Seasonality and Social Protection in Africa

Abstract

This Working Paper draws on nearly twenty years of research in several African countries on the inter-related themes of food insecurity, seasonality, coping strategies, famine, formal and informal safety nets and social protection. The paper has three objectives:

1) To document and synthesise evidence on the nature and consequences of seasonality across rural Africa, highlighting the similarities and convergences across contexts 2)To explore the various policy interventions that have been implemented in response to seasonality, with particular reference to the emerging social protection agenda 3) To argue that current approaches to social protection are misconceived and inadequate for addressing the seasonal dimensions of rural vulnerability