GFPR SOUTH ASIA LAUNCH

Climate change is a growing threat to our food systems, with grim implications for food and nutrition security, livelihoods, and overall well-being, especially for poor and vulnerable people around the world. And South Asia has become a climate change hotspot, with many climate-induced risks compounded by significant existing vulnerabilities. All available indicators — glacier melt in the Himalayas, sea-level rise, extreme weather events, precipitation patterns, and the frequency of natural hazards turning into disasters — have worsened since 1950. Rapid economic growth in recent decades, which is expected to continue, will likely exacerbate these alarming trends, and the high economic costs of climate change in the region are projected to increase further.

The imperative for urgent action on climate change — both to achieve the major emissions reductions needed to limit global warming and to increase adaptive capacity and resilience — is drawing global attention. IFPRI’s flagship publication, the 2022 Global Food Policy Report, highlights the urgency of accelerating innovation, reforming policies, resetting market incentives, and increasing financing for sustainable food systems transformation. It sets forth a broad range of opportunities for accelerated action that should be considered in policy and investment decision-making for climate change adaptation, mitigation, and resilience.

The South Asia chapter discusses the diverse impacts of climate change in the region and identifies potential responses that can be taken up in the short and medium term in national and regional food systems. Check out the South Asia hybrid launch events on July 18, 2022 in Kathmandu, Nepal, July 21, 2022 in New Delhi, India, and August 17, 2022 in Dhaka, Bangladesh, where experts and speakers will come together to discuss and highlight key findings in the 2022 report.