Predicting and Preventing Famine

Information collection by early warning systems (EWS) and its contribution to triggering responses to the threat of famine are examined in this study. Five countries and four donor agencies were analyzed during 1990/91, a year in which EWS gave systematic and early indicators of a food crisis across much of the Sahel and the Horn of Africa. This report presents the research findings and the responses of the participants. It identifies realistic policy recommendations to improve the use of early warning information to promote famine prevention.
 
Information collection by early warning systems (EWS) and its contribution to triggering responses to the threat of famine are examined in this study. Five countries and four donor agencies were analyzed during 1990/91, a year in which EWS gave systematic and early indicators of a food crisis across much of the Sahel and the Horn of Africa. This report presents the research findings and the responses of the participants. It identifies realistic policy recommendations to improve the use of early warning information to promote famine prevention.