The challenge of achieving food, energy and water (FEW) security is greatest in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) where millions of people lack access to electricity, reliable drinking water and one in four people are undernourished. To develop targeted policies, it is necessary to identify at-risk countries and the spatial patterns of FEW insecurity in the region. However, country and sub-regional level assessments of FEW security have received scant attention. In this study, we carried out quantitative and spatial assessments of FEW security in SSA using the Pardee Rand FEW Index. Results show that 41 countries in SSA are FEW insecure, with Burundi being the most affected country while the West African sub-region seems to have many FEW insecure countries. Spatial analysis of FEW security reveals the presence of spatial patterns in the distribution of FEW insecurity in SSA suggesting that a sub-regional approach may be used to tackle this challenge. However, literature review shows that this has to be approached with caution given that different contextual factors such as socio-economic and governance conditions may influence FEW security within countries. Our analyses imply that any policy response designed to enhance FEW security needs to address both socio-economic, governance and other contextual factors within countries.

在撒哈拉以南非洲 (SSA)，实现粮食、能源和水 (FEW) 安全的挑战最大，那里有数百万人无法获得电力和可靠的饮用水，四分之一的人营养不良。为了制定有针对性的政策，有必要确定该地区面临风险的国家和 FEW 不安全的空间格局。然而，国家和次区域层面对 FEW 安全的评估很少受到关注。在本研究中，我们使用 Pardee Rand FEW 指数对 SSA 中的 FEW 安全进行了定量和空间评估。结果显示，SSA 中有 41 个国家很少不安全，其中布隆迪是受影响最严重的国家，而西非次区域似乎有许多 FEW 不安全的国家。对 FEW 安全性的空间分析揭示了 SSA 中 FEW 不安全性分布中存在空间模式，这表明可以使用次区域方法来应对这一挑战。然而，文献综述表明，鉴于社会经济和治理条件等不同的背景因素可能会影响国家内部的 FEW 安全，因此必须谨慎处理。我们的分析表明，任何旨在增强 FEW 安全的政策响应都需要解决国家内部的社会经济、治理和其他背景因素。文献回顾表明，鉴于不同的背景因素（例如社会经济和治理条件）可能会影响国家内部的 FEW 安全，因此必须谨慎对待这一点。我们的分析表明，任何旨在增强 FEW 安全的政策响应都需要解决国家内部的社会经济、治理和其他背景因素。文献回顾表明，鉴于不同的背景因素（例如社会经济和治理条件）可能会影响国家内部的 FEW 安全，因此必须谨慎对待这一点。我们的分析表明，任何旨在增强 FEW 安全的政策响应都需要解决国家内部的社会经济、治理和其他背景因素。