climate change

For local communities and indigenous peoples, land rights are not just an abstract concept – they're a matter of survival. But all too often they are ignored or denied. And it affects us all. Find out why and join our collective effort to make a difference.

Nadia Daar, head of Oxfam's Washington DC office, responds to the International Monetary Fund's announcement today that it has selected Kristalina Georgieva as the next managing director.

Battered by cyclones and ravaged by extreme drought, poor communities in the Horn of Africa and Mozambique have found themselves on the front line of a climate crisis they did little to create.

Advancing the right of people living in poverty to sustainable livelihoods has been a cornerstone of Oxfam’s work for many decades. Our goal is to enable millions of women and communities to become more resilient to a changing climate, and to secure access to the land and natural resources on which they depend.

As drought devastates the Horn of Africa yet again, the following analysis comparing 2019 to earlier droughts paints a bleak picture and indictment on the humanitarian community. The urgency to better respond is exacerbated by people’s lack of recovery from the 2017 drought and a further deterioration predicted in coming months.

New figures released by the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) show that the number of hungry people has risen for the third year in a row, mainly as a result of conflict and the climate crisis. However, despite the spiralling hunger and two global food price crises in a little over ten years, hunger has fallen off the political agenda.

The food price crisis of 2007–08 had devastating impacts for the world’s poorest people, especially for smallholder farmers and in particular for women. Ten years on, new policies are needed to rebalance the system to meet the needs of smallholder communities, with a renewed focus on meeting the needs and aspirations of women.

Despite its development potential, the Sahel faces an unprecedented crisis. Today, there is a multifaceted predicament on top of the pre-existing development challenges that the region has been tackling. The governments of the Sahelian countries and the international community must respond to these urgent problems, making the fight against inequality a top priority.