Egypt: Food security and food aid

This article examines the multifaceted notions of food security and food aid through a case-study of a rather exceptional country in political terms - Egypt. Egypt has achieved a high degree of food security with lessened reliance on domestic production and has become one of the largest recipients of cereal food aid. The analysis considers significant questions about the interdependence of food security and food aid, the maintainability of an externally dependent food system, its implicit resource costs and its internal distribution and equity impact.     

Food prices and food policy analysis in LDCs

Opinions have been polarized on the role of food prices in economic development. Structuralist analysis argues that food prices are irrelevant to long-term development, but neoclassical theorists believe that food prices may be a critical factor. This article attempts to reconcile these views, reports on the differential impacts of food prices in Indonesia and discusses the role of food prices in the policy process.     

Food aid,domestic policy and food security: Contrasting experiences from South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa

Food aid, both for short-term emergency relief and as program food aid that helps address medium-term food “deficits”, is often a major component of food security strategies in developing countries. This study reviews the experience with food aid of four major recipients of food aid (India, Bangladesh, Ethiopia and Zambia) regarding food production, trade, markets, consumption and safety nets, as well as the policy responses to food emergencies. The widely varying experiences of the study countries suggest that food aid that supports building of production and market enhancing infrastructure, is timed to avoid adverse price effects on producers, and is targeted to food insecure households can play a positive role in enhancing food security. However, food aid is not the only, or in many cases, the most efficient means of addressing food insecurity. In many cases private markets can more effectively address shortfalls in food availability and cash transfers may be a viable alternative to food transfers in-kind.     

The domestic determinants of US food aid policy

This study presents empirical analysis of US food aid flows as evidence of the strong and stable relationship between commodity producer interests and policy-makers during a 35 yr period. Whereas most foreign aid research centers on the distribution of aid among recipient countries, this study focuses on the determinants of the supply of food aid made available by the donor country. I conduct time series regression analysis of total US food aid shipments, as well as separate analyses of two key commodities, wheat and rice. Several key findings emerge: (1) There is a consistent relationship between commodity producer interests and US food aid policy. (2) There is a strong relationship between commodity stocks and food aid shipments, especially during the years when stocks were the greatest. (3) US food aid policy-making is highly incremental. These findings, taken together with the lack of a strong relationship between grain production in poor countries and US food aid shipments, belie official rhetoric emphasizing the growing humanitarian objectives of the program over time. In the case of rice, I find a strong relationship between aid flows and US involvement in the Vietnam War.     

Radical food for thought : Food policy in Cuba and Nicaragua

This article looks at the differences and similarities between Cuban and Nicaraguan agrarian and food policies. The fundamental challenge facing the two countries has been to ensure a supply of basic foodstuffs to a population where demand outstrips supply. The solution, chosen by Cuba and forced upon Nicaragua, has been to establish a system of food rationing. Finally, the policies of Cuba and Nicaragua (successes and mistakes included) are compared with those of Mexico where, in 1980, a food policy (SAM) was launched to achieve many of the same objectives.     

After the famine: food aid policy and management issues in sub-Saharan Africa

The large amount of food aid that was required to meet Africa's emergency food situation resulted in the postponement of some fundamental decisions that were being taken about food aid use in sub-Saharan Africa. Now the donor community and recipient governments are again giving priority to integrating food aid with other available resources in order to meet longer-term food policy and wider development objectives. This paper looks at some of the policy and management issues which need to be addressed if the effectiveness of food aid assistance is to be improved in the current African context. Shortages of locally qualified personnel to administer project food aid have proven to be a major bottleneck in most sub-Saharan countries. Most sub-Saharan states receive food aid from a variety of sources: multilateral, bilateral and a few private-voluntary organizations. As a result, countervailing priorities are set by the donors themselves and give rise to conflicts. The recent drought and famine conditions have compounded an image problem in which food aid is narrowly identified by recipient governments as a project resource to be used primarily for nutrition interventions and for the rural sector. The image problem often limits project selection and overlooks innovative uses of food aid. Many sub-Saharan countries are starting to acquire considerable amounts of counterpart funds from program food aid. However, their use is not coherently integrated with the total aid flow. Multi-year programming has emerged as a management issue which has unnecessarily divided the food aid donor community. The fundamental issue is flexibility in programming, not multi-year programming. The major policy objective now facing the food aid donor community and recipient countries is how to lower emergency allocations while simultaneously increasing project and program aid. Most nonfood-aid donor agencies and their constituent bodies do not treat food aid as a valid economic resource, thereby undermining its effectiveness. The eventual success of food aid use in Africa may be a function of the recipient governments and other major donor and financial organizations.     

Socioeconomic conditions and farm policy in Bangladesh

Bangladesh is one of the youngest and poorest countries on earth. Overpopulation and searcity of land are among the most critical problems confronting the nation, which has basically an agricultural economy. As yet, the country has no national farm policy. This article describes the sociocconomic condition of the country, and examines the merits and drawbacks of the existing system of agriculture. Critical problems are pin pointed and possible solutions are suggested.     

Food aid and household food security in a conflict situation: Empirical evidence from Northern Uganda

It is well-established that armed political conflict has a detrimental effect on food security and household welfare: conflict induces food insecurity by reducing own food production, access to food through the market, and various other resources to sustain healthy and productive lives. One way of mitigating these adverse effects is to provide food aid. In this study we evaluate the impact of a World Food Programme intervention on household food security and asset protection among conflict-affected households in Northern Uganda. We employ propensity score matching to estimate the average treatment effect on food expenditure, food consumption and preservation of assets using a sample of 1265 observations from a 2008 survey. Our results reveal that the operation’s system of targeting beneficiaries was effective and in accordance with programme objectives. Food aid considerably reduced food expenditure of households, suggesting that recipients were net buyers of food, and that the food aid received was effectively consumed within the household. A corresponding positive effect on non-food expenditure was not found. Our results also indicate that food aid was effective in increasing meals consumed and in avoiding distress destocking of low value assets, but, surprisingly, only for male headed households.     

Wheat markets,food aid and food security in Afghanistan

In Afghanistan, after two decades of civil strife and successive droughts from 1998 to 2002, large inflows of food aid, distributed mainly to returning refugees and through food for work programs, have helped offset production shortfalls of wheat, the country’s major staple. At the same time, private international trade from neighboring countries, especially Pakistan, has also played a major role in augmenting wheat supply and stabilizing prices.     

Food aid: pitfalls and potential

This article poses the question of whether it is possible to use food aid to meet short-run needs while supporting and not undermining the achievement of long-term goals of self-reliance at the household and national levels. Often either some degree of self-reliance is sacrificed or people will suffer malnutrition. Food aid may be used to generate employment for low income families (food-for-work schemes), to reduce food prices during shortages by increasing the supply, and it can be delivered to target groups as a direct entitlement. What happens to food after delivery is important: often it goes to family members not targeted. Other factors (e.g. measles) affect nutritional status. Food aid must often continue for long periods to avoid nutritional regression. The stage in distribution at which food is used is important; e.g. a measles epidemic might affect the consumption but not the supply of food, or poor targeting might benefit families who do not need it. Complementary actions may improve conditions; for example, if food is sold, increasing income improves the situation. A problem with provision of food is depression of local prices, reducing incentives to produce food locally. Most food aid does not increase demand, and in fact if the effect is to change tastes away from local products demand may be reduced. The effect on demand depends on the type of aid scheme, the timing and duration, and the locality of the project. Most objectives are better achieved by the use of cash aid, which promotes rather than weakens local food producers' incentives, reduces transport and storage, redistributes food, does not affect taste, and adds income by contributing to local decentralized transport. Food aid is a good temporary intervention, but cash aid should be used in the long term.     

Food and nutrition policy in Malta

Food and nutrition policy in Malta was officially endorsed by Government in the late 1980s. The urgency stemmed from the increasingly preoccupying health situation of the Maltese population characterized by the higher rates of cardiovascular diseases and neoplasms. Although a small island in the central Mediterranean, Malta does not have a diet that is characteristic of the rest of the Mediterranean region. The main aim of this paper is to outline the main characteristics of Maltese food consumption and the constraints encountered in the process of implementing the food and nutrition policy. The final section provides some recommendations that could also be considered in other Mediterranean countries that are in the process of designing or implementing similar policies. On the eve of the 21st century and in light of Malta's eventual accession in the European Union, several fundamental measures still need to be introduced and enforced, the most important being those concerning food safety and quality.     

National food strategies and food policy reform

National food strategies, sponsored by the World Food Council, are intended to produce policy blueprints for improving food production in poor countries. International experience with agricultural development discloses wide agreement on national and local policy specifics which should have priority. However, the absence of research into the political attitudes and processes which foster consensus on goals and the reconciliation of competing desirable policies, eg short term v long term, equity v efficiency, may impede the desired policy reform.     

Fertiliser and food policy in LDCs

At a time of fertiliser scarcity and high prices it is important to know more about the poorly understood relationships between fertiliser and food production. Fertiliser price increases are reflected in increased prices for food which poses a dilemma for governments attempting to increase food production and minimise rising prices. Through the use of a simple macro-model these relationships are discussed and the policy insights they offer. Impact of price receives special attention because of its frequent use as a policy instrument.     

Food inspection and EEC policy

A European study of the organisation of efficient food inspection systems is needed before more radical changes in national inspection systems are attempted through harmonisation in the EEC. The author discusses food inspection in the Netherlands, the present state of harmonisation and the problems arising from it, paying particular attention to meat and meat products. Difficulties arise when veterinarians are given exclusive responsibility for policing regulations.     

Nutrition planning and food policy

The development priorities of recent years may be a cause of malnutrition amongst the poorest groups. To achieve more adequate planning, elements of an interdisciplinary approach are suggested in this article. These could be characterised as identification of risk groups, analysis of consumption patterns, continued monitoring, and understanding of the effects on individual behaviour of social, cultural, educational and economic forces.     

Somalia: Food aid in a long-term emergency

From the mid-1970s onwards Somalia has suffered from a number of emergencies — drought, population disruptions, political conflict and minor climatic problems. This article examines the impact of such continuous flows of food aid as a response to such emergencies, both in terms of the recipient government's attempts to stabilize the domestic economy and of donor governments' activities.     

Towards a global food aid compact

Existing international mechanisms governing food aid are dysfunctional and outdated. A reasonably straightforward alternative could readily rectify the problem of an ineffective global food aid governance system. In this paper, we outline the basic design of such a Global Food Aid Compact.