The dynamic relationship between agricultural sustainability and food-energy-water poverty in a panel of selected Sub-Saharan African Countries

Abstract

The relationship between food-energy-water resources and agricultural sustainability has got a significant policy attraction that generally in favor of livelihood of the poor, which is largely affected by climate change, food security challenges, poor access of water resources, and less access of electricity. These challenges generally faced by less developing countries, while Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries has no exemption to escape out from this food-water-energy poverty nexus due to inadequate socio-economic and environmental action programs of sustainable development. This study examined the dynamic nexus between agricultural sustain ability and food-energy-water poverty in a panel of selected SSA countries over the period of 1980-2013. The study used pooled least squares regression, pooled fixed effects, and pooled random effects regression techniques to absorb country-specific-time-variant shocks. The Hausman (1978) test results reveal that country-specific shocks influence the food-energy-water poverty model; therefore, the fixed effects regression results are consider a better fit model than that of the pooled random effect model. The overall results conclude that agricultural value added, cereal yields and forest area significantly decreases food-energy-water poverty nexus, leading to higher economic growth and price levels at the cost of environmental degradation. In general, agricultural sustainability is the prerequisite for reducing food-energy-water poverty.