The Drought and Food Crisis in the Horn of Africa : Impacts and Proposed Policy Responses for Kenya

As the world begins to feel the effects
of climate change, the frequency of droughts is increasing
in the Horn of Africa. In Kenya, the drought and food crisis
affect welfare through two main channels. The first channel
is the increased mortality of livestock in drought-affected
areas, which are home to 10 percent of the country's
population. The second channel is by exacerbating increases
in food prices, which are largely driven by worldwide price
trends. Considering these two channels, this note identifies
four broad policy changes that can reduce Kenya's
future vulnerability to such shocks: (i) investment in
people in the arid and semiarid lands; (ii) reform of
Kenya's maize policy; (iii) review of the East African
Community grain trade policy; and (iv) formulation of a
unified social protection system.