Asia

This paper elaborates on the food security transition that China has undergone over the last 35 years. It tries to understand the evolving axes of inequality with regard to access to affordable, safe and nutritious food in the context of changing rural–urban linkages. In China the production, distribution and consumption of food changed in this period due to rapid economic growth, urbanisation and industrialisation. The paper discusses how this change was addressed by policies aimed at ensuring adequate food provision and the regulation of quality and safety. »

This paper identifies conceptual synergies and dissonances between food security and income security. It considers the contribution of mainstream social protection instruments, such as cash transfers, to food security. The paper presents specific food security policies that would strengthen the ability of national social protection floors to address food insecurity. »

A new report published by CGAP presents insights in how digital financial services (DFS) can work for smallholders. Digital tools offer great opportunities for the world’s 450 million smallholder families, but cannot replace personal support, according to the new human-centered design research. Recognizing the need for DFS that better respond to smallholder demand, CGAP partnered in early 2015 with a financial service provider (FSP) in each of Zimbabwe, Senegal, Rwanda, and Cambodia to design a new generation of smallholder-specific digital financial products and services. Under the guidance and expertise of two human-centered design (HCD) firms, CGAP and its FSP partners worked to explore, create, evolve, and test possible digital solutions for smallholder families. »

This article by IIED focusses on urbanisation and rural development in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta. In 2006, the authors conducted a study of the social and economic transformations in three rural settlements in the area. Almost a decade later, this paper revisits the same settlements and describes their social and economic evolutions and the key factors that help decipher three distinct but similar trajectories. »

This study (PDF) by the Asian Development Bank and the Asian Development Bank Institute examines ways of encouraging SME participation in value chains, and explores policy solutions to address the financial and nonfinancial barriers faced by SMEs in global value chains. The authors highlight that two main factors
require attention: 1) enterprise competitiveness and 2) enterprise connectivity. »

This report (PDF) by IDS and Oxfam highlights the third year results of the study Life in a Time of Food Price Volatility, with a focus on changes in diets. The report explores what people on low and precarious incomes are eating now and how they are responding to the increasing commodification of food. Furthermore, the paper uncovers how these changes are linked to adjustments in work, residence and home life. »