigation to all cocoa farms increased evapotranspiration, percolation, and sub-surface flow by up to 9%, 28%, and 21.5%, respectively. In contrast, catchment water yield has been decreased by 19% and groundwater flow ceased due to supplemental irrigation. On the other hand, mining in the Upper Offin watershed (covering 5% of the area) and the Mankran micro-watershed (covering 6% of the area) significantly impacted hydrology and sediment yield. Surface runoff, catchment water yield, and sediment yield increased, respectively by 28%, 7%, and 80% for the Upper Offin watershed. Similarly, the Mankran micro-watershed showed a significant increase in surface runoff, water yield, and sediment yield by 34%, 8%, and 147% due to mining. Percolation and groundwater flow significantly decreased in both the Upper Offin and Mankran micro-watershed. The findings indicate that expanding mining poses a challenge to cocoa production from shallow groundwater. Mining areas must identify suitable areas to minimiz adverse effects on irrigated cocoa production and implementation land reclamation on mined areas. Further research is required to refine the representation of mining activities in the SWAT model for more accurate results on the location and spatial coverage of mining impacts. The study underscores the necessity of context-specific management strategies, considering both agricultural and mining activities in water resource management plans for long-term environmental health and socio-economic viability.

The increasing population and changes in the climate in Africa demand a more sustainable approach to water usage for improved food and water security in the region. One of the key users of water, agriculture serves as the primary livelihood in Ghana, with a growing focus on cocoa production. To effectively implement sustainable water management strategies, it becomes imperative to conduct hydrological studies, including water balance components and water quality at sub-national and watershed scales. This would assist decision-makers in the proper planning and interventions for agriculture. This study aims to quantify and evaluate the hydrological response of the Upper Offin sub-basin and Mankran micro-watershed under baseline conditions. Upper Offin was selected because of its competing land uses of cocoa and mining, and Mankran was targeted as the CGIAR regional integrated initiative for Transforming Agrifood Systems in West and Sectral Africa (TAFS-WCA) is co-designing a landscape management plan for the area. The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model was first calibrated and validated at the Adimbera gauging station (Upper Offin sub-basin) using observed streamflow data from 2001 to 2011, considering Mankran as one of the SWAT sub-basins. After several iterations of the selected seven parametersthat include mainly channel and groundwater flow, the SWAT model reproduced the observed flow with reasonable performance. The sensitivity analysis depicted that channel and groundwater parameters were markedly the most sensitive in the region. Evapotranspiration accounts for the largest share of the water cycle, with a mean annual rainfall of 72% and 74% for the Upper Offin and Mankran watersheds, respectively. The mean annual surface runoff and percolation were below 5% for both watersheds. Also, the mean annual percolation for Upper Offin and Mankran were 15% and 17% of the rainfall and the mean annual sediment yield was 0.68 t/ha and 0.37 t/ha, respectively. The SWAT model successfully captured the hydrological responses in the study areas, providing a reliable quantification of surface runoff, percolation, and sediment yield under baseline conditions. Utilizing SWAT in this context was essential for assessing the potential impact of future supplementary irrigation interventions, evaluating the effectiveness of water management strategies, and monitoring changes in hydrological processes over both spatial and temporal scales.