For many developing countries ensuring food security remains a key development challenge. There are multiple aspects that constitute food security, from food production to access to markets and the resilience of food systems to external risks. Different sectors play a role, with, of course, agriculture being the most important. There is a wealth of literature indicating that climate change will have severe negative effects on agriculture and broader factors constituting food security, especially in low-latitude countries (IPCC; 2007; Hoffmann, 2011). This is true even for moderate levels of temperature increase (2°C) and especially in smallholder systems with little adaptive capacity and high vulnerability (Vermeulen et al. 2010). At the same time, agriculture is a key source of greenhouse gas emissions (IPCC 2007; Hoffmann 2011).

This synthesis paper, Agriculture, Food Security and Climate Compatible Development, provides key lessons learned from three case studies in Kenya, Bangladesh and Honduras. It is part of the CDKN project, Advancing climate compatible development for food security through the implementation of national climate change strategies which aims to assist policymakers in developing countries to optimally harness climate finance for food-security related elements in national climate change strategies.

Further reading:

Project homepage: Advancing climate compatible development for food security through the implementation of national climate change strategies
Assessment: How food security-related elements of national climate change strategies can harness international climate finance in an effective manner
Kenya case study: Case Study on Climate Compatible Development (CCD) in Agriculture for Food Security in Kenya
Bangladesh case study: Case Study on Climate Compatible Development (CCD) in Agriculture for Food Security in Bangladesh
Honduras case study: Honduras Case Study on the National Strategy on Climate Change and Agriculture/Food Security