US urges support for global food security programme
The US government has sent a letter to its international partners in the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program (GAFSP), urging them to expand their support.
The GAFSP was formed to counter the food price crisis that followed the global banking crash in 2007-8. Its focus is the implementation of pledges made by the G20 in September 2009 to support agriculture in developing countries.
With a focus on smallholder farmers in poor communities, the programme provides financing and technical assistance, helping to improve productivity and give food producers a clear route to market. It is administered by the World Bank, and functions as a trust fund that is available to recipients in 25 countries across Africa, Asia and Latin America.
In a letter to the US’s partners in GAFSP, secretary of state John Kerry and treasury secretary Jacob Lew said: “Since [the programme] was established, we have seen sustainable reductions in hunger and malnutrition, but the challenge of meeting the global demand for food is just as pressing as ever.
“We are proud to champion this innovative program,” the letter continued, “and we call upon our international partners to join us in supporting the work of GAFSP. Together, we can make progress in the effort to eradicate hunger and poverty.”
According to official figures, GASFP has led to income increases of up to 200 per cent in some countries, including Bangladesh and Rwanda. In the former country, funding has reached more than 430,000 farmers, while the Rwandan project has helped more than 92,000 people, of whom half are women.
About Kevin Sorkin
I am the Founder and CEO of Pendragon International Media Ltd, publishers of Global Government Forum. This portfolio also includes research services and important world leading events for public servants such as the Global Government Summit, the Global Government Finance Summit, the Global Government Forum Innovation conference, Global Government Digital Summit and Putting Citizens First. I am also the founder of the Civil Service Awards and Civil Service Live, established industry leading brands and extremely important events for government. I also launched and published Civil Service World. Over the years I have established relationships with the most senior officials in government and the private sector and have built a very strong and positive reputation across the industry.
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