ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the implications of aflatoxins for human security in East Africa. The chapter establishes that the aflatoxins problem is pervasive in East Africa and present a unique challenge to human security in the region. Dietary exposure to aflatoxins results in negative health outcomes such as aflatoxin poisoning, increased incidence of liver cancers in adults, immune suppression, vaccine effectiveness interference, and possible growth impairments in children. The chapter establishes that because of scanty data on occurrences, the true magnitude of aflatoxin poisoning in the region is not known and at best grossly underestimated. The chapter identifies limited diagnostic capabilities especially in rural hospitals, as one of the reasons for the noted underestimation of aflatoxin poisoning in the region. The chapter also establishes that aflatoxins present significant barriers to trade and contribute to economic vulnerabilities and food insecurity. The chapter recommends (1) the creation of more testing facilities in rural areas, (2) increased investments in agriculture and food production, and (3) further research to understand the interplay between aflatoxins and COVID-19, and implications of the same for human security in the region considering the noted compounding effects of long-term exposure to aflatoxins, in particular immune suppression, and interference with vaccine effectiveness.
