Food and Governance Duncan Green Ecumenical World Development Conference Swanwick October 2012.
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Transcript of Food and Governance Duncan Green Ecumenical World Development Conference Swanwick October 2012.
The food system is failing
A billion hungry people 1.5 billion anaemic through iron deficiency Half a million kids go blind every year due
to lack of vitamin A
And at the same time 1.5 billion overweight adults (of which 0.5
billion obese)
Framing: The Standard Response
Increased demand 50% by 2030 (IEA)
Energy
Water Increased demand
30% by 2030
(IFPRI)
FoodIncreased demand
50% by 2030
(FAO)
Climate Change
1. Can 9 billion people be fed equitably, healthily and sustainably?
2. Can we cope with the future demands on water?
3. Can we provide enough energy to supply the growing population coming out of poverty?
4. Can we mitigate and adapt to climate change?
5. Can we do all this in the context of redressing the decline in biodiversity and preserving ecosystems?Biodiversity
What’s missing from this picture?
Power: who decides? (Amartya Sen on famine)
Distribution: who benefits? Justice: what is fair? Which brings us to governance
Ha-Joon Chang: lessons from 21 successful countries
Need to ‘free policy imagination’ Role of the state
– Smallscale farmers are central (Vietnam)– Importance of land reform (Japan, Taiwan)– State-backed credit and insurance– Encourage organization (co-ops etc)– Stabilize prices (USA, Chile)
But delivery can be public, private or mixed (i.e. Different from industry)
To which, I would add Gender
– Gender equality would boost output by up to 10%
– land ownership (15-20% women)– Access to credit– extension services (5% aimed at women)– Reproductive health
Resilience– Adapting to climate change (rubber)– From tradition to science
The Power of Organization– Against land grabs and rip-offs– For better deals in markets (farmers want to
sell, not just grow)
Other missing pieces: Volatility and urbanization
The Number of hungry people in cities is rising. Our research (with IDS) shows– Food Price Volatility -> inequality– Having fun matters as well as eating
What do poor people need?– Jobs– Social protection (often informal)– Price stability– Women need help with extra pressure
What about the rich countries? Production:
Waste Consumption: is meat murder? Competition (biofuels, land grabs) R&D:
– Technology for whom? – Decelerating productivity growth
Aid to ag down in last 20 years from 20% to 7%
Aid and Trade
WTO lets rich countries off eg with subsidies (40 x aid)
Food security v self sufficiency– Panic buying and export bans, but what
about Yemen? Biofuels waste money and food Food aid system overstretched and clunky Policy advice often very free market
(ignoring lessons of history)
PROBLEM – more of the same, elites failing
a failing food system
disempoweringinequality
the age of crisis
planetaryboundarie
s
SOLUTION – the many working together
the new prosperity
a good food system
fair shares
valuing precious
resources