Renewable energy will help address food crisis

All forecasts for the coming year point to the world – and especially Africa – facing hunger of almost unimaginable proportions.

We’re in the eye of a perfect storm: supplies of grain blocked by the war in Ukraine; extreme weather induced by climate change; and the economic aftermath of the coronavirus having led to what UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres recently described as an “unprecedented global hunger crisis” – it is all affecting hundreds of millions.

Guterres says 20% of Africa’s population already experiences hunger. He expects multiple famines to be declared this year and adds that “2023 could be even worse”.

The 2020 Global Hunger Index shows that the world’s food security has been in peril for some time, only exacerbated by the blocking of Ukrainian grain exports. Not only this but the food insecurity we face is worsened still by the impacts of climate change.

The current food security situation across the Horn of Africa – Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia – is dire after four consecutive rainy seasons have failed – a climatic event not seen in at least 40 years, or since the beginning of the satellite era.

Now, more than ever, we have been urged to implement short-term life-saving responses that also incorporate long-term resilience building. In other words, tackling the root of the problem for now and into the future.

Renewable energy

I’m heartened by the role that my business – renewable energy – can play as part of the solution to tackling these enormous challenges, at both an environmental and societal level.

In 2021, Lekela’s operations in Egypt, Senegal and South Africa generated 2 803GWh of clean energy and avoided more than 2.3 million tons of CO2 emissions.

Providing access to clean, reliable energy helps support the economies of the communities where we operate and supports governments’ own ambitions to meet net zero targets to align with the UN’s sustainable development goals (SDGs).

This is especially important in South Africa, Africa’s biggest polluter, which contributes about 33% of the continent’s steadily rising air pollution.

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The tragic fallout from the Ukraine war aside, humankind is experiencing massive impacts of climate change: the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report has found these are outstripping every bad expectation, arriving sooner and hitting harder than predicted less than a decade ago.

Our efforts to curtail the warming of our planet – and the accompanying catastrophic implications for billions of humans, species and the very ecosystems that sustain life – have not slowed temperature rises or extreme weather.

Our need for urgent action on climate change is tied closely to our need to reach the UN’s SDGs. With that deadline just a decade away, we’re far off finding energy, water, and food security hardwired into the SDGs.

Food crisis

Beyond the obvious benefits of renewable energy technology – helping curb climate change; and improving public health by reducing air and water pollution that results from coal mining and coal-fired power generation – it can also help address the looming food crisis.

Agriculture and agroprocessing companies can greatly benefit from renewable energy to make their operations more reliable and efficient.

Firstly, there are the myriad tools themselves – such as solar water pumps, refrigeration facilities, mills and irrigation – either off-grid, in mini-grids or on national grids – that are more reliable.

Secondly, improving infrastructure can help reduce food waste – a third of all food produced is currently wasted or spoiled, which the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation estimates is enough to feed nearly 50 million people.

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Widespread renewable energy facilities that power reliable and affordable irrigation, food storage and processing systems would greatly reduce that loss and contribute to Africa’s food security, helping the continent meets its potential in agricultural productivity without increasing its carbon footprint.

On top of this, renewable energy facilities can help the food production industry reduce its greenhouse gas emissions. It’s estimated that modern food systems contribute to nearly 30% of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide.

All indications are that Africa and the world have some perilous times ahead.

• Antonopoulos is CEO of Lekela Power