Description
In the search for a Global Deal at the World Summit on Sustainable Development, which sought to address global economic relationships between the North and the South, a crucial area of debate was food security. Despite impressive developments around food growth in recent decades, resulting in enough food to meet the basic needs of every person in the world, not everyone is food-secure, as exemplified by the acute food shortages in the southern African region during 2002 and 2003. There are many causes of food insecurity, among them macro and micro issues, the roots of which are essentially internal or indirectly caused by relationships with other countries. Examples are political instability, poor economic governance, poverty and a lack of sustainable household income. The issue of HIV/AIDS has added another critical dimension to the search for food security. Strategies for enhancing income diversification and the income-generating capacity of vulnerable groups in urban and rural areas should be a major priority for both the developing and developed world, coupled with genuine commitment to international trade reforms.

About the authors
Scott Drimie is a senior research specialist in the Integrated Rural and Regional Development Research Programme of the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC). He holds a PhD from Cambridge University. His doctoral thesis focused on the South African land policy as implemented in the period 1994 to 1999. Since joining the HSRC, he has been involved in research around integrated rural development including land reform, agricultural development, micro-finance and emergency relief. He has also worked for the southern African Regional Poverty Network (SARPN) and travelled widely across the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region. He organised a major conference on land reform and poverty alleviation as part of his work for SARPN.

Simphiwe Mini is also a senior research specialist in the HSRCs Integrated Rural and Regional Development Research Programme. He holds a PhD in geography and environmental science from the University of Fort Hare. Prior to joining the HSRC, he worked at the University of Fort Hare as Professor of Geography and Environmental Sciences where he was responsible for developing and co-coordinating postgraduate and undergraduate research programmes and for co-coordinating research programmes for the faculties of science and agriculture. Dr Mini has extensive experience in social and environmental science research, sustainable rural development and rural economy, agrarian reform, and in research design and methodology.

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