Rising food prices curb aid to global poor
Food commodity prices have risen by 21 percent since 2005, which will stretch aid groups' resources.
from the July 24, 2007 edition
)
Page 2 of 3
So far, the pinch of food inflation isn't cutting directly into emergency relief efforts, say aid groups, including the United Nations's giant World Food Program.
But these groups say they have a shrinking cushion against future disasters such as earthquakes. Moreover, experts say that various logistical challenges prompted US government programs to focus tight resources on emergency needs. That leaves less food aid available for vital long-term programs to help the world's poor.
"The less we're able to help them prepare [to sustain themselves], the more certain it is that there's going to be a need for emergency response in the future," says Ms. Kuennen-Asfaw.
World Vision, another Christian charity, is closing a six-year pilot project in Kenya where the group saw family incomes grow from around $235 a year to $800 a year as cultivation techniques improved. "We were hoping to replicate this successful model in other areas of Kenya where pastoralists are still dependent on emergency rations nearly every year," Walter Middleton, an Africa-based World Vision officer, told a congressional hearing this spring.
Around the world, the lives of some 850 million people are affected by some form of chronic hunger or malnutrition, according to UN estimates.
But much can be done through sustained development aid. As the Kenyan example suggests, programs that provide childhood nutrition, education, and agricultural know-how can pay big dividends. The returns on investment often exceed 20 percent a year, says Christopher Barrett, a Cornell University expert on global poverty and hunger.
RSS feed
