From inclusive business to food systems: Enhancing smallholder food security in Africa

Abstract

Food and nutrition insecurity remain among today’s major global challenges, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) where most affected people reside. Therefore, the importance of solving this problem in the region cannot be overemphasized. Smallholder farmers constitute among the most food-insecure population groups in SSA. To overcome the bottlenecks they face, the concept of inclusive entrepreneurship in the form of inclusive business models (IBMs) has been widely promoted by governments, donors, development agencies and organizations over the last decade. Irrespective of the considerable enthusiasm for applying IBMs to address challenges faced by the poor and marginalized (in this case, smallholders), the benefits of such engagement must be weighed carefully against a range of mediating factors, including processes of exclusion, available local resources and capital assets, and the reinterpretation of positive outcomes, benefits and beneficiaries. With regard to food security benefits, the extent to which participation in market-oriented production actually contributes to food and nutrition security in rural communities remains a moot point among scholars. Overall, little is known about the impact of inclusive businesses on livelihoods in smallholder communities, and even less is known about their contribution to household food security. Hence the aim of the present research carried out in rural Kenya was to answer the question: To what extent do inclusive businesses contribute to smallholders’ household food and nutrition security?