http://blogs.state.gov/index.php/site/index/ en U.S. Department of State 2012-05-20T23:11:38+00:00 L'Aquila Joint Statement on Global Food Security, agreeing to "to act with the scale and urgency needed to achieve sustainable global food security."

This marked a turning point for international efforts to achieve food security worldwide. Leaders committed to a take a comprehensive approach to ensure food security, coordinate effectively, support country-owned processes and plans, engage multilateral institutions in advancing efforts to promote food security, and deliver on sustained and accountable commitments.

This year marks the final year of AFSI donor governments' pledge to mobilize over $22 billion toward global food security over three years, of which the United States pledged $3.5 billion. Food security is a critical priority as it is closely linked to economic growth, social progress, political stability, and peace.

In the United States, this pledge is embodied in Feed the Future, the U.S. government's global hunger and food security initiative. Taking a uniquely comprehensive approach to food security by investing in entire agricultural value chains, from seeds to markets to consumers, Feed the Future is the largest investment in agricultural development the United States has made in decades. Beyond improving farm and ranch production, Feed the Future also works with underserved agricultural workers, and prioritizes improvements in their nutrition as well as their income. Women producers are supported within FTF programs through several mechanisms including innovation funds to develop technology appropriate to them, and diversification programs that improve nutrition, specifically targeting the 1,000 day window from pregnancy through a child's second birthday. Adequate nutrition during this window is critical to a healthy pregnancy, and developing a child's lifetime cognitive and physical capacity.

AFSI participants convene twice annually to review progress toward meeting commitments, including financial pledges, and to discuss best practices and lessons learned. The first AFSI meeting of 2012 brings together over 50 food security officials from 30 countries, and international and regional organizations. Participants have heard from civil society and partner countries, and will discuss coordination efforts between partner and donor governments, investments in research to improve food security, tracking progress toward meeting the L'Aquila commitments, and using Managing for Development Results to enhance the impact of investments in food security.

AFSI members are making good progress in committing funds to fulfill their financial pledges, but we have much work ahead to achieve sustainable global food security.]]> http://blogs.state.gov/index.php/entires/keeping_promises_food_security/ 2012-02-03T15:23:05+00:00 appointment this week as the next Executive Director of the UN World Food Programme (WFP). We look forward to continuing our strong relationship with WFP and the other the UN food agencies based in Rome. The WFP has a long and illustrious history of responding to the world's most pressing food and hunger crises, and under the energetic leadership of Ambassador Cousin, we are confident that it will continue its remarkable work as a leader of global efforts to eradicate hunger.

As the Ambassador to the UN food agencies in Rome, Ambassador Cousin has already worked closely with WFP, FAO, IFAD and other Rome-based international organizations and diplomatic missions to ensure an effective response to food needs during crises. She also brings experience from a nongovernmental hunger organization and from the private sector, along with the vision and passion needed to lead the world in advancing food security. Secretary Clinton emphasized that Ambassador Cousin “has been central to designing and implementing our food security policies...[and she] will continue to be a powerful voice in the fight against hunger.”

Over the past half-century, the United States has been WFP's largest donor, supporting its lifesaving work in responding to emergencies. WFP also has an important role to play in supporting lasting food security. Through Feed the Future (FTF), the U.S. government supports country-driven approaches to address the root causes of hunger and poverty and forge long-term solutions to chronic food insecurity and undernutrition. We share WFP's vision of reducing the need for assistance by strengthening people's resilience to economic, natural, and other shocks and increasing their economic opportunities.

In this spirit, we have partnered with WFP through programs such as Purchase for Progress (P4P), an innovative pilot program that connects smallholder farmers to WFP's supply chain. WFP helps farmers produce at a higher quantity and quality, and provides a fair price for their products. Over time, as farmers increase their skills, capacity, and income, they can expand their sales to the private sector, moving from subsistence to self-reliant growth.
Recently, USAID announced a creative new partnership with WFP and PepsiCo to help chickpea farmers in Ethiopia improve the quality and quantity of their production. The EthioPEA project also aims to connect the farmers to domestic and international markets and to the production of a chickpea-based, nutrient-rich supplemental food that WFP will distribute to vulnerable populations.

We look forward to working closely with Ambassador Cousin to continue this deep cooperation with WFP -- to respond to today's emergencies and build sustainable solutions to global hunger and undernutrition.]]> http://blogs.state.gov/index.php/entires/ambassador_cousin_wfp/ 2012-01-20T21:55:06+00:00
AFSI signatories' endorsement of the L'Aquila Joint Statement on Global Food Security at the 2009 G-8 Summit marked a turning point for international efforts to achieve sustainable global food security. Under the Joint Statement, the United States and other donors agreed to be accountable for delivering a comprehensive approach to improving food security, which entails effective coordination, support for country-owned processes and plans, and engagement of multilateral institutions to promote food security worldwide. President Obama's L'Aquila pledge of $3.5 billion became Feed the Future (FTF), the U.S. government's global hunger and food security initiative. These reversed decades of underinvestment in food security, especially agricultural development and preventative nutrition.

This year FTF continued to build bridges between short- and long-term food security, and demonstrated early signs of success in improving nutrition in early life. Conceived as a new approach to agricultural development, FTF promotes development along the entire agricultural value chain -- from farms to markets to consumers -- and market growth. FTF encompasses all U.S. government agricultural investments and changes the structure and focus of such investments to avoid a myopic focus on increased food production alone. We also incorporate high-leverage interventions, such as those related to improved nutrition and women's empowerment. Through this comprehensive approach, FTF is on track to achieve greater success in the short and long term than has been seen from agriculture investments in previous decades.

The scale and scope of the drought and subsequent famine in the Horn of Africa brought the need for these investments into sharp focus for the world. As Secretary Clinton pointed out in her August 2011 speech at the International Food Policy Research Institute, although droughts are natural occurrences, famines are man-made. The famine in the Horn of Africa is still the most severe humanitarian crisis in the world today, and its effects are far reaching. Yet, glimmers of hope can be found. Although still unacceptably high, the number of people affected in Ethiopia and Kenya is less than half that affected in previous droughts. Both countries have also demonstrated commendable leadership and investment in their own agriculture sectors. And although the United States has dedicated more than $870 million in emergency relief funds to the most severely affected areas, we will continue to invest in long-term solutions in the region and worldwide through FTF to try to prevent droughts from becoming famines ever again.

The 1,000 Days partnership also grew substantially this year and continues to promote improved nutrition during the 1,000 days from pregnancy through age two, when adequate nutrition has the greatest impact on a child's cognitive and physical development. Thousanddays.org was re-launched as a portal for the international nutrition community, and the 1,000 Days Hub was created to better coordinate and mobilize public and private nutrition partners. Secretary Clinton continued her strong support for early life nutrition at the U.N. General Assembly in 2011 by speaking at the Secretary General's nutrition event to promote and support the partnership, and by promoting nutrition investments as cost-effective economic growth strategies. Her tireless efforts have resulted in unprecedented international attention to nutrition during the 1,000 day window of opportunity with diverse NGO and private sector organizations creating 1,000 days messaging and programs. Several governments are independently increasing nutrition investments as well.

These efforts leave us well situated in 2012 to lead the AFSI group, which aims to strengthen mutual accountability among participating governments in meeting food security commitments. Ultimately, our goal is to ensure that food security remains a high-level global priority through the U.S. presidency of the G-8 and beyond. We have laid the foundation for progress in achieving lasting food security. Now, we need to stay the course!]]> http://blogs.state.gov/index.php/entires/ensuring_food_security/ 2012-01-10T17:36:38+00:00