Why food remittances matter: rural-urban linkages and food security in Africa

Published in January 2017 by the International Institute for Environment and Development, this four-page briefing is aimed at researchers and policymakers interested in transforming rural-urban linkages and the implications for food security of rural and urban residents. It argues that the current rural-urban binary is arbitrary, outdated and unhelpful. At a time of rapid urbanisation in the global South, a wider lens is needed: focusing on rural-urban linkages and moving beyond cash-based, market transactions to consider the bidirectional flows of goods – including food – and their impact on food security. Using case studies from Zimbabwe and Namibia, this report demonstrates how lessons related to food remitting can be applied in other African contexts – and highlights the urgent need for a new research agenda. The transfer of funds by migrants to their home countries (cash remittances) is at an all-time high. By 2017, it is predicted to rise to US$500 billion – and there is a growing policy consensus that cash remittances can be mainstreamed into development. Equally, food remitting also has a role to play in urban and rural food security. Yet despite its importance, researchers and policymakers tend to ignore food remitting.