The Semi-Arid Tropics (SAT) and Climate Change: Research and Policy Solutions

The semi-arid tropics (SAT) spans 750 million hectares in 55 developing countries across the globe. The region is home to more than 2 billion people. Of these, 1.5 billion depend on agriculture for a living, with 670 million comprising the poorest of the poor. It also houses nearly 50% of the world's undernourished and more than 70% of its malnourished children. The SAT is facing a 'perfect storm', with a number of huge problems converging around land issues. Beyond the anticipated population increases, the recent food price spikes, disruptions of financial markets and econornic stagnation, energy demands, dwindling biodiversity and effects of climate change create a more difficult environment in which agriculture must operate. At the center of this storm are the poor who depend on the land for survival