Reading that the World Bank's name is attached to this, I can't say that I agree with the approach of this document. >From the ELDIS AGRICULTURE AND DEVELOPMENT REPORTER, 14 December 2004, http://www.eldis.org/agriculture/ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- THE STATE OF FOOD INSECURITY IN THE WORLD 2004 Author(s): FAO Produced by: Economic and Social Department (ES), FAO (2004) Hunger and malnutrition cause tremendous human suffering, kill more than five million children every year, and cost developing countries billions of dollars in lost productivity and national income, according to the 2004 FAO annual hunger report. SOFI 2004 argues that the resources needed to effectively prevent this human and economic tragedy are minuscule when compared to the benefits and that without the direct costs (around $30 billion per year) of dealing with the damage caused by hunger, more funds would be available to combat other social problems. However the FAO is optimistic that the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) of cutting by half the number of hungry people in the world by 2015 can still be attained. Pointing out that more than 30 countries, representing nearly half the population of the developing world, have proved that rapid progress is possible and can offer lessons in how that progress can be achieved. These countries have reduced the percentage of hungry people by at least 25 percent during the 1990s. The report recommends a twin-track strategy that attacks both the causes and the consequences of extreme poverty and hunger. Track one includes interventions to improve food availability and incomes for the poor by enhancing their productive activities. Track two features targeted programmes that give the most needy families direct and immediate access to food. Other recommendations include: * countries should adopt large-scale programmes to promote primarily agriculture and rural development * priority should also be given to actions that will have an immediate impact on the food security of millions of vulnerable people. SOFI 2004 also contains a special feature on globalisation, urbanisation and changing food systems in developing countries which focuses on the spread of large retail chains, such as supermarkets and hypermarkets, in developing countries and examines the impact they are having on small farmers. This new commercial phenomenon poses serious challenges for policy-makers in developing countries who are trying to develop rural areas and improve the livelihoods of small-scale farmers. FAO recommends developing policies and programmes that will help small farmers seize opportunities offered by the new dynamic markets. The report also addresses urbanisation, the increase of hunger in urban areas, and dietary changes associated with rapid urbanisation, including an increase in non- communicable diet-related diseases. Available online at: http://www.eldis.org/cf/rdr/rdr.cfm?doc=DOC16953 _______________________________________________ Biofuel mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://wwia.org/mailman/listinfo.cgi/biofuel
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