Climate change is a critical global issue with significant impacts on both human and ecological systems. The escalation in extreme weather occurrences, shifts in precipitation patterns, and rising temperatures are the key manifestations of this phenomenon. In Africa, where smallholder agriculture relies heavily on rainfall, climate change poses a substantial challenge to food security. The region faces a range of adverse effects including threats to food security, water scarcity, disease outbreaks, biodiversity loss, and direct harm to life and property. The complex and interconnected nature of climate change impacts in Africa poses a major risk to the continent’s development goals. Using systematic screening and identification of relevant articles, we explore the role of ecosystem-based adaptation in building resilient food systems and achieving food security in Africa. The findings show that the ecosystem-based approach has the potential to enhance food and nutrition security in Africa while building resilience against climate change variability. In light of climate change, the new paradigm calls for higher agricultural incomes, which are crucial for raising farmers’ purchasing power parity. The results indicate the effectiveness of the ecosystem-based adaptation approach in guaranteeing food security and underscore the urgent requirement to expand its implementation. In addition to policy and institutional changes, various recommendations can facilitate the integration of this new approach to safeguard Africa’s food and livelihood security. Additional strategies include bolstering capacity building, boosting outreach and communication, enhancing knowledge management, bolstering financial incentives, and engaging with the private sector. To be implemented, all these require enabling policies.