Review Article

South Africa’s multiple vulnerabilities, food security and livelihood options in the COVID-19 new order: An annotation

Hosea O. Patrick, Ernest N. Khalema, Oluremi A. Abiolu, Enioluwa J. Ijatuyi, Rhoda T. Abiolu
The Journal for Transdisciplinary Research in Southern Africa | Vol 17, No 1 | a1037 | DOI: https://doi.org/10.4102/td.v17i1.1037 | © 2021 Hosea O. Patrick, Ernest N. Khalema, Oluremi A. Abiolu, Enioluwa J. Ijatuyi, Rhoda T. Abiolu | This work is licensed under CC Attribution 4.0
Submitted: 09 March 2021 | Published: 21 July 2021

About the author(s)

Hosea O. Patrick, Department of Community Development Studies, School of Built Environment and Development Studies, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa
Ernest N. Khalema, Department of Community Development Studies, School of Built Environment and Development Studies, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa
Oluremi A. Abiolu, Department of Library Studies, Faculty of Library Studies, Federal University of Technology Akure, Akure, Nigeria
Enioluwa J. Ijatuyi, Department of Agricultural Extension, Faculty of Agriculture and Engineering, North-West University, Mafikeng, South Africa
Rhoda T. Abiolu, The Centre for General Education, Faculty of General Education, Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa

Abstract

The advent of the COVID-19 pandemic and its crippling effects exacerbate many people’s vulnerability to food security across the world, including Africa. This article offers an explorative discourse on the implication of COVID-19 pandemic for South Africa’s food and livelihood security in the face of climate change. Using a scoping desktop review method, the article aims to provoke research and policy action and discourse on the subject matter. The article explores pre-and post-COVID-19 vulnerabilities in South Africa. It acknowledges the impact of climate change on food security and the situation of food security in South Africa pre-and post-COVID-19 pandemic. It then provides policy recommendations and expected outcomes to reconfigure the agricultural sector in the new sociopolitical and economic order necessitated by the pandemic. The article argues that reducing the stress posed by COVID-19 will require collaborative efforts and systemic thinking by stakeholders across all quarters. This will proffer workable solutions to mitigate the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on the food and livelihood options of rural dwellers in South Africa and their interconnectedness with the impact of climate change.

Keywords

COVID-19; food security; South Africa; climate change; livelihood options.

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Crossref Citations

1. The Covid pandemic, cultivation and livelihoods in South Africa’s Eastern Cape
Klara Fischer, Nomahlubi Mnukwa, Amanda Bengtsson
Agrekon  vol: 62  issue: 3-4  first page: 279  year: 2023  
doi: 10.1080/03031853.2023.2288709