Committee on Foreign Affairs
Subcommittee on Africa & Global Health
Chairman Donald M. Payne
"Food Security in Africa: the Impact of Agricultural Development"
June 18, 2007
Opening Statement
Our hearing today is the second in a series of hearings regarding food security in Africa. More than a decade has passed since the World Food Summit in Rome at which nations pledged to work together to cut the number of undernourished people in half by the year 2015.
Unfortunately, we are not on target to achieve that goal. According to the Food and Agricultural Organization, in sub-Saharan Africa the number of hungry people increased from 169 million to 206 million in the time period from 1990 to 2003. We need to know why so little progress has been made. Senator Russ Feingold and I have requested that the Government Accountability Office do a review of U.S. efforts on global food security. I hope the report will provide some answers.
At a hearing in May, the subcommittee examined options to enhance the effectiveness of our international food aid programs. Witnesses emphasized two main points. First, food aid in and of itself is not sufficient to promote food security. Second, the United States government must invest more resources in long-term agricultural development programs in order to achieve results. Witnesses pointed out that the majority of our food aid resources are being diverted away from long-term development programs and used for emergency food assistance.
However food aid is only one tool to promote food security. Today's hearing will specifically focus on the potential impact of another tool-- agricultural development-- on food security in Africa. Though only 13% of the world's population resides in Africa, it is home to nearly 25% of the developing world's undernourished people.
There are serious obstacles to agricultural development in Africa. At a hearing in May the issue of lack of water for agricultural production in the region was raised. It remains a major problem in the Sahel and the Horn of Africa, and will be more and more of a concern in other areas of the continent.
In June, I held a hearing about climate change on the continent. Countries in Africa will be hit hard by climate change, as illustrated by a National Public Radio which aired on Monday. According to that story Cape Verde had to build a desalination plant to maintain agricultural production because seasonal rains have become insufficient. Few African countries can afford to engage in such costly endeavors.
Conflict and poverty pose additional challenges to agricultural development; however the potential economic benefits are such that we must pursue such development in a considered way at an appropriate level. Resources from the agricultural sector fueled industrialization and economic growth in virtually every developed country. Evidence suggests that long-term agricultural development programs are one tool that could improve food security in Africa.
Studies have shown, that if crop yields are increased by 10%, the percentage of people living on less than a dollar a day is reduced anywhere from 6 to 10%. In Africa, this means that as many as 12 to 15 million Africans could see their lives change dramatically by increased agricultural production. The Green Revolution in India raised the income of small farmers by 90%, and that of landless laborers by 125%. Imagine the impact that such a revolution might have in Africa, where according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, nearly 70% of the workforce in Africa is employed in the agriculture sector.
In light of the potential impact of agricultural development on people's lives, donors and the international financial institutions are once again beginning to focus on agricultural as a means of wide-scale development. The theme for the World Bank's World Development Report for 2008 is Agriculture for Development. The report will focus on when, where and how agriculture can be an effective instrument for economic development, especially development that favors the poor.
We must also look at the trade distorting effect of agricultural subsidies. The United States government spent $17 billion in fiscal year 2006 for commodity subsidies. I am not suggesting that we completely stop assisting U.S. farmers when they need help. I am suggesting that subsidies have a significant impact on the ability farmers in Africa to get a decent price for their crops.
I would also point out that if we spent even five percent of that amount on agricultural development, it would allow us to almost double the approximately $350 million we spent on agricultural and environmental programs in sub-Saharan Africa last year. In January of this year, I joined the Chairman of the full Committee, Tom Lantos, in writing to the Director of Foreign Assistance urging that the administration not cut funding for Collaborative Research Support Programs.
Through CRSPs, U.S. land grant colleges lend expertise related to food production and security, and nutrition to the U.S. government and developing nations. Not only must funding for such programs be maintained, it should be increased. I will work to boost the level of investment we are making in that area.
But these programs alone are not enough to address the develop needs in the agricultural sector. I hope that our witnesses today will address the following issues: What are the major impediments to agricultural development in sub-Saharan Africa? Is a "green revolution" a good idea for Africa, and if so, is it achievable a realistic goal? And finally, what does the United States government need to do in order to get the most bang for the buck in terms of making development investments in the agriculture sector in Africa?
I thank our witnesses for coming today, and turn to the distinguished ranking member for his opening statement.
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