1) INTRODUCTION

Two in three of the world's 150 malnourished children live in Asia. This level of vulnerability corresponds to indices of 'food security' in public discourses on nutrition and health. However, there are many ways of defining food security "When all people at all time have both physical and economic access to sufficient food to meet their dietary needs for a productive and healthy life." Although this is a generally accepted definition of food security, a more elaborate alternative definition is provided by !.". "waminathan. #ood security is thus defined as "Providing physical and economic access to balanced diets and safe drinking water to all people at all times." #ood and water are two basic health necessities. #ood security is the term commonly used by policy ma$ers to describe the availability of nutrition for different populations. #or populations that do not produce their own food, cost is usually the prohibitive factor in obtaining ade%uate nutrition. "econdary factors include $nowledge of nutrition, cultural&religious beliefs, and the availability of food items for purchase. 'n rural communities, which are able to produce their own food, vectors of globali(ation acting on livestoc$ and agriculture are more li$ely to affect health. !ore often, people are affected by a combination of these factors. As with other health determinants, levels of food security are ine)tricable from global and local political economies.

1.1) GLOBALIZATION
Globalization describes the process by which regional economies societies an! c"lt"res have become integrated through a global networ$ of political ideas through communication, transportation, and trade. The term is most closely associated with the term economic globali(ation the integration of national economies into the international economy through tra!e
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#oreign !irect

in$estment ca%ital #lo&s migration t'e s%rea! o# tec'nolog( an! militar( %resence.

1.)) *OOD +,CURIT*oo! sec"rit( refers to the availability of food and one's access to it. A household is considered food*secure when its occupants do not live in hunger or fear of starvation. According to the .orl! Reso"rces Instit"te, global per capita food production has been increasing substantially for the past several decades.

1./) *OOD +,CURIT- IN INDIA

*oo! sec"rit( has been a ma+or developmental ob+ective in 'ndia since the beginning of planning. 'ndia achieved self*sufficiency in food grains in the 1,-0.s and has sustained it since then. /ut the achievement of food grain security at the national level did not percolate down to households and the level of chronic food insecurity is still high. 0ver 115 million 'ndians remain chronically under nourished. In )000101, about half of the rural children below five years of age suffered from malnutrition and 203 of adults suffered from chronic energy deficiency. "uch a high level of wasting away of human resources should be a cause for concern. 'n recent years, there has been a shift in policy focus towards household level food security and per capita food energy inta$e is ta$en as a measure of food security. The government has been implementing a wide range of nutrition intervention programmers. for achieving food security at the household and individual levels. The 2"blic Distrib"tion +(stem 32D+) supplies food items, such as food grains and sugar, at administered prices through fair price shops. There have been a range of food*for*wor$ and other wage employment programmers.. Another approach adopted by the government is to target women and children directly4 this includes mid*day meal programme for school going children and supplementary nutrition programme for children and women. According to 5"", per capita cereal consumption has been declining since the early 1,-0.s despite a significant rise in per capita cereal production. This can be attributed to changes in consumer tastes, from food to non*food items and, within food group, from coarse to fine cereals. The decline in cereal consumption has been greater in rural areas, where the improvement in rural infrastructure has made other food and non*food items available to rural households.
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The reality is that the bottom 603 of the population has not shown any improvement in cereal and calorie inta$e in the rural and urban areas despite a significant improvement in their real per capita e)penditure. Their per capita calorie inta$e 71800 to 1-009 falls short of the re%uired norm. 'ntra*family food distribution is also ine%uitable in the rural households and the pre*school children get much less than their physiological needs as compared to adult males and females. !icronutrient deficiency is common among people. The most important challenge is to increase the energy inta$e of the bottom 603 of the population and at the same time facilitate diet diversification to meet micronutrient deficiency. The food gap can be met from the e)isting food grain stoc$s in the medium term and by increasing their purchasing power in the long run through increasing +ob opportunities. The micronutrient deficiency can be rectified through supplementary nutrition and supply of fortified food. There is also a need to improve the efficiency of the various food schemes initiated by the government and ma$e it more available and free of corruption and urban bias. INDIA at present finds itself in the midst of a parado)ical situation endemic mass*hunger coe)isting with the mounting food grain stoc$s. The food grain stoc$s available with the *oo! Cor%oration o# In!ia 3*CI) stand at an all time high of 81 million tonnes against an annual re%uirement of around 10 million tonnes for ensuring food security. "till, an estimated 100 million people are underfed and 50 million on the brin$ of starvation, resulting in starvation deaths. The parado) lies in the inherent flaws in the e)isting policy and implementation bottlenec$s. C'allenges a'ea! 'ndia's food security policy has a laudable ob+ective to ensure availability of food grains to the common people at an affordable price and it has enabled the poor to have access to food where none e)isted. The policy has focused essentially on growth in agriculture production 7once 'ndia used to import food grains9 and on support price for procurement and maintenance of rice and wheat stoc$s. The responsibility for procuring and stoc$ing of food grains lies with the #:' and for distribution with the 2"blic Distrib"tion +(stem 32D+).

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4inim"m s"%%ort %rice 342+)5 The #:' procures food grains from the farmers at the government announced !";. The !"; should ideally be at a level where the procurement by #:' and the off ta$e from it are balanced. However, under continuous pressure from the powerful farmers lobby, the government has been raising the !"; and it has now become higher than what the mar$et offers to the farmers. The !"; has now become more of a procurement price rather than being a support price to ensure minimum production. The rich farmers and traders have cornered most of the benefits under the support price policy. The small farmers lac$ access to #:' and being steeped in poverty resort to distress selling.

In%"t s"bsi!ies5 0ver the years, to $eep food grain prices at affordable levels for the poor, the government has been imposing restrictions on free trade in food grains. This has suppressed food grain prices in the local mar$et, where the farmers sell a part of their produce and as compensation4 they are provided subsidies on agriculture inputs such as fertili(ers, power and water. These subsidies have now reached unsustainable levels and also led to large scale inefficiencies in the use of these scarce inputs.

Iss"e %rice5 The people are divided into two categories Belo& 2o$ert( Line 3B2L) and Abo$e 2o$ert( Line 3A2L) with the issue price being different for each category. However, this categorisation is imperfect and a number of deserving poor have been e)cluded from the /;< fold. !oreover, some of the so called A;< slips bac$ to /;< say with failure of even one crop and are administratively difficult to accommodate such shifts.

4ar6et !eman!5 The ;=" entitlement meets only around 15 per cent of the total food grain re%uirement of a /;< family and it has to depend more on the mar$et for meeting its needs. Also with the A;< families essentially opting for mar$et purchases, the mar$et demand has risen. However, the massive #:' procurement has crowded out the mar$et supplies, resulting in a relative rise in rates. The poor are the most hurt in this bargain.

*oo!1#or1&or6 sc'eme5 The government is running food*for*wor$ scheme to give purchasing power to the poor who get paid for their labour in cash and food grains. The scheme is, however, not successful, since the :entral >overnment is re%uired to
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meet only the food grain component and the cash strapped "tates are e)pected to meet the cash component 7almost 50 per cent of the total e)penditure9. 'n many "tates the scheme has even failed to ta$e off. +"ggeste! recommen!ations There is a need to shift from the e)isting e)pensive, inefficient and corruption ridden institutional arrangements to those that will ensure cheap delivery of re%uisite %uality grains in a transparent manner and are self*targeting. *"t"re mar6et an! #ree tra!e5 The present system mar$ed by input subsidies and high !"; should be phased out. To avoid wide fluctuations in prices and prevent distress selling by small farmers, futures mar$et can be encouraged. 'mproved communication systems through the use of information technology may help farmers get a better deal for their produce. :rop insurance schemes can be promoted with government meeting a ma+or part of the insurance premium to protect the farmers against natural calamities. *oo!1#or1e!"cation %rogramme5 To achieve cent per cent literacy, the food security need can be productively lin$ed to increased enrolment in schools. ?ith the phasing out of ;=", food coupons may be issued to poor people depending on their entitlement. 4o!i#ie! #oo!1#or1&or6 sc'eme7 !irect s"bsi!ies5 ?ith rationalisation of input subsidies and !";, the :entral >overnment will be left with sufficient funds, which may be given as grants to each "tate depending on the number of poor. The "tate government will in turn distribute the grants to the village bodies, which can decide on the list of essential infrastructure, wor$ the village needs and allow every needy villager to contribute through his labour and get paid in food coupons and cash. Comm"nit( grain storage ban6s5 The #:' can be gradually dismantled and procurement decentralised through the creation of food grain ban$s in each bloc$& village of the district, from which people may get subsidised food grains against food coupons. The food coupons can be numbered serially to avoid frauds. The grain
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storage facilities can be created within two years under the e)isting rural development schemes and the initial lot of grains can come from the e)isting #:' stoc$s. 'f culturally acceptable, the possibility of relatively cheap coarse grains, li$e ba+ara and ragi and nutritional grains li$e millets and pulses meeting the nutritional needs of the people can also be e)plored. ,n'ancing agric"lt"re %ro!"cti$it(5 The government, through investments in vital agriculture infrastructure, credit lin$ages and encouraging the use of latest techni%ues, motivate each district& bloc$ to achieve local self*sufficiency in food grain production. However, instead of concentrating only on rice or wheat, the food crop with a potential in the area must be encouraged. :reation of necessary infrastructure li$e irrigation facilities will also simulate private investments in agriculture.

)) LITRATUR, R,8I,.
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).1) *OOD +,CURITThe ?orld #ood "ummit of 1,,8 defined food security as e)isting @when all people at all times have access to sufficient, safe, nutritious food to maintain a healthy and active lifeA. :ommonly, the concept of food security is defined as including both physical and economic access to food that meets people's dietary needs as well as their food preferences. 'n many countries, health problems related to dietary e)cess are an ever increasing threat, 'n fact, malnutrion and food borne diarrhea are become double burden. #ood security is built on three pillars

*oo! a$ailabilit(5 sufficient %uantities of food available on a consistent basis. *oo! access5 having sufficient resources to obtain appropriate foods for a nutritious diet.

*oo! "se5 appropriate use based on $nowledge of basic nutrition and care, as well as ade%uate water and sanitation.

#ood security is a comple) sustainable development issue, lin$ed to health through malnutrition, but also to sustainable economic development, environment, and trade. There is a great deal of debate around food security with some arguing that

There is enough food in the world to feed everyone ade%uately4 the problem is distribution. #uture food needs can * or cannot * be met by current levels of production. 5ational food security is paramount * or no longer necessary because of global trade. >lobali(ation may * or may not * lead to the persistence of food insecurity and poverty in rural communities.

'ssues such as whether households get enough food, how it is distributed within the household and whether that food fulfils the nutrition needs of all members of the household show that food security is clearly lin$ed to health. Agriculture remains the largest employment sector in most developing countries and international agriculture agreements are crucial to a country's food security. "ome critics
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argue that trade liberali(ation may reduce a country's food security by reducing agricultural employment levels. :oncern about this has led a group of .orl! Tra!e Organization 3.TO) member states to recommend that current negotiations on agricultural agreements allow developing countries to re*evaluate and raise tariffs on $ey products to protect national food security and employment. They argue that ?T0 agreements, by pushing for the liberali(ation of crucial mar$ets, are threatening the food security of whole communities. .ORLD *OOD DA.orl! *oo! Da( is celebrated every year around the world on 19 October in honor of the date of the founding of the *oo! an! Agric"lt"re Organization of the Unite! Nations in 1:;<. 't is also the #ood Bngineer day. The ?orld #ood =ay theme for 1010 is CDnited Against HungerC. "ince 1,E1, ?orld #ood =ay has adopted a different theme each year, in order to highlight areas needed for action and provide a common focus. The theme for 1008 was C'nvest in agriculture for food securityC. 't was chosen because only investment in agriculture F together with support for education and health F will turn this situation around. The bul$ of that investment will have to come from the private sector, with public investment playing a crucial role, especially in view of its facilitating and stimulating effect on private investment. 'n spite of the importance of agriculture as the driving force in the economies of many developing countries, this vital sector is fre%uently starved of investment. 'n particular, foreign aid to agriculture has shown mar$ed declines over the past 10 years. #A0 says this year's event will help pave the way for the ?orld "ummit on #ood "ecurity, which it is hosting in 5ovember. T=,4,+ -ear 1010 100, 100E T'emes Dnited against Hunger Achieving food security in times of crisis ?orld #ood "ecurity the :hallenges of :limate :hange and /ioenergy
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1001008 1005 1002 1006 1001 1001 1000 1,,, 1,,E 1,,1,,8 1,,5 1,,2 1,,6 1,,1 1,,1 1,,0 1,E, 1,,E 1,E1,E8 1,E5 1,E2 1,E6 1,E1 1,E1

The Gight to #ood 'nvesting in agriculture for food security Agriculture and 'ntercultural =ialogue /iodiversity for #ood "ecurity ?or$ing Together for an 'nternational Alliance Against Hunger ?ater "ource of #ood "ecurity #ight Hunger to Geduce ;overty A !illennium #ree from Hunger Houth Against Hunger ?omen #eed The ?orld 'nvesting in #ood "ecurity #ighting Hunger and !alnutrition #ood #or All ?ater #or <ife Harvesting 5ature's =iversity #ood and 5utrition Trees for <ife #ood for the #uture #ood and the Bnvironment Gural Houth "mall #armers #ishermen and #ishing :ommunities Gural ;overty ?omen in Agriculture #ood "ecurity #ood :omes #irst #ood :omes #irst

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EVENT Bvents ta$e place in over 150 countries to mar$ ?orld #ood =ay. /elow are e)amples of events held across the world in recent years. ,"ro%e 'n Ital(, ministries, universities, research agencies, international agencies and 5>0s have organi(ed many conferences as well as e)hibitions and symposia. The 'talian !inistry of Agriculture and #orestry ;olicies organi(ed a meeting which focused on women's rights in rural areas in 1005. 'n German(, the #ederal !inistry of :onsumer ;rotection, #ood and Agriculture have all become involved via press conferences. "panish television has been active in broadcasting events. #A0 >oodwill Ambassador F "panish soccer star Gaul F has ta$en part in events and helped highlight food*security issues across his country. The U> #ood >roup has also been active through conferences and media broadcasts. 'n the emerging economies of Bastern Burope F i.e., Albania, Armenia, :roatia, :(ech Gepublic, >eorgia, Hungary, !acedonia, !oldova, "erbia and !ontenegro, and "lova$ Gepublic F a variety of activities have been held. 'n ="ngar(, renowned e)perts have given presentations in the Hungarian Agricultural !useum and #A0, and ?#= medals have been awarded to well*$nown Hungarian e)perts by the #A0 "ub*Gegional Gepresentative. 0n behalf of the Holy "ee, ;opes Iohn ;aul '' and /enedict JK' have sent an annual message for food producers and consumers on ?orld #ood =ay. A#rica Angola celebrated ?#= in 1005 through the 2th #orum on Gural ?omen, while in B"r"n!i the second Kice*;resident planted potatoes to provide a symbolic e)ample about food production. 'n Central A#rican Re%"blic, the ;resident of the Gepublic has inaugurated a bridge at /oda to coincide with ?orld #ood =ay, ma$ing the agricultural production area more accessible.
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'n C'a!, thousands of people have attended debates, conferences and activities including theatre, films, fol$ dance, and visits to pro+ect sites and visits by agricultural companies. 'n G'ana, the !inistry of #ood and Agriculture has hosted a food security conference, while Namibia has run an awareness campaign through national media. ,g(%t has hosted a #orum on nutrition issues. 4orocco and T"nisia have held seminars and e)hibitions. Asia The >overnment of Bangla!es' has been involved through organi(ing a food festival4 in C'ina in 1005, celebrations were organi(ed in Lu+ing :ity, where numerous ethnical minorities live, by the !inistry of Agriculture and the >overnment of Lu+ing :ity, with the participation of a number of senior officials of the >overnment. 'n the Democratic 2eo%le?s Re%"blic o# >orea, seminars have been held and visits made to various pro+ect sites. The !inistry of Agriculture of In!onesia has in the past organi(ed a ma+or #ood B)po in /andung, ?est Iava, while a #armers' and #ishermen's ?or$shop of 5>0s was held in /ali. 'n Armenia, staff from the !inistry of Agriculture, non*governmental organi(ations, Armenian "tate Agriculture Dniversity, the donor community, international organi(ations, and the mass media have participated in the ?orld #ood =ay ceremony. 'n A#g'anistan, representatives of !inistries, embassies, D5 agencies, 'nternational #inancial 0rgani(ations, 5ational and 'nternational 5>0s and #A0 staff have attended the ?orld #ood =ay ceremony. 'n C(%r"s, special ceremonies have been organi(ed in primary and secondary schools, where teachers e)plained the significance of ?orld #ood =ay. Latin America 'n C'ile, e)hibitions of indigenous food products have been prepared by local communities. 'n Argentina, senior officials of the >overnment, academics, international organi(ations and the press have participated in the main ceremony. 'n 4e@ico in 1005, a 5ational :ampaign for a C!e)ico without HungerC was held, with the involvement and support of civil society
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and students. 'n C"ba, producers have been able to e)change views and e)periences at an agricultural fair. The media strongly supports awareness campaigns on ?orld #ood =ay4 for e)ample in 8enez"ela there has been national coverage of events.

).)) GLOBALI+ATION IN *OOD +,CURITDi##ering &a(s in &'ic' globalization im%acts iss"es o# *oo! +ec"rit( 1. Can global #oo! %ro!"ction 6ee% "% &it' a gro&ing %o%"lationA =o&A A ma+or theme of !onsanto and other biotech corporations is that genetic engineering of food is necessary to help solve world hunger by increasing agricultural yields. They believe that greater global food production must be targeted as a $ey mechanism of food security. These people as$ Can &orl! #oo! %ro!"ction 6ee% "% &it' increasing !eman!A Or 'a$e &e reac'e! t'e limits o# &'at t'e a$ailable c"lti$able lan! &ater an! (iel! im%ro$ing tec'nologiesA @A =oubly >reen GevolutionA @Gemembering the >reen Gevolution. @>rowing =emand F :an we #eed Bight /illionMA @:roplandsA ). =o& to ens"re !i##erent %o%"lation?s access to a!eB"ate #oo!A /eyond affirming the basic need for food security, many argue that increasing global food production does not guarantee ade%uate access to food at either the household or national level. ?idespread hunger e)ists today in a conte)t of a global oversupply of food. 0ften, people go hungry because they either have no means to produce their own food nor earn enough money to buy it, not because of a global shortage of food. The .orl! *oo! +"mmit 31::9) identified access to food, rather than amounts of food produced globally, as the $ey issue in food security. !any proponents of developing agricultural scientific $nowledge.s believe that technological innovations are sure investments in food security. /. =o& !oes t'e ?tec'nologization? o# #oo! %ro!"ction intersect &it' global '"man rig'tsA
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As agricultural technologies become more globali(ed, the %uestion of legal claims over certain practices has complicated the evaluation of the effectiveness of certain agricultural innovations in furthering global access to food.

)./) CON8,RTING T=, B,N,*IT+ O* GLOBALIZATION INTO *OOD +,CURITA ma+or element in ensuring food security is increased incomes of poor people. The marginal propensity of the poor to spend on food is high. The primary means by which low* income people increase their incomes and hence their food security is through increased employment. TABL, 15 In!iaCs Ann"al Gro&t' Rate Hear 1,51*-, 1,E0*,1 1,,1*08 >=; 6.8 5.8 8.5 ;er capita income 1.6 6.5 2.-

't is agricultural growth that reduces poverty, and agriculture.s impact is dependent on growth rates that are considerably higher than population growth rates. The latter are indirect, wor$ing through their impact on the demand for rural non*tradable that occupy a high proportion of the total labour force and the bul$ of the poor, food insecure. The great ma+ority of persons below the poverty line wor$ in the rural non*farm sector. They include many with a small tract of land that is insufficient to provide minimum subsistence. The rural non*farm sector uses very little capital and hence is highly employment*intensive. 't produces goods and services that are dominantly non*tradable, that is they are dependent on local sources of demand. Agricultural growth is the underlying source of that demand growth. That the impact of agriculture on poverty is indirect is consistent with the three or four year lag noted before the full impact on poverty. That it wor$s through the rural non*farm consumer*goods sector is consistent with the finding that agriculture has little impact on poverty decline when land distribution is highly une%ual* usually associated with absentee landlords who have %uite different consumption patterns from those of peasant farmers.
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>lobali(ation re%uires constant reduction in costs through research and its application as well as constantly declining transaction costs through constantly increasing investment in rural infrastructure. ?ithout these a nation cannot compete it is no accident that it is African nations that suffer the most from declining commodity prices. Belo& t'e "rgent reB"irements #or lo&1income co"ntries to bene#it #rom globalization are %resente!. 1) O%ening t'e econom( to tra!e an! mar6et #orces The benefits of globali(ation flow from trade. B)ports re%uire imports, but trade restrictions tend to drive up the cost of e)ports through higher costs of vital inputs and technology. :omparative advantage needs to be seen for each component of a supply chain, not +ust for the final product. :ustoms inefficiencies and corruption and a myriad other bureaucratic constraints are +ust as stifling as tariffs and all need to be dealt with. However, opening to global mar$et forces does little good if costs are not being constantly reduced. )) In$esting in agric"lt"ral researc' an! !issemination <ow*income countries need to invest far more than at present in agricultural research and technology dissemination. ?ithout such investment, opening mar$ets will do little good for agriculture and hence for poverty reduction and food security. 'dentifying supporting mechanisms such as research and training to minimise the e)clusion of small resource poor farmers from value chains is also important. /) In$esting in r"ral in#rastr"ct"re >iven the deplorable state of rural infrastructure in low*income countries, massive investments are needed. 'nvestment in other economic ris$ reduction services such as insurance, irrigation, storage are also li$ely to be re%uired. <ac$ of such investment gradually shifts comparative advantage bac$ towards subsistence production at very low* income and little multiplier to the rural non*farm sector. ;) *acilitating %ri$ate sector acti$it(

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;rivate sector investors in low*income countries tend to search for %uic$ turnover, particularly in trade. 'nitially, governments have to play a role in assisting the private sector by participating in the costs of mar$et analysis, assisting in the development of trade associations that can diagnose needs, developing and enforcing grades and standards, meeting health regulations of high*income importers, diagnosing special niche mar$ets and carrying out analysis of constraints. 'n the case of most low*income countries, such efforts are sometimes financed by foreign aid programs, in a sense acting as public sector. "uch efforts need to facilitate private sector action and gradually low*income countries need to play that role themselves, rather than relying on foreign aid.

).;) TRAD, LIBRALIZATION AND *OOD +,CURITDsing #A0 and ?orld /an$ data, KaldNs and !c:alla classify 12E developing countries according to a variety of criteria. #or the purpose at hand, the following two classifications are the most useful

Classi#ication accor!ing to income The ?orld /an$ divides these countries into Lo& Income Co"ntries 3LIC), Lo&er 4i!!le Income Co"ntries 3L4IC) and U%%er 4i!!le Income Co"ntries 3U4IC). /ased on 1,,8 income levels, countries with per capita incomes of D"O-E5 or less are in the first group, those with incomes between D"O-E5 and D"O6 115 in the second, and those between D"O6 115 and D"O, 855 in the third.

Classi#ication accor!ing to net tra!e stat"s in #oo! an! agric"lt"re countries are divided into Net *oo! Im%orting 3N*I4) and Net *oo! ,@%orting 3N*,D) on the one hand, and Net Agric"lt"ral Im%orting 3NAI4) and Net Agric"lt"ral ,@%orting 3NA,D) on the other.

Table 1 shows that of the 12E developing countries, 86 are <':s, 51 <!':s and 66 D!':s. As the bul$ of the world.s poor are in the <':s it is important to pay special attention to the countries in that group. As many as 2E out of 86 <':s are net importers of food. Bven among the <!':s, 65 out of 51 are net food importers. 't is clear that any realistic analysis of trade liberali(ation must address the %uestion as to how food importing countries and the poor living there will be impacted by agricultural liberali(ation.

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TABL, )5 Co"ntries classi#ie! accor!ing to income stat"s an! #oo! tra!e %osition 1::<11::E3n"mber o# co"ntries)

Lo&

Income Lo&er Income 3L4ICs)

4i!!le U%%er Co"ntries Income 3U4ICs) 11

4i!!le Co"ntries

Co"ntries 3LICs)

5et #ood 'mporters 2E 75#'!9 5et #ood B)porters 15 75#BJ9 Total 86

65

1-

11

51

66

Table 6 below classifies the three groups of countries according to their net position in agriculture as a whole. !ore <':s appear as agricultural e)porters 7669 than as food e)porters 7159. Ta$ing agriculture as a whole, therefore, e)port interests seem to dominate. The overall picture differs less for <!':s and D!':s when compared according to their trade position in food versus agriculture as a whole.

TABL, /5 Co"ntries classi#ie! accor!ing to income stat"s an! agric"lt"ral tra!e 1::<1 1::E 3n"mber o# co"ntries)

Lo&

Income Lo&er Income 3L4ICs)

4i!!le U%%er Co"ntries Income 3U4ICs) 16

4i!!le Co"ntries

Co"ntries 3LICs)

5et

Agricultural 60

61

'mporters 75A'!9 5et Agricultural 66 10 10

B)porters 75ABJ9
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Total

86

51

66

't also report that of the D5 classification of 28 <east =eveloped :ountries 7<=:s9, as many as 25 are net food importers. Again, considering agriculture as a whole, the number of net e)porters rises to 15. Table 2 below shows the e)tent of overlap between importers of food and of agriculture, and e)porters of the two sets of items. 5ot surprisingly, the largest numbers concentrate along the diagonal E6 countries are net importers of food and of agriculture, while 21 countries are net e)porters of both. This still leaves a large number of countries 7119 that are net food importers and net agricultural e)porters. #ourteen of these 11 countries are <=:s. TABL, ;5 Co"ntries classi#ie! accor!ing to #oo! tra!e an! agric"lt"ral tra!e 1::<1 1::E 3n"mber o# co"ntries)

Net Agric"lt"ral Im%orters Net Agric"lt"ral ,@%orters 3NAI4) 5et #ood 'mporters 75#'!9 5et #ood B)porters 75#BJ9 Total E6 1 E5 3NA,D) 11 21 86

0f the 28 least developed countries, 61 are net importers of both food and agriculture. These countries are li$ely to be hurt by the developed country liberali(ation, which must raise agricultural prices. 0n the other hand, the bul$ of the benefits will accrue to the relatively well*to*do developing countries in <atin America and Asia and the Dnited "tates.

/) R,+,ARC=
/.1) +TATU+ O* *OOD +,CURIT- IN A*RICA
INTRODUCTION #rom African perspective, food crises are nothing new. The novelty this time around is related more probably to two interrelated aspects. *irst consumers and governments in
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some of the wealthiest corners of the world will be facing food shortages and hardship for the first time, something that Africans have been structurally e)posed to for decades. +econ! this potential crisis would add more strains on household incomes, on e)ternal positions and on national budgets of economies that are already facing the double challenge of poverty eradication and adaptation to a globali(ing world. ?ith 25 per cent of the African population living on less than O1&day and spending 50*-5 per cent of their income on staple foods Fa high proportion of which are imports F there were particular concerns for the poor, especially in those countries that are highly dependent on the international mar$et for food and energy. #or all these reasons, the food price surge can deepen food insecurity on the continent and complicate, if not reverse, any progress towards the 4illenni"m De$elo%ment Goals 34DGs) poverty and hunger targets. 0n the positive side, this crisis could be used as an opportunity to revitali(e and develop African agriculture on the medium to long term. Therefore, it is imperative to build a strong consistency between the response to the crisis F i.e. the set of policy measures and actions deployed to mitigate its short*term impacts F and medium* to long*term development policy. *OOD +,CURIT- I++U,+ AND C=ALL,NG,+ !ost African countries are still facing the interloc$ing challenges of low incomes, high share of food in household budgets, a very high dependency on imports for food and for fossil fuel*based energy supply, poor agricultural growth performance, and wea$ institutional capacities that e)pose them to very high ris$s of food insecurity. Hunger and malnutrition still are a serious concern throughout the continent, in particular in s"b1+a'aran A#rica 3++A). 0ver the last decade, real progress has been made in many countries and across the sub regions.

Un!erno"ris'ment an! '"nger on t'e rise 'n ""A, undernourishment increased at an annual growth rate that was three times higher between 1006*05 and 100- than during the preceding decade. This shows that the challenge of halving the number of undernourished by 1015 is daunting, especially in an environment of high food prices and of uncertain global economic prospects.

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The share of sub*"aharan Africa in world hunger is very disproportionate compared to the rest of the world. ?ith only 11 per cent of the world.s total population, the sub*continent harbours 15 per cent of the total number of hungry people in 1006*05. At 1E per cent in 1006*05, the proportion of undernourished people on the continent is well above the world average 716 per cent9 and 1 points higher than the average of the developing world. !arginal in 5orth Africa, at less than 5 per cent, the prevalence of hunger in ""A 760 per cent9, is almost double the average of the developing world. 0verall, very little progress has been made in reducing the proportion of the poor over a period of almost fifteen years. There was only a 2 per cent gain in 1006*05 from the 62 per cent plateau that had prevailed since 1,,0* ,1. *IGUR, 15 +"b regional tren!s in n"mber an! %ro%ortion o# "n!erno"ris'e! %eo%le in ++A *IGUR, 1a5

*IGUR, 1b5

[19]

*oo! insec"rit( in A#rica5 %atterns tren!s an! main ca"ses a) 2atterns an! tren!s o# #oo! emergencies The #A0 Global In#ormation an! ,arl( .arning +(stem 3GI,.+) compile an annual list of countries in food crisis. These are countries regarded as having @hunger hotspotsA F areas where a significant proportion of people are severely affected by persistent or recurring hunger and malnutrition owing to lac$ of resources to deal with reported critical problems of food insecurity. Those are categori(ed by >'B?" as An e)ceptional shortfall in aggregate food production&supplies as a result of crop failure, natural disasters, interruption of imports, disruption of distribution, e)cessive postharvest losses, or other supply bottlenec$s. ?idespread lac$ of access, where a ma+ority of the population is considered to be unable to procure food from local mar$ets, due to very low incomes, e)ceptionally high food prices, or the inability to circulate within the country. "evere locali(ed food insecurity due to the influ) of refugees, a concentration of internally displaced persons, or areas with combinations of crop failure and deep poverty. /etween =ecember 1005 and April 100,, si)teen countries out of a sample of forty*si) can be classified as food secure F i.e. they did not face any food crisis that re%uired emergency assistance. Altogether, they harbour 650 million people F i.e. 20 per cent of the total population of the continent, mostly across the northern sub region and in five of the fifteen ?est African countries. This proportion falls to 1, per cent if 5igeria is not considered and is as low as 10 per cent without 5igeria and 5orth Africa and small countries with an average population of 8.5 million, and that are singular in their respective sub regions, such
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as >abon in :entral Africa, Gwanda in Bastern Africa, /otswana, !auritius and 5amibia in the "outhern part. 0verall, across ""A, food emergencies are predominantly related to severe locali(ed food insecurity, and are relatively more fre%uent 75- per cent9 than crises resulting from a widespread lac$ of access 716 per cent9 or an e)ceptional shortfall in aggregate production&supply 710 per cent9. b) 4ain ca"ses o# #oo! emergencies The causes of food emergencies can be classified under two broad categories natural or human*induced F i.e. socio*political ha(ards 7e.g. war or conflict*related crises9, and disasters that are mostly induced by socio*economic shoc$s. The latter can result from internal factors F i.e. economic or social policies, conflicts over land*based resources or a deteriorating public health situation F infectious diseases and H'K&A'=" pandemic being the most inflicting factor. The e)ternal factors may include the loss of a country.s e)port earnings or a sharp increase in the price of imported food commodities 7as in the last two years9. #igure 1 shows the relative shares of causes of disasters in ""A over the 1005*100, period based on a collation of >'B?" lists of hotspot countries. ?ar and conflict*related events 725 per cent of the cases9 dominate, followed by meteorological ha(ards 76E per cent9 and socio*economic factors 718 per cent9. !ore than half of the socio*economic and one third of the weather* related food emergencies are associated with this socio*political factor. ?ar and conflicts and the related social unrest in ""A have been the main causes of famine, as they destroy assets and displace populations, although the absolute number of such crises has been decreasing over the period. 'n 1001, about 8.6 million people 7refugees, internally displaced persons, returnees9 were in need of assistance owing to conflicts in the Horn of Africa. Three %uarters of them were member countries of the 'ntergovernmental Authority on =evelopment.

*IGUR, )5 Nat"re an! ca"ses o# #oo! emergencies in s"b1+a'aran A#rica )00< F )00:
*IGUR, )a5 Distrib"tion 3%er cent) o# #oo! emergencies b( nat"re an! across t'e s"b1regio ns [21]

*IGUR, )b5 Nat"ral an! '"man1in!"ce! ca"ses o# !isasters in ++A

O$erall economic an! agric"lt"ral gro&t' %er#ormance Addressing the challenges for improving food security in the region re%uires, first and foremost, strong, sustained increases diversified food production and agricultural productivity. #rom that perspective, almost 10*year period of negative performances, the continent went through its longest period 71,,2*10059 of sustained positive per capita income growth. !oreover, there has been a steady increase in the level of per capita food production over the past 10 years. The recovery process which started in the late 1,,0s has accelerated over the last decade and has now reached average growth rates of 8 per cent per year for >=; and 2 to 5 per cent for agriculture. The evidence collected by #A0 shows a positive correlation between growth in African agricultural and level of performances on the !=>*1 targets
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A steady and relatively rapid growth * characteri(ed by gains in agricultural value added, food production, cereal production and cereal yields, in the 12 African countries on trac$ to meet the !=>*1 targets4 and, inversely

A sharp fall in food production and lower levels of agricultural value added 7by P of the rate of the former group9 in the 12 African countries that either have failed to reduce the prevalence of undernourishment or have seen it increase since 1,,0F,1.

*IGUR, /5 Agric"lt"ral %ro!"cti$it( gro&t' !e%t' o# '"nger an! collecti$e #oo! sec"rit( 1::;)00/

/.)) +TATU+ O* *OOD +,CURIT- IN U.+ INTRODUCTION #ood security has been a consistently controversial issue in the D.". D"=A developed household food security measures to empower local communities to assess their food security levels and incorporate their results into the national nutrition monitoring system, providing a rich data source for analy(ing changes in the level and distribution of food security in the Dnited "tates. 'n 100,, E5 percent of D.". households were food secure throughout the entire year, and 12.percent of households were food insecure at least some time during that year, essentially unchanged from 12.8 percent in 100E. This remains the highest recorded prevalence rate of food insecurity since 1,,5 when the first national food security survey was conducted. *oo! Insec"rit( in U.+

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't may be the world's richest nation, but the D" is no stranger to startling poverty. A new report from the D" =epartment of Agriculture says that food insecurity is the highest in America since the survey began. #ood insecurity * defined by the D"=A as when Cfood inta$e was reduced and their eating patterns were disrupted at times during the year because the household lac$ed money and other resources for foodC * afflicted 12.83 of Americans in 100E. i.e., some 50 million people were too poor to guarantee being able to put food on the table. The report has been described by /arac$ 0bama as CunsettlingC. According to the ?ashington ;ost <ast year, people in 2.E million households used private food pantries, compared with 6., million in 100-, while people in about 815,000 households resorted to soup $itchens, nearly ,0,000 more than the year before. *IGUR, ;5 *oo! +'ortage in t'e U+

The food insecure includes 113 of families with children, 15.-3 of blac$ families, 18.,3 of Hispanics and 1-.-3 of those living in the big cities.

/./) +TATU+ O* *OOD +,CURIT- IN ,URO2,

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INTRODUCTION 't is often forgotten in our well*fed corner of the world that a year*round supply of affordable, health*giving food is the mainstay of social stability and our %uality of life. This means forward thin$ing food policies are a categorical imperative for Buropeans as they come to address the food supply challenge ahead. "imply put, we must produce more food to feed a growing population on the e)isting agricultural land base, while adapting to the impact of climate change, preserving biodiversity, reducing greenhouse gases, safeguarding the environment and staying within the narrowing limits of the public purse. #ood "ecurity concerns is not an unfortunate condition of some distant land but a very Buropean problem. Burope is the world.s largest producer of food, the biggest e)porter of food and the biggest importer, and our imports e)ceed our e)ports by a very substantial margin. 'n other words, what Burope does with food counts, globally, and Burope will either be a big problem or part of the solution to the #ood "upply challenge. This is not to suggest that Burope must feed the world, although as time goes by, the moral and ethical weight of this %uestion will mount for those in relative abundance. The big challenge must be rec$oned with right here in Burope for very Burocentric reasons the lin$ed needs for affordable nutrition and social stability being chief amongst them. The BD, for e)ample, supports the #A0.s call for increased productivity on one hand while on the other Buropean governments are actively bloc$ing the upta$e of technologies that have the potential to increase productivity for reasons that are mainly ideological. At present, Buropean policy is neither addressing the comple)ity of the issues nor the reality of present day industry, which is, emphatically, a science and not a transient e)pression of public opinion. N"tritionCs e##ort on t'e b"r!en o# !iseases ;oor nutrition ma$es an important contribution to the burden of disease in BD. A diet high in saturated fat and energy dense foods and low in fruits and vegetables* along with the sedentary lifestyle and smo$ing* is the ma+or cause of cardiovascular diseases 7:K=9, cancer and obesity. :K= and cancer are the top two causes of death in Buropean region. :K= cause over 10 million deaths every year in Burope. :oronary heart disease 7:H=9 is the most common cause of premature death, accounting to nearly ,0,000 deaths every year. <i$e these diseases there are many more diseases in Burope.

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*IGUR, <5 Lost (ears o# 'ealt'( li#e in t'e ,"ro%ean region )000

'n contrast, improvement in the nutrition will reduce the burden of disease in the population and therefore bring economic benefits. 'mproved public health is the foremost priority of Burope.

/.;) N,.+ 2A2,R CUTTING

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T'e ,conomic Times *ri!a( 11 4arc' )011

;) *INDING+
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;.1) +TATU+ O* ,AC= COUNTR- BA+,D ON R,+,ARC= A*RICA5 *ig"re 15 +"b regional tren!s in n"mber an! %ro%ortion o# "n!erno"ris'e! %eo%le in
++A *ig"re 1a an! *ig"re 1b shows that 'n ""A, undernourishment increased at an annual growth rate that was three times higher between 1006*05 and 100- than during the preceding decade. This shows that it will increase in the coming years, especially in an environment of high food prices and of uncertain global economic prospects. 'n ""A there is an increase in percentage in 1006*05, the percentage of undernourished people on the continent is well above the world average proportion.

*ig"re )5 Nat"re an! ca"ses o# #oo! emergencies in ++A )00<1)00E

*ig"re )a shows that the relative shares and causes of disaster in ""A over 1005*100, period based on a collection of >'B?" lists of hotspot countries. *ig"re )b shows that war and conflict* related events dominate, followed by meteorological ha(ards and socio* economic factors.

*ig"re /5 Agric"lt"ral %ro!"cti$it( gro&t' !e%t' o# '"nger an! collecti$e #oo!

sec"rit( 1::;)00/ This figure shows that almost 10*year period of negative performances, the continent went through its longest period 71,,2*10059 of sustained positive per capita income growth. !oreover, there has been a steady increase in the level of per capita food production over the past 10 years. The recovery process which started in the late 1,,0s has accelerated over the last decade and has now reached average growth rates of 8 per cent per year for >=; and 2 to 5 per cent for agriculture.

U.+ *ig"re ;5 *oo! +'ortage in t'e U+

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The ;ie chart shows the household percentage of D." in 100E. 'n the year 100E, E5.23 of household were food secure, E.,3 of household had low food security while the remaining 5.-3 of household in D." had very low food security. This remains the highest recorded prevalence rate of food insecurity since 1,,5 when the first national food security survey was conducted.

,URO2, *ig"re <5 Lost (ears o# 'ealt'( li#e in t'e ,"ro%ean region )000
The ;ie :hart shows that a diet high in saturated fat and energy dense foods and low in fruits and vegetables* along with the sedentary lifestyle and smo$ing* is the ma+or cause of cardiovascular diseases 7:K=9, cancer and obesity. :K= and cancer are the top two causes of death in Buropean region. 'n contrast, improvement in the nutrition will reduce the burden of disease in the population and therefore bring economic benefits. 'mproved public health is the foremost priority of Burope.

<) CONCLU+ION
>lobali(ation, in the sense of rapid transmission of the impact of technology to all areas of the globe with highly developed infrastructure, will continue to accelerate. <ow*income countries that do not spend heavily on research and technology dissemination and do not
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upgrade their rural infrastructure and reduce transaction costs will e)perience continually declining prices for agricultural commodities, but without offsetting decreases in costs of production. 'n contrast, where costs are reduced by research and improved infrastructure, agriculture can attain growth rates of at least 50 percent higher than in the past. That would have powerful multipliers to the rural non*farm sector, thereby reducing poverty, increasing employment, and increasing food security. High*income countries can assist this process though continuing to open trade in agricultural commodities4 preventing domestic farm support programmes from dumping commodities on world mar$ets4 and, in the case of cereals, massively increasing demand through financing rural public wor$s programmes to reduce transaction costs in rural areas and bring them more fully into the global mar$et. <ow*income countries, especially in Africa, must redirect public e)penditure to agricultural production, especially research and rural infrastructure. They should reduce constraints to trade, including overvalued e)change rates, and consider cutting customs barriers.

9) R,*,R,NC,
www.google.com www.wi$ipedia.com
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http &&theviewspaper.net&foodQsecurityQinQindia http &&www.hinduonnet.com&thehindu&bi(&1001&01&10&stories&1001011000220100.htm http &&www.who.int&trade&glossary&story01E&en The Bconomic Times

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