Assessing the Contribution of Agricultural Productivity to Food Security levels in Sub-Saharan African countries

The study investigates the effect of agricultural productivity on different food security measures in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). We identify food security indicators with per capita total food available in tonnes and per capita nutrient supply (e.g., calories and proteins), while agricultural–value-added per hectare and cereal production per hectare are taken as measures of agricultural productivity in the study. Using a panel data covering 41 countries from 1980-2009, we employ both the dynamic and linear models. The empirical results from both models show that an increase in agricultural productivity contributes positively and significantly to all measures of food security considered in the study. Thus suggesting that the key to improving food security is by boosting the current level of agricultural productivity growth in SSA. Accordingly, we contend that policies geared toward increasing government investment in agricultural research and development (R&D) would likely raise agricultural productivity and subsequently food security levels in the region.