Urban areas in developing countries have many formal and informal food chains and face diverse food-quality and -safety challenges resulting from infrastructure (e.g., cold transport and storage) and institutional capacities (e.g., for monitoring of compliance with safety standards), and legislations in general might not be able to keep pace with the dynamics of urban food demand, including changes from traditional diets to ‘fast food’, the emergence of new supply and marketing chains, as well as growing competition between food outlets with possible cuts on food safety. But the largest risk factor in developing countries is that the public sector cannot count on the consumer to be alert as educational levels are usually too basic. Several national and international reports have noted that poor hygienic practices in the home are responsible for between 30-40% of food-borne illnesses (FAO 2015).
Keraita, B.; Drechsel, Pay. 2015. Consumer perceptions of fruit and vegetable quality: certification and other options for safeguarding public health in West Africa. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI) 32p. (IWMI Working Paper 164) [DOI] | Fulltext (2 MB)
Population pressure and increasing water competition in a changing climate require us to take stock of the availability and use of water across scales. Water availability not only influences farmers’ commercial prospects but also irrigation-related enterprises and agri-businesses. Greater water scarcity could jeopardize irrigation and agricultural markets while excessive water use can lead to declining ecosystems, water quality and soil health. IWMI advises development partners and the public and private sectors on all aspects of water resource availability and use through a variety of advanced modeling and remote-sensing products and tools, including 
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