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A view from the United Nations

March 2008

The global food crisis: Are the rich abandoning the poor?
By Vicente García-Delgado, CIVICUS´ UN Representative

Release Date: 9 April 2008 - e-CIVICUS 383

Are the rich nations of the world abandoning the global poor?

Basic food prices have increased dramatically over the last few years and are expected to continue their upward spiral for the foreseeable future, causing food shortages, increasing hunger and malnutrition, social unrest, large human displacements and desperation in poor regions of the world. Yet, the response of the wealthy North, except for a few honourable exceptions, has so far been manifestly inadequate.

Unless this situation is reversed soon, our own generation could be witnessing unprecedented humanitarian crises, increased social unrest, and new and renewed conflicts over scarce water and agricultural resources leading to mass migrations, general insecurity and untold human suffering.

The reasons for the current food crisis are many, including decreases in crop-producing land and lower harvest yields due to extreme climate events; water source depletion and advancing desertification; rapid increases in food demand from large emerging economies; changes in diet, including rapidly increasing meat consumption in China and India; the diversion of agricultural outputs toward bio-fuel production; spikes in the price of oil; population explosion; and unresolved local and regional conflicts.

For example, AlertNet reports that “Somalis uprooted by fighting in Mogadishu looted trucks carrying U.N. food aid, […] highlighting what relief agencies warn is a fast deteriorating humanitarian catastrophe.” www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L28564768.htm

The UN secretary general has warned that millions of people are at risk of starvation as global food stocks fall to their lowest levels in decades, Al-Jazeera reports that “In a letter to a US newspaper, Ban Ki Moon warned that shortages are forcing prices to rise which may have devastating consequences for the world's most vulnerable communities” http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/958CC5D2-638C-428E-AF84-91041B355EF0.htm

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) says that “Since 10 January [2008], some 20 provinces of southern China have suffered from disastrous cold, ice, and snow. Some 100 million people are officially estimated to have been affected. The most severely impacted crops include rapeseed, vegetables, and fruits. In addition, some 190,000 hectares of winter wheat were severely damaged.” www.fao.org/giews/english/shortnews/china080303.htm

FAO also reports that “Unusually cold weather has been sweeping through the upland areas near the Viet Nam-China border since January 14th, making it a record cold spell. About 150,000 hectares of rice have been destroyed, with a loss of about US$25 million. In the central province of Thanh Hoa , half of the rice area has also been lost (45,000 hectares). Other severely affected areas include Nghe An province and Hai Phong city.” www.fao.org/giews/english/shortnews/china080303.htm

In North Korea, “in addition to long-standing economic constraints, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea was severely affected by floods in 2007 and continues to suffer from serious food shortages. Based on the most recent Government estimates, total cereal production in 2007 is about 3 million tonnes (milled base, or 3.6 million tonnes unmilled), a significant reduction from the 4 million tonnes of the previous year and the five-year average of 3.7 million tonnes. The major cereal losses were in maize (650 000 tonnes less, or 33 per cent down from the previous year) and in rice (400 000 tonnes less, or 25 per cent down from the previous year). “www.fao.org/giews/english/shortnews/dprk080325.htm

The Socialist Worker points out that, “This growing hunger has provoked resistance around the world. [There have been] food riots in Burkina Faso , Morocco and Egypt . These follow protests in Senegal and Mauritania earlier this year.” www.socialistworker.co.uk/art.php?id=14293

More food riots and political unrest are predicted, as has occurred in recent weeks in Pakistan , Indonesia and Egypt . In Egypt , shortages of government-subsidised bread recently triggered strikes, demonstrations and violence in which seven people died. www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-food1apr01,0,5185698.story www.ft.com/cms/s/0/a35318f0-fb80-11dc-8c3e-000077b07658,dwp_uuid=a955630e-3603-11dc-ad42-0000779fd2ac.htm

The Washington Post reports that “ Mexico is in the grip of the worst tortilla crisis in its modern history. Dramatically rising international corn prices, spurred by demand for the grain-based fuel ethanol, have led to expensive tortillas. That, in turn, has led to lower sales for vendors […] and angry protests by consumers.” www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/26/AR2007012601896_pf.html.

In Argentina , the new government of Cristina Kirschner is facing its first major social challenge as farmers blocked roads to protest large export tax hikes. As reported by IPS News, “Some analysts say the tax hike is aimed at keeping domestic grain prices artificially low and ensuring domestic supplies. Because international commodity prices are so high, without the tax on exports, there is little incentive to sell soybeans and other grains on the domestic market.” http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=41694

In the Philippines , government officials are encouraging fast-food restaurants to cut rice servings in half, and exports have been suspended. The Philippines is not alone; Egypt and other traditional exporters of agricultural commodities have either curtailed or suspended exports to ensure food is available domestically at affordable prices. http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/world/view/20080401-127611/Tensions-rise-as-world-faces-food-crisis

And sometimes, as in Zimbabwe , food crises cannot be entirely blamed on the weather. Here, misguided agricultural policies and widespread corruption have resulted in decreases in agricultural production and disruptions in food-aid distribution. www.csmonitor.com/2002/1112/p01s03-woaf.html http://groups.yahoo.com/group/millenniumplus5ngonetwork/message/923

In his speech at the Center for Global Development in Washington , D.C. on April 2, 2008 , Robert Zoellick, President of the World Bank Group, provided a striking assessment of the magnitude of the global food crisis: according to World Bank estimates, “33 countries around the world face potential social unrest because of the acute hike in food and energy prices. For these countries, where food comprises from half to three-quarters of consumption, there is no margin for survival.” http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/NEWS/0,,contentMDK:21711307~pagePK:34370~piPK:42770~theSitePK:4607,00.html

The steep increases in agricultural commodity prices is also affecting FAO´s World Food Programme to the point of issuing an emergency appeal to donor countries to come up with an additional US$500 million within the next few weeks, or risk rationing food deliveries to the poorest of the poor around the world, some 73 million people who desperately depend on FAO’s food assistance for their daily survival.

For donor countries, 500 million dollars is a drop in the bucket. Just the calamitous war in Iraq is costing about US$8 billion each month, http://zfacts.com/p/447.html (Other estimates put that figure at US$14 billion.) To stem the current US financial crisis, there has been no hesitation on the part the US Federal Reserve, the UK and the European Union to inject billions upon billions of dollars into the financial markets over the last few weeks. www.wsws.org/articles/2008/mar2008/fed-m13.shtml , http://money.cnn.com/2008/03/11/news/economy/fedauction/index.htm?postversion=2008031115Yet, $500 million to avert a shameful humanitarian food crisis is apparently hard to come by. www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/13/AR2008031303347.html

The 73 million people who are the poorest in the world have not benefited from market globalisation, and have contributed little, if anything to the current climate change chaos, since they have long been unable to reach even the first step on the ladder to development. In this context, the failure of rich countries to respond immediately to FAO’s appeal amounts to nothing short of collective moral turpitude. It is also politically shortsighted in the extreme.

Considering the likely tragic consequences of the current global food crisis, it is incumbent on developed countries to address this challenge head-on with the urgency it deserves. In this age of unparalleled wealth accumulation in Northern countries, it is simply unacceptable to abandon the poor and look the other way. The final price of a stingy approach or a business-as-usual attitude in this desperate situation would be far higher.

Along with the extraordinary levels of human suffering this situation is likely to thrust upon tens or even hundreds of millions of destitute people, we, the peoples and nations of the rich North, would henceforth have to live with the heavy moral burden of losing our own sense of humanity. Are we ready to pay that high a price?

But feeding the millions of hungry people is not enough. World leaders need to consider the complex combination of causes that have brought us to this sorry predicament. We now know that hunger, poverty, development, climate change, education, gender inequality, health, water, sanitation, globalisation, trade, aid, debt relief and investment are different sides of the same grand challenge facing humanity at the beginning of the 21st century: How can we all live dignified lives and develop sustainable communities within the carrying capacity of the Earth so that future generations have a chance to do the same?

Feeding the hungry is certainly the most urgent task ahead of us. But securing the full implementation of the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) is a close second. While progress - however uneven - has been made in emerging economies such as China , India or Brazil , as well as other developing countries, many of the poorest countries, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa, are falling by the wayside. There is general consensus that reaching the MDGs is well within our means. There is absolutely no excuse to fail.

Implementing the MDGs is not enough, however. The MDGs must be significantly exceeded past the 2015 target date so that progress is sustained towards broader development in poor countries, the only sure way to avoid a relapse into the current conditions.

Furthermore, economic progress in both developed and developing countries must henceforth be sustainable. The current economic system and the unregulated financial and market globalisation on which it is based must be transformed in order to avoid greater social divisions between rich and poor, as well as an increasing, and increasingly dangerous, deterioration of our environment. Thus climate change mitigation and adaptation need to be mainstreamed into national development plans. There can be no progress on climate change without sustainable development, including the eradication of wasteful consumption in developed countries, substantial increases in official development aid (ODA), and climate adaptation assistance to developing countries. Fair trade, including the dismantling of agricultural subsidies and other distorting trade barriers in developed countries, is another essential element of sustainable development, as is the further extension of debt cancellation for developing and middle-income countries. National debt is deemed unsustainable if it compromises the attainment of the MDGs and the further sustainable development of poor countries. Finally, the processes of ODA, debt cancellation and fair trade must be carried forward in a coherent, sustained, democratic and transparent manner, including the full involvement of civil society.

Only under these favourable circumstances does humanity have a clear chance, perhaps the last one, to provide a more just, humane and equitable future for our children and the children of our children.

In solidarity,

Vicente García-Delgado, CIVICUS´ UN Representative

Please send your comments to CIVICUSUN@aol.com or editor@civicus.org