How plant diversity loss threatens Africa’s food security

Africa is losing the plant diversity that is critical for food security, climate resilience and livelihoods across the continent, according to insights from the Third Report on the State of the World’s Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture.

The findings, published by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), were presented at the Africa regional launch of the report, held in Nairobi, Kenya, on February 12-13, 2026. The launch event was co-hosted by FAO and the Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF).

The report indicates that across the continent, crops – along with their varieties and wild relatives – as well as other wild plants harvested for food, are disappearing faster than they are being conserved. These resources are essential for helping agrifood systems (the way food is produced, processed and consumed) adapt to climate change, which is increasingly felt through erratic and extreme weather.

“This report shows clearly that Africa is losing plant genetic diversity at a pace that threatens food security, nutrition and the overall resilience of agrifood systems,” said the Deputy Director of the Plant Production and Protection Division (NSP) at FAO, Chikelu Mba.

“Crop diversity – including farmers’ varieties or landraces, wild food plants and the genetic relatives of major crops – is essential for developing progressively improved crop varieties needed to climate-proof the continent’s agrifood systems. Yet many of these resources are disappearing faster than they are being protected.”

Chief Executive Officer of CIFOR-ICRAF Éliane Ubalijoro, said plant genetic resources should not be seen as abstract or technical. Rather, they determine whether crops and trees can survive drought, heat, floods, pests and emerging diseases, and whether farmers can recover after climate shocks, she pointed out.

“Africa’s ability to feed itself in a changing climate depends on the diversity we choose to conserve today,” Ubalijoro said. “Plant genetic diversity is the source of resilience. It is what makes adaptation, breeding and recovery possible.”

Africa holds exceptional plant genetic diversity, from farmers’ locally adapted crop varieties selected over generations, to wild relatives and tree species that carry unique traits for stress tolerance. As climate change accelerates, this diversity is not optional but foundational to resilient, productive and sustainable food systems.

Locally adapted crop varieties developed and passed down by farmers over generations (scientifically known as landraces) are already disappearing from farms across Africa. These include varieties of staple crops such as sorghum, millet, yam, rice and traditional cotton. Such crops are often better suited to local soils, climates and farmers’ preferences than commercial varieties, some of which were not bred for Africa’s diverse agroecological conditions.

In Sub-Saharan Africa, about 16 percent of more than 12,000 of these distinct locally adapted crop varieties (unique accessions) recorded across 19 countries were found to be threatened, narrowing farmers’ options as droughts and heat intensify.

“Africa’s food security and nutrition depend on the widest possible diversity of crops, trees and wild plants that farmers and communities have relied on for generations,” Ubalijoro said. “When that diversity disappears, farmers lose options, and food systems become more fragile.”

The report also highlights sharp declines in wild food plants, which provide essential nutrients and act as safety nets for vulnerable populations during times of food scarcity. These include species such as baobab, shea, marula, tamarind and African bush mango, as well as indigenous leafy vegetables commonly eaten across Africa, including amaranth, spider plant, African nightshade, cowpea leaves and jute mallow.

These plants support rural livelihoods, diets and incomes, yet more than 70 percent of assessed wild food plant diversity in Africa is threatened, mainly due to habitat loss, land-use change and climate stress – double the global average rate.

Equally at risk are crop wild relatives – wild plants related to major food crops such as sorghum, millet, rice, yam, cowpea and African eggplant. The report finds that over 70 percent of assessed crop wild relatives in Africa are under threat, while African genebanks conserve only about 14 percent of those collected, leaving many adaptive traits exposed to irreversible loss.

The report also raises concerns about the security of Africa’s seed collections. About 220,000 seed samples from nearly 4,000 plant species are conserved in 56 African genebanks, yet only about 10 percent of collections are safely duplicated elsewhere, leaving them vulnerable to conflict, flooding, power failures and chronic underinvestment.

“Conservation and use must move together,” Ubalijoro said. “We conserve in order to use, and we use in ways that create incentives to conserve. That balance is essential if plant genetic resources are to deliver real benefits for farmers and communities.”

Emphasising the role of national leadership, the Managing Director of the Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service (KEPHIS) Theophilus Muturi, said governments must invest in systems that protect this diversity.

“It is the responsibility of governments to establish genebanks and the infrastructure needed to store plant genetic resources. We also encourage farmers to develop seed systems or community seed banks where they can store varieties that are critical to them and adapted to different ecological zones.”

Climate change is already accelerating these losses. Drought now drives nearly two-thirds of emergency seed interventions across Africa, with 110 responses recorded in 20 countries. While emergency seed support helps farmers restart production, repeated crises place heavy strain on local seed systems and can displace locally adapted varieties with seeds that are poorly suited to local conditions.

Despite the risks, the report identifies opportunities. Fourteen African countries report that 44 percent of their seed collections have been studied and described, exceeding the global average, while 21 countries are actively breeding improved varieties of 81 crop species, including underutilised crops such as African eggplant, amaranth, moringa and indigenous vegetables.

The report calls for urgent, coordinated action to strengthen policies, invest in seed systems and genebanks, build scientific and technical capacity, and support farmers and communities as custodians of plant genetic diversity. Without decisive action, Africa risks losing irreplaceable resources essential for food security, resilience and sustainable development.