Food Security of the Population of Arab Countries in the First Decades of the 21st Century

The purpose and objectives of the studyThe purpose of the dissertation is to develop promising areas of trade and economic cooperation between the People's Republic of China and the EAEU countries in the context of solving the problem of food security in modern economic conditions.To achieve the goal of the study, the followingtasks were set and solved:–to consider the theoretical aspects of the country's food security, the effects and risks of its decline;–to study the world experience of forming food security of countries;–to study the state policy of China in the field of ensuring food security;–to assess the export opportunities in the food sector of the EAEU countries;–to identify and justify promising areas of food exports to the PRC by the EAEU countries, as well as the implementation of joint investment projects in the field of agriculture.The object of the study is trade and economic cooperation between the People's Republic of China and the EAEU countries in the field of ensuring food security.The subject of the study is the substantiation of the main directions of ensuring food security based on the development of mutually beneficial cooperation between the People's Republic of China and the EAEU countries, the development of the export potential of states, and the improvement of investment activities.Provisions submitted for defense1. The essence and content of the category "food security" are defined, distinctive characteristics and criteria for assessing the level of food security are identified.2. An assessment of the position of the People's Republic of China in the field of food security is carried out, the evolution of changes in the nutritional structure of the population of the PRC is considered,3. Factors complicating the solution of the food problem in the country, the dependence of the domestic food market of China on imports of food products, and strategic directions for ensuring food security in China are identified.4. The reduction of food security risks in each of the EAEU member states has been revealed, which is primarily facilitated by mutual provision of various types of food products, prospects for the sustainable development of agriculture, ensuring the growth of physical availability of food products in the Union countries, self-sufficiency in basic agricultural products have been established5. The potential for cooperation between the countries of the Eurasian region in the field of agriculture and its importance for solving the food problem in China have been established, as well as the main areas of development of agricultural exports from the EAEU countries to China: commodity structure, volumes, dynamics and prospects for expanding volumes and improving the quality of products.Personal contribution of the applicantThe dissertation is an independently completed scientific study: the provisions submitted for defense have been developed by the author independently, have practical significance, the topic of the dissertation corresponds to the specialty 7-06-0311-01 "Economics".Dissertation approval and information on the use of its resultsThe main provisions, conclusions and results of the dissertation were presented at the 75th scientific and technical conference of pupils, students and master's students, April 22-27, 2024 - Minsk: Belarusian State Technological University. Based on the materials of the dissertation research, an article was published on the topic"The problem of food security and the main directions of its solution in the People's Republic of China".Structure and volume of the dissertationThe dissertation consists of an introduction, a general description of the work, three chapters, a conclusion, a list of references. Chapter 1 studies theoretical approaches to the study of the problem of food security, considers the concept of "food security" and its distinctive features, defines the stages of formation of modern approaches to this global problem, and formulates the risks and threats of violating the country's food security. Chapter 2 considers methodological approaches to assessing the food security of states and regions of the world, and provides an overview of the criteria for measuring the level of food security and self-sufficiency of the country in food. The third chapter includes a study of the state policy of China and the countries of the Eurasian region in the field of development of food security, substantiation of the main directions of trade and economic cooperation of the EAEU countries and China in the field of agriculture and ensuring food security of states. The work is presented on 98 pages. The volume occupied by 8 figures, 24 tables and a list of used literature, including 38 sources, is 18 pages.

Abstract. Goal. Assessment of the current state of the agro-industrial complex of Kazakhstan, its role in ensuring the country's food security, substantiation of the directions of its development and minimization of threats to food security. Methods. In the course of the study, analytical and economic-statistical methods, general scientific methods of systemic, comparative and structural-logical analysis were used. Results. The article presents the results of an assessment of the current state of agriculture in the Republic of Kazakhstan and the main criteria for the country's food security: dynamics and volume of sown areas, livestock and poultry, crop yields, dynamics of crop and livestock production, volumes and dynamics of imports and exports of food products, the level depreciation of fixed assets and provision of agricultural producers with machinery. The main problems of agricultural production are identified, the threats to the country's food security are identified. Measures of state support and state regulation of the agro-industrial complex of the country aimed at its further development, increasing the efficiency of its activities, increasing the competitiveness of domestic products in the domestic and foreign markets, saturating the domestic market with socially significant food products in order to ensure the country's food security are disclosed. The trends in the development of the agro-industrial complex within the framework of the main state development programs are given: Concepts for the development of the agro-industrial complex of Kazakhstan for 2021–2030 and the National project for the development of the agro-industrial complex for 2021–2025. Scientific novelty lies in the study of the problems of the country's food security and the sustainable development of the agro-industrial complex, and the determination of the main directions for the development and state support of agricultural production in order to increase the level of the country's food security.

This study examines the complex interplay between food security, climate change, population, water, and renewable energy desalination in five Arab countries: Morocco, Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. Using a comprehensive econometric approach: an Auto-Regressive Distributed Lag approach (ARDL) and Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) technique spanning 1990–2022, to explore the short- and long-run dynamics of these relationships and identify causal linkages. The ARDL results reveal a mixed outcome. While renewable energy desalination capacity holds potential for enhancing food security in all countries, its impact depends on cost and government support. The cost of desalination negatively affects food security in most cases, highlighting the need for cost-effective solutions. Climate change poses a significant threat, particularly in Morocco, Egypt, and Jordan, but it may also offer unexpected opportunities for KSA and UAE. Population growth, unsurprisingly, strains food security across the region. Water scarcity emerges as a major challenge, especially for Jordan. The Granger causality tests uncover bidirectional relationships between renewable energy desalination, climate change, and water in Morocco and Jordan, suggesting their interconnected influence. In Egypt, population, water, and food imports drive the system, while KSA and UAE exhibit complex dynamics with renewable energy desalination and food imports acting as key drivers. Policymakers facing the complex challenge of food security in Arab countries should take note of this research’s multifaceted findings. While renewable energy desalination holds promise, its success hinges on reducing costs through technological advancements and government support, particularly in Morocco, Egypt, and Jordan. Climate change adaptation strategies must be prioritized, while recognizing potentially unexpected opportunities in regions like KSA and UAE. Additionally, addressing water scarcity through innovative resource management is crucial, especially for Jordan. Managing population growth through family planning initiatives and promoting sustainable agricultural practices are vital for long-term food security. Finally, the identified causal relationships underscore the need for integrated policy approaches that acknowledge the interconnectedness of these factors. By tailoring responses to the specific dynamics of each nation, policymakers can ensure effective interventions and secure a sustainable food future for the region.

This article discusses the food and nutrition security situation in CARICOM countries through the lens of a conceptual model that links food, nutrition and health. Based upon a review of relevant literature and judicious use of country-level official data, the authors make the case for policy makers to take a more proactive approach to the implementation of their respective national food and nutrition security policies. This recommendation is made in light of the increasing acuity of key food and nutrition security problems that continue to plague these countries, including high food import-dependence, and the prevalence of obesity and overweight, which are risk factors in the increasing prevalence of chronic, non-communicable diseases, the main public health problems in the region. These, and related food and nutrition security problems, continue to exist despite progress made by CARICOM countries at the policy level with the formulation of regional and national food and nutrition security policies, and associated action plans. Within these policies and action plans, food and nutrition security is conceptualized in terms of food availability, access, nutritional adequacy and the stability of these three components. Moreover, they stipulated food, nutrition and health goals for the agricultural and the entire food systems. Despite these achievements, the implementation of food and nutrition security policies and action plans in the region has not proceeded with the same urgency that motivated their formulation, namely to address the pressing food and nutrition problems in the countries of this region.

Agriculture is an important and organic part of the national economy of any country. Its role is great in ensuring the country's food security, improving the balance of payments and strengthening state independence. The state and proportions of development of other sectors of the national economy depend on the level and speed of development of agricultural production. This connection is reflected in both technical-technological and industrial-economic connections. At the same time, this connection is bilateral, with the increase of agricultural production, the structure and quality of food of the population improves, the volume of imported food decreases, which has a positive impact on reducing the balance of payments deficit and increasing the degree of independence of the country. Due to the important role of agriculture, the field received a lot of attention in the first years of the restoration of independence, which is confirmed by the agrarian policy developed and implemented during that period, whose primary task was to ensure the country's food security and strengthen food independence. In connection with the important role of agriculture in the first years of the restoration of independence of the region, much attention was paid, which is confirmed by the agricultural policy developed and implemented during this period, the main task of which was to ensure the country's food security and strengthen food independence. At the same time, it was a great challenge for a country with a devastated economy, followed by significant reforms in agriculture, restructuring of the sector and the creation of an appropriate legal framework, the integration of state regulation of the market economy and self-regulatory mechanisms. However, under the influence of a number of external and internal factors, it was not possible to fully implement the developed agrarian policy. Agriculture is still characterized by low productivity and, consequently, by a small share in the sectoral structure of the national economy. The country has serious problems in supplying and providing vital agricultural products such as wheat, corn, potatoes, vegetables, meat and poultry. The global pandemic and the resulting global economic crisis have put the issue of solving the country’s food security problem on the agenda. To this end, the revitalization of rural areas, social stability and balancing the level of migration from rural to urban areas should be a priority. Establishing food security is a complex task and is primarily the responsibility of the government. There is no universal mechanism for solving the global food security problem in the world today. This problem must be solved at the national level, as food security is considered to be a level of national food production that allows the principle of self-sufficiency of the population and state reserves with food to be implemented in accordance with scientifically substantiated norms. The current severe economic crisis in the country has further intensified the social background and demanded the strengthening of the stimulating and organizing function of the state. The issue of state regulation of the agricultural sector should be considered in close connection with the development of entrepreneurship and self-regulation of production at the micro level, and priority should be given to measures that maximize the adaptation of producers to market economic conditions, increase production efficiency and competitiveness, which will ultimately contribute to the saturation of the market with domestic products and state food security. It should also be noted that recent years and even more so the pandemic process, have once again confirmed the notions of omnipotence on the market mechanism. The market does not have a magic wand that will solve all the problems by itself and regulate the existing problems. The myth of the role of the "invisible hand" and the crisis itself is a thing of the past. The modern world community supports the social orientation of the economy, therefore "realizing the dangerous nature of social polarization", which can not be solved by bypassing state regulation and mechanisms.

Foreword - M. Ramon Llamas I - Are global water resources a limitation for food production and security? 1 Food security in water-short countries - Coping with carrying capacity overshoot - Malin Falkenmark & Mats Lannerstad 2 Global agricultural green and blue water consumptive uses and virtual water trade - Junguo Liu & Hong Yang 3 Water scarcity and food security: A global assessment of water potentiality in Tunisia - Jamel Chahed, Mustapha Besbes &Abdelkader Hamdane II - Searching for water intelligence solutions 4 Can human ingenuity, Science and Technology help solve the world problems of water and food security? - Elena Lopez-Gunn & M. Ramon Llamas 5 Producing more or wasting less? Bracing the food security challenge of unpredictable rainfall - Jan Lundqvist 6 Prioritising the processes beyond the water sector that will secure water for society - farmers in political, economic, and social contexts and fair international trade - J.A. [Tony] Allan III - Economic development, the role of the private sector and ethical aspects 7 Present and future roles of water and food trade in achieving food security, reducing poverty and water use - Juan A. Sagardoy & Consuelo Varela-Ortega 8 Economic aspects of virtual water trade: Lessons from the Spanish case - Alberto Garrido, Paula Novo, Roberto Rodriguez-Casado & Consuelo Varela-Ortega V 9 Water commoditization: An ethical perspective for a sustainable use and management of water resources, with special reference to the Arab Region - Magdy A. Hefny 10 Water scarcity risks: Experience of the private sector - Stuart Orr &Anton Cartwright IV - Environmental conservation vs. food production 11 Incorporating the water footprint and environmental water requirements into policy: Reflections from the Donana Region (Spain) - Maite M. Aldaya, Francisco Garcia Novo & M. Ramon Llamas 12 The blue, green and grey water footprint of rice from both a production and consumption perspective - Ashok K. Chapagain &Arjen Y. Hoekstra 13 Water quality and nonpoint pollution: Comparative global analysis - Jose Albiac, Elena Calvo, Javier Tapia & Encarna Esteban V - The strategic role of groundwater in achieving food security 14 Intensive groundwater development: A water cycle transformation, a social revolution, a management challenge - Emilio Custodio 15 Electricity reforms and its impact on groundwater use: Evidence from India - Aditi Mukherji, Tushaar Shah & Shilp Verma VI -Water, energy and technology for food security 16 Water and energy nexus - Role of technology - Joppe F. Cramwinckel 17 Energy supply for the coming decades and the consequent water demand - Ignasi Nieto 18 The economics of desalination for various uses - Xavier Bernat, Oriol Gibert, Roger Guiu, Joana Tobella & Carlos Campos Postscript. The impossibilities of water in agriculture: An increasingly unreal world. What we have to do about it? - Margaret Catley-Carlson Glossary Author index Subject index

Economic Reforms and Food Security

Non-conventional water resources and opportunities for water augmentation to achieve food security in water scarce countries

Although Europe is not associated with the problem of food security, in some countries it may occur at the household level. There is not much research on this problem, especially in the EU-10 countries. Therefore, the aim of the article was to conduct a systematic literature review on the food security in the EU-10 countries and to answer the question of what picture of food security emerges from reviewed articles and whether the issue of food security in EU-10 countries has been sufficiently researched. Following the PRISMA (preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses) methodology, we have identified 58 scientific articles in the Web of Science database devoted to this problem. Results of the review suggest that food security in the EU-10 countries is analyzed mainly at the national level and with the use of secondary data. At the household level it has not been sufficiently studied and existing research is insufficient and not adequately disseminated.

The problem of food security is global in the context of sanctions and conflicts. The study is devoted to the assessment of the level of food security of the Russian Federation. The paper assesses the current level of food security in Russia based on the analysis of trends in the development of the agro-industrial complex, and also identifies threats and challenges to Russia’s food security at the present stage. The research is based on statistical data provided by the Ministry of Agriculture of Russia, as well as analysis methods including computational and constructive, monographic, economic and statistical, comparative and system analysis, synthesis, etc. The article suggests measures to strengthen Russia’s food security, taking into account the unpredictable development of the Russian economy. The results of the work make it possible to conclude that, despite the problems, the Russian agro-industrial complex successfully provides food to the population of the country and continues to gain momentum in the export of products. Russian scientists clarify the concept of innovation, the latest threats, problems of food security in individual countries and regions. The situation is aggravated by such factors as the imposition of sanctions on persons related to agricultural assets, the impact of sanctions on transportation and finance, and other restrictions, bikies. The Ukrainian crisis and Western restrictions against Russia are damaging food stability at both regional and country-wide, global levels.

This article concerns the analysis of food security in the North Caucasian macro-region. Any State is faced the challenge to provide safe food of domestic production to its population. This task is particularly relevant due to the emergence of a series of challenges and threats for country food sovereignty and its solution is impossible without active state support. The subjects of the North Caucasus Federal District have been selected as objects for this research.To identify the problems in country food security, the authors analyzed the global rating «The Global Food Security Index of the world's states. The authors also studied the internal and the external, economic and political objective and subjective factors and the potential for food security of macro-region. The authors analyzed the dynamics of development of the main types of agricultural production, the self-reliance level and production of basic foods, norms and actual food consumption.The authors show that with current sanctions and Russian anti-sanctions, there is a possibility of significant increase in agricultural production. The article draws conclusions on the significant differentiation of population per capita incomes by regions of the country and consumption of staple food. This study made it possible to identify the main problems and their impact on current Agro-Food market of the Russian Federation.The study recommends measures to strengthen food security by operational regional monitoring and by defining the evaluation indicators system of the level of food security comparable to systems at the international level.

An important challenge today is to strengthen food security and improve people's lives through increasing competitive products. The crucial vector of forming food security is activities of agricultural business, which are directly responsible to the people for providing sufficient high-quality food. In terms of the desire of Ukraine to integrate as a full partner in the European and world community, the problem of food security is of special significance. The need for food security of Ukraine requires maintaining an appropriate level of food self-sufficiency, which involves the use of state support for domestic agricultural producers and measures of import controls to protect own producers from foreign competition. Subject. The combination of theoretical, methodological approaches and organizational measures to create mechanisms in order to ensure food security at regional level. Methods. Methods of comparison, analysis, theoretical and logical synthesis, graphical method are used. The methodological basis is a comprehensive research method. Purpose. The purpose of the research is to substantiate the need to develop mechanisms to ensure food security of regions in transition to the concept of sustainable development. Results. It is established that the priorities of sustainable development of the agricultural sector in the region are the formation of food security, at the same time, a set of principles is defined that ensure sustainable development of regions; food security indicators are formed for the people of the region. Components of mechanisms are proposed, which regulate food security of regions and contribute to provision of the population with quality products in sufficient quantity. It is found that the basis for monitoring food security in the region and development of mechanisms to ensure it is the reproduction approach that will help to reveal the totality of processes of “production-distributionexchange- consumption” in the defined territory, and to develop a mechanism of management on this basis. Creation of the Complex Regional Program for Food Quality and Security Assurance is proposed, which should include issues of improving mechanisms of protection of the regional food market from low-quality and dangerous products; creation of economic, institutional and social conditions, and mechanisms of wide implementation at the enterprise level of the quality and environment management system as the most effective tool for ensuring quality and security of products meeting the requirements and expectations of consumers.

1. Introduction In the modern global economy, countries actively cooperate, exchanging goods and services. However, some countries are export-oriented and gain advantages from international trade while preserving national production, and other countries import too much and lose national sovereignty, with their own production declining and taking them into a trap, with them being unable to independently satisfy internal demand. The general quantitative criterion of measuring the level of import dependence of countries is the trade balance. Significant excess of import over export is critical and threatens national security of the country. However, an important role here belongs to high-quality analysis of foreign economic activities of the country. A person can survive without most of goods and services, so their import is not critical, while dependence on the import of so-called inferior or essential goods is a serious threat, as a person cannot live without them. The essential goods include accommodation, basic clothes, and food. Need for construction and basic textile production, is, as a rule, satisfied by internal production, but many countries cannot independently satisfy their internal demand for food products. This brings up a problem of food security. That's why the most serious threat is posed by country's dependence on food import. The reason for such dependence is lack or low level of agribusiness and, correspondingly, elimination of this reason allows solving the problem of national food security. This causes the topicality of study of perspectives and search for new tools of agribusiness development. This research offers the hypothesis that concessional lending is a perspective tool of agribusiness development. The purpose of the article is to verify this hypothesis, determine the advantages, and develop recommendations for the use of concessional lending for agribusiness development. 2. Subject The object of the research is agribusiness in non-food countries. The topic of the research is organizational & economic and managerial connections and relations which emerge in the process of use of concessional lending as a tool of development of agribusiness in non-food countries. Non-food countries are countries that do not specialize in agricultural production due to unfavorable natural and climatic situation, but are interested in development of national agribusiness for provision of national food security. 3. Materials and methods Analysis of works of modern scientists on the problem of development of agribusiness showed that most of research is devoted to substantiation of expedience and necessity for development of agribusiness; among them are the works of (Garthwaite et al., 2015), (He, 2015), (Jacknowitz et al., 2015), (Maitra & Rao, 2015), (Mazaeva and Rogachev, 2012), and (Bannikova et al., 2015). Also, a large number of works are oriented at allocation of national peculiarities of development of agribusiness and solving the problems of particular socio-economic systems, related to provision of food security: (Grouiez, 2012), (Bernardes, 2015), and (Medernach & Burnod, 2013). However, there is a lack of research, devoted to the search for perspective tools of development of agribusiness which are universal for various countries, which reflects the necessity for further studies in this sphere. As a method for determining the perspectives of development of agribusiness, this work uses SWOT-analysis. Also, the article uses the method of factor analysis for allocation of the factors of agribusiness development, method of institutional analysis for allocation of current and innovational means of influencing these factors, and method of problem analysis for determining the ley problems of development of agribusiness and search for their solution. In order to determine the limits of the research and simplify the work with the research object, the work uses the methods of modeling of socio-economic systems and systemic analysis. …

more surprising, however, is the astonishingly few times-only twenty-four-that was mentioned.2 This phenomenon was also evident in the American Journal of Agricultural Economics (AJAE). Using even an inclusive definition of subject matter, only about 3 % of the articles published in the AJAE during the past five years have dealt directly with the problems of food security.3 In this article, we examine why concerns about food security have diminished, at least relative to earlier periods. We argue that it should be in the interest of agricultural economists to return this concept to the G-8 agenda in light of the clear linkages between agricultural development, economic growth, food security, and national security in poor countries. We are particularly concerned that issues of hunger not get lost in a world food economy that is now driven predominantly by animal product demand, super markets, and subsides, and that is increasingly constrained by natural resources and their (mis)management. Three themes are thus intertwined in the

Since the COVID-19 struck the world, the pandemic impact became one bolster raising the alarm of countries worldwide to be more concerned about food security. This unprecedented challenge has exposed the vulnerabilities that affecting food security. Therefore, securing the nation’s food security on the top-ranking becomes a constant focus of government, researchers, and activists in every country. Many researchers have explored the food security challenges and evaluate the food security status. However, studies taking a comparison on different income levels of multi-country perspectives appear to be scarce. Therefore, this study aims to compare the food security level and the changing trends between upper-middle-income countries (Malaysia), high-income countries (Singapore), and lower-middle-income countries (Indonesia) and to identify the strengths and challenges of food security in each country. This study adopts a document analysis approach and applies a scoping review method on the Global Food Security Index (GFSI) to measure its food security level and analyze its differences during 2012–2020. The scope set for this study was four components: affordability, availability, quality and safety, and natural resources and resilience. Finding transpired that the relationship between four significant components of food security towards the changing food security trends during 2012 – 2020 does not generate a straight-line trend. Instead, it shows an inconsistent trend subject to various confounding factors. The finding also reveals that food security in the higher-income countries tend to be more secure and robust than upper-middle-income countries and lower-middle-income countries. Thus, cooperation between Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia is necessary to address each country’s strengths, weaknesses, and trends that create new opportunities to close the gap and enhance food security status. Sustainable development is impossible without a high level of food security unless all the countries committedly progress to achieve SDG #2: achieving food security and improved nutrition by 2030.