The Director General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Qu Dongyu; the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Kristalina Georgieva; the President of the World Bank Group (WBG), David Malpass; World Food Program (WFP) Executive Director David Beasley and World Trade Organization (WTO) Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala issued the following joint statement calling for continued urgent action to address the global food and nutrition security crisis.
We offer our deepest condolences to the people of Turkey and the neighboring Syrian Arab Republic who have suffered from recent earthquakes. Our organizations are closely monitoring the situation, assessing the scale of the disaster, and working to mobilize the necessary support in accordance with each organization's mandates and procedures.
Globally, poverty and food insecurity are increasing after decades of development gains. Supply chain disruptions, climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic, financial tightening through rising interest rates, and Russia's war in Ukraine have caused unprecedented impact on the global food system. , and the most vulnerable are the most affected. Food inflation remains high around the world, with dozens of countries experiencing double-digit inflation. According to the WFP, 349 million people in 79 countries suffer from acute food insecurity.
The prevalence of malnutrition is also increasing, after three years of deterioration. This situation is expected to worsen, with global food supplies expected to fall to a three-year low in 2022/2023.[1] The need is especially acute in 24 countries that FAO and WFP have identified as hotspots, 16 of which are in Africa.[2] Fertilizer affordability, defined by the ratio of food prices to fertilizer prices[3], is also the lowest since the 2007/2008 food crisis, which is causing lower food production and affecting more to small farmers, worsening already high local food prices. For example, the 2022 reduction in rice production, of which Africa is the world's largest importer, coupled with lower stock prospects, is cause for great concern. In response to inflation in food, fuel and fertilizer prices, countries have spent more than US$710 billion on social protection measures covering 1 billion people, including approximately US$380 billion in subsidies. However, only US$4.3 billion has been spent in low-income countries for social protection measures, compared to US$507.6 billion in high-income countries.[3] including approximately $380 billion in subsidies. However, only US$4.3 billion has been spent in low-income countries for social protection measures, compared to US$507.6 billion in high-income countries.[3] including approximately $380 billion in subsidies. However, only US$4.3 billion has been spent in low-income countries for social protection measures, compared to US$507.6 billion in high-income countries.[3]
To avoid a worsening of the food and nutrition security crisis, more urgent actions are required to (i) rescue pockets of hunger, (ii) facilitate trade, improve the functioning of markets and strengthen the role of the private sector, and (iii) reform and redirect harmful subsidies with careful targeting and efficiency. Countries need to balance urgent short-term interventions with longer-term resilience efforts as they respond to the crisis.
1. Rescue the pockets of hunger
We call on governments and donors to support efforts at the national level to address needs in hot spots, share information, and strengthen crisis preparedness. WFP and FAO urgently need funds to immediately reach the most vulnerable . In 2022, WFPand its partners reached a record number of people (more than 140 million) with food and nutrition assistance, based on record contributions of $14 billion, of which $7.3 billion came from the US government alone. WFP sent more than $3 billion in cash transfers to people in 72 countries and supported school feeding programs in 80 countries, including 15 million children through direct support and more than 90 million children through reinforcement of the government's national school feeding programs. fao _has invested US$1 billion to support more than 40 million people in rural areas with agricultural interventions. These activities focused mainly on the 53 countries listed in the Global Report on Food Crises. The World Bankis providing a US$30 billion food and nutrition security package covering the 15 months from April 2022 to June 2023, including US$12 billion in new projects, which have been committed ahead of schedule. This also includes $3.5 billion in new financing for food and nutrition security in hot spots. In addition, the Bank has allocated $748 million of its $1 billion Early Response Financing modality from IDA's Crisis Response Window (CRW) to primarily address needs in hot spots and is mobilizing funds additional for CRW. Financing should also be mobilized for the IMF's Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust Fund (FCLP) .to provide concessional financing to low-income countries facing balance of payments needs. The IMF's new food crisis window has so far supported Ukraine, Malawi, Guinea and Haiti, while nine countries facing acute food insecurity benefited from IMF financial support through new or increased programs, with a focus on strengthening social safety nets and policies to help address the impact of the food crisis. The Global Alliance for Food Security (GAFS) is supporting increased crisis preparedness through the development and implementation of multi-sector food security crisis preparedness plans in 26 countries, which must be supported by governments and donors. GAFS also continues to monitor the severity of the food crisis and the financing of the global response through the Global Food and Nutrition Security Panel. We also welcome the efforts of all parties to mobilize more funds for Africa's agricultural transformation, as outlined in the Dakar Declaration[4] and would like to acknowledge the great work done by David Beasley, Executive Director of WFP, during his mandate.
2. Facilitate trade, improve the functioning of markets and enhance the role of the private sector
Countries must minimize trade distortions, strengthen the provision of public goods, and allow the private sector to contribute significantly to improving food security outcomes. We reiterate our urgent call to countries to (i) avoid policies such as export restrictions, which can impede access to food for poor consumers in low-income food-importing countries; (ii) support trade facilitation measures to improve the availability of food and fertilizers, (iii) support trade financing initiatives in a transparent and indiscriminate manner; and (iv) adhere to the commitments made at the 12th WTO Ministerial Conference.[5]
While countries have lifted some export bans on wheat and rice, new export restrictions and bans, particularly on vegetables, are hindering availability on world markets. Global food security can be strengthened if governments support both food producers and consumers in smart and targeted ways, for example by strengthening the provision of public goods in ways that sustainably improve agricultural productivity. Countries can use e-voucher schemes for fertilizers and avoid large-scale public procurement and subsidized distribution schemes, whether for agricultural inputs or products, that crowd out the private sector. The Global Food Safety Platform ofWBG IFC , worth $6 billion, supports farmers to access fertilizer and other critical supplies, while helping private companies make longer-term investments, focusing on improving the resilience of agri-food systems and the efficiency in the use of fertilizers. Countries should follow the FAO International Code of Conduct for the Sustainable Use and Management of Fertilizers to sustainably manage nutrients for food security.[6]
3. Reform and redirect harmful subsidies with careful targeting and efficiency
Countries should reform and redirect general universal subsidies towards temporary and better targeted programs for global food security and sustainable food systems, considering the key aspects of (i) efficiency, (ii) cost and fiscal sustainability, (iii) flexibility, (iv) complexity management, (v) equity, and (vi) strengthened resilience and sustainability.
Most of the global social protection response to inflation comes in the form of subsidies, half of which are untargeted, inefficient, and costly for already constrained governments. Support must be increased for countries to strengthen and deploy comprehensive, viable and crisis-responsive social protection strategies. Policies and reforms supported by IMF and World Bank financing have focused on transitioning from broad-based measures to more targeted approaches. Countries need to reexamine and reform their support for agriculture, which amounted to some $639 billion a year between 2016 and 2018 and has been rising ever since. Of every dollar spent, only 35 cents ends up in the hands of the farmers. [7] Much of this support encourages inefficient use of resources, distorts global markets, or undermines environmental sustainability, public health, and agricultural productivity. Without ignoring the inherent trade-offs associated with large-scale policy reforms [10], this funding needs to be reformed and redirected in ways that strengthen the resilience and sustainability of the agrifood system, such as the adoption of good agricultural practices, research and innovation (including in fertilizer application efficiency and alternatives to synthetic fertilizers), extension and advisory services, improved infrastructure and logistics, and digital technologies that sustainably improve productivity.
Steps are already being taken to address underlying structural challenges in social protection and in the food and fertilizer markets, but more concerted action is needed in these three key areas to avoid a protracted crisis. We are committed to working together and with impact to support the most vulnerable.
This is the third joint statement by the heads of the Food and Agriculture Organization, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank Group, the World Food Program and the World Trade Organization on the global food and nutrition security crisis. .
Source: World Food Programme