26 October 2018. Panel debate Strengthening sustainable food and nutrition security in Africa rof. Lise Korsten, Co-Director of the DST-NRF Centre of Excellence in Food Security, University of Pretoria, South Africa What resources can Africa leverage to better the food and nutrition status?

1. Strengthening Food and
Nutrition Security in Africa:
Food Safety in a Food Secure
World
Prof Lise Korsten &Prof Lise Korsten &
lise.korsten@up.ac.zalise.korsten@up.ac.za
Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, University of PretoriaDepartment of Plant and Soil Sciences, University of Pretoria

2. Food Security
What resources can Africa leverage
to improve the food and nutrition
status of AfricaFood Security?
1. Youth - Human Capacity
• Empowered Workforce
• Quality Graduates
• Postgrad Students
• Technical & Soft Skills
2. Indigenous knowledge
• Next generation technologies
3. Biodiversity
• Microbial biodiversity
• Plant biodiversity
• Animal and wildlife biodiversit
1)

3. Food Security
What resources can Africa leverage
to improve the food and nutrition
status of AfricaFood Security?
1. Physical facilities
• Infrastructure
• Centres of Excellence/
Research Chairs
2. Land & Space
3. Climate & Resources
• Soil
• Water

4. 1) Threats
What resources can Africa leverage
to improve the food and nutrition
status of AfricaFood Security?
1. Youth
2. Knowledge
3. Biodiversity
4. Physical facilities
5. Land & Space
6. Climate & Resources
Robotics
Big Data
AI
Exploitation
Funding?
Land ownership
Global Warming
Soil Degredation
Water Wars

5. 1. What is on the Plate?
2. How full is my plate?
3. What is available/ affordable?
4. How nutritious is the Food?
5. How Safe is our Food?
6. Lets Share our Food!
2) An African Plate of Food
• Food Science
• Nutritional Science
• Consumer Science
• Food Safety

6. • Political Science
• Social Sciences
• Agricultural Sciences
• Agri-Food Law
3) Food Sovereignty

7. How safe is our Food?
4) Food Safety
Focus on:
1.Chemical contaminants:
• Pesticides
• Mycotoxins
• Heavy metals, ECD
2.Foodborne Pathogens
• Waterborne pathogens
• Protozoa
• Viral pathogens
• Medical Faculty
• Genomics Institute
• Agriculture & Veterinary Science
• Food Science

8. Medical Faculty
Genomics Institute
Agriculture & Veterinary Science
Food Science
5) Key Challenges:
Antibiotic Resistance
How prevalent is
Antibiotic Resistance in Africa?
1.Map Antibiotic resistance in the
environment
2.Determine source of antibiotic
drivers
3.Address Antibiotic resistance threat
from all sectors
• Publish health
• Agriculture
• Regulation
Should
we be
worried?

9. 9
 Antibiotic resistance evolution and spreading among bacterial pathogens is a threat to
global health, food security, and development (van Duin and Doi, 2016).
 Global threat – the loss of efficacy of antibiotics - because of antibiotic resistant strains
Thus the beginning of the post antibiotic era (Ventola, 2015).
1. Game Changer: Antibiotic Resistance

10. 2. Game Changer - World Water Wars:
Access to fresh water - "transboundary" waters:
African examples Rivers: Nile
Countries i.e. Algeria, Morocco, Libya, Ethiopia
“The consequences for humanity are grave. Water scarcity threatens economic and social
gains and is a potent fuel for wars and conflict,”
Ban Ki Moon, 2007.

11. 2. Protecting our scarce water
resources
• Globally 1.1 billion people lack access to clean drinking water
• Water related diseases (i.e. Cholera) kill 3 million people
• No adequate sanitation = 2,4 billion
2. Agricultural Water1. Drinking Water
Sanitation

12. Water
Health
Soil Health
Plant
Health
3) Food Systems Knowledge

13. Water
Health
Soil Health
Plant
Health
Environmental Health
Public Health
Animal Health

14. Animal
Health
Human
health
Environmenta
l Health
Plant
Health
Linking Systems

15. • Communications
• Engineering
• Agriculture
6) Future Food Security
• Block chain: Linking Farmers
with markets
• IT technology - Cell phones
• Pest & Disease control
• Drones for Smart
Farming

16. Digital infrastructure may be the most powerful tool in battling the worldwide epidemic of malnutrition.
By Dan Glickman, for National Geographic

17. Whole genome sequencing
Microbiomes
Metabolomics
The scientific study of the set of metabolites present within an organism, cell, or tissue.
Agribiomes
Managing agricultural systems through understanding and manipulating the microbiome
Microbiomics
Microbial community analysis
7) Embrace the World of
Science
Labs as we
know it today
will become
obsolete within
the next century
Lise K
Genomic platforms

18. GenomeTracr Africa
International
Partners
Global
Networks
WTO
WHO
FAO
OIEC
ICPP
7) Tools for The Future we want:
African Partnerships in critical areas
African
partnerships:
i.e. RUFORM

19. Food Safety Science
Platform

20. What is the ingredients for
success?
The WillThe Will
To DriveTo Drive
a Desire to Changea Desire to Change
The Commitment to Embrace ChangeThe Commitment to Embrace Change
Implement, Continual Improvement AccountabilityImplement, Continual Improvement Accountability