Food and water security in developing economies: impact of the pandemic and possible interventions

Abstract

Introduction: Pandemics are unexpected and unplanned events that can have serious impact on food and water security especially in countries with weak food and water systems. Objectives: This article discusses factors that could affect food and water security in developing countries and provides possible solutions for mitigating food and water issues that could arise due to pandemics. Methods: Searches were made on Google scholar and using the keywords “food and water security in pandemic” between May and October 2020 and published articles related to developing countries were obtained and reviewed. Results: Factors identified include: weak ‘food routes to consumers’, lockdown and impaired logistics, poor consumer purchasing power, scarcity of water resources, unavailable water quality data and poor wastewater treatment works. Approaches to mitigate impact of these identified factors such as possibilities of harnessing available natural resources such as solar energy and nature-based solutions for freshwater were also discussed. Conclusions: Collaboration between representatives from the local communities, government, and academics/researchers would play a critical role in mitigating these impacts. The outcome of our article may also extend to those working directly with public groups, including those undertaking public engagement with environmental research, government policymakers, research managers and professional membership institutions. Keywords: Food security, water security, pandemic, lockdown, logistics, freshwater.