The impacts of violent conflict on smallholder agriculture: A scoping review

Abstract

Violent conflict poses a significant threat to smallholder agriculture globally, undermining food security, livelihoods, and rural development, yet a robust synthesis of its specific impacts remains elusive. This scoping review addresses this gap, asking: How do the impacts of distinct violent conflict types and dynamics vary within and across different smallholder agriculture systems? The review is based on a comprehensive search of Scopus, Web of Science, and PubMed for the period 2000-2024, for which 85 studies met inclusion criteria. We come to four key findings: First, specific types and dynamics of violent conflict are relatively rarely analysed in depth, although there is more focus on civil conflicts than other types, and reasonably strong evidence that violent conflicts in which food systems and resources are targeted have particularly detrimental effects on smallholder agriculture. Second, production systems are most vulnerable to violent conflict when characterised by a high level of reliance on monoculture, external inputs, insecure land tenure and limited access to water and associated infrastructure, although reliance on long-standing practices that have traditionally been more diverse poses risks in highly dynamic and rapidly changing conflict environments. Third, we find contradictory evidence on commercialisation’s role, with broad consensus that highly market-dependent models are particularly vulnerable, but a lack of clarity on which levels of commercialisation are desirable. Finally, a complex picture emerges in relation to household characteristics, whereby some features – such as limited labour resources – are widely considered to render households more vulnerable, while other research emphasises smallholders’ agency, highlighting how adaptability through diversified incomes or shifts in production strategies can mitigate risk factors. We synthesise these findings and their implications for future research, policy and practice.