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Wither the self-sufficiency illusion? Food security in Arab Gulf States and the impact of COVID-19

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  • Eckart Woertz

    (German Institute for Global and Area Studies (GIGA) and University of Hamburg)

Abstract

Past approaches to food security in the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) were informed by concerns about food availability. They aimed at domestic self-sufficiency and self-sufficiency by proxy (via farmland investments abroad). These strategies have failed. Water scarcity at home increasingly compromises agricultural production. Farmland investments abroad have not matched ambitious related announcements due to a complex mixture of commercial, socio-economic and political factors. They do not contribute meaningful quantities to the Gulf countries’ food imports. The failure of such strategies has prompted a shift of focus instead towards value chain management as a means to secure food availability. Rather than trying to fight food import dependence, the Gulf countries now accept and manage it. However, malnutrition that leads to high levels of obesity and diabetes constitutes a risk factor in the face of COVID-19. Food accessibility for vulnerable population segments such as migrant labour is another issue that requires yet further policy measures, such as safety nets – whose expansion would be politically controversial if not impossible, however.

Suggested Citation

  • Eckart Woertz, 2020. "Wither the self-sufficiency illusion? Food security in Arab Gulf States and the impact of COVID-19," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 12(4), pages 757-760, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:ssefpa:v:12:y:2020:i:4:d:10.1007_s12571-020-01081-4
    DOI: 10.1007/s12571-020-01081-4
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Eckart Woertz & Martin Keulertz, 2015. "Food trade relations of the Middle East and North Africa with tropical countries," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 7(6), pages 1101-1111, December.
    2. Breisinger, Clemens & Ecker, Olivier & Perrihan, Al-Riffai & Yu, Bingxin, 2012. "Beyond the Arab awakening: Policies and investments for poverty reduction and food security," Food policy reports 25, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    3. Clapp, Jennifer, 2017. "Food self-sufficiency: Making sense of it, and when it makes sense," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 66(C), pages 88-96.
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    1. Vasilii Erokhin & Tianming Gao, 2020. "Impacts of COVID-19 on Trade and Economic Aspects of Food Security: Evidence from 45 Developing Countries," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(16), pages 1-28, August.
    2. Assem Abu Hatab & Lena Krautscheid & Mohamed Elsayied & Franklin Amuakwa-Mensah, 2024. "COVID-19 risk perception and food security in the MENA region: evidence from a multi-wave household survey," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 16(4), pages 989-1008, August.
    3. Doua Ahmed & Pierina Benavente & Esperanza Diaz, 2023. "Food Insecurity among International Migrants during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Scoping Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(7), pages 1-14, March.
    4. Marta Parigi, 2024. "The effect of violent conflict on calorie consumption and dietary quality in Iraq," Journal of Agricultural Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 75(1), pages 341-361, February.

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