World Farmer

World Farmer The Farmers’ Voice at the World Level World Farmer January-February 2009 IFAP’s Agenda to Develop World Agriculture By Ajay Vashee, IFAP President There are ten priority policy areas where IFAP will focus its efforts in 2009. These fall into three areas: agricultural production issues, environmental issues and trade and marketing issues. Central to our efforts is to keep agriculture and farmers at the top of the international agenda, and not let it slip off because cereal stocks increased last year and farm commodity prices have fallen from relatively high levels. The fundamentals have not changed. Farmers still need to double world food production to meet the needs of a world population of 9 billion people by 2050. It is a big challenge, especially in the context of a global financial crisis, recession, increasing weather instability from climate change and severe pressure of the planet’s resources especially water. IFAP has clear policies from its members to deal with this challenge. As President, I have been promoting these policy positions through high-level interventions at the United Nations and World Bank last year, and through speeches at three more events in January 2009 - in Brussels, Strasbourg and Davos. Our message is that it is critical to increase investment in small-holder agriculture, and to provide a favourable, long-term public policy environment to attain food security. This is receiving a very favourable echo with government leaders, the private sector and donors in international summits. IFAP now needs to push this through the corridors of the FAO, the World Bank and others to make sure that it is translated into action on the ground. Also, IFAP is helping its member organizations by providing information and political support to get political buy-in from national governments. But it is not enough to encourage production. That production has to deliver high-quality products to consumers, be profitable for farmers and be friendly to the environment. This is the key to sustainability. IFAP is engaged in awareness-raising actions, research, lobbying and partnerships on certification schemes, traceability, food safety, animal welfare and other such issues to ensure that the fruits of the farmer’s efforts meet consumer requirements. IFAP has created new information tools to do this, including pamphlets on existing practices (thematic case studies), ‘Issue Briefs’ to raise awareness of farmers concerns, and ‘Policy Briefs’ to summarize our views. This effort is being supported by experts from throughout the IFAP network through different policy working groups. Further, IFAP is involved in january-february 2009 real time reporting on its advocacy work through News Flashes or Brief on events and so on. Profitably is key to encouraging young farmers into agriculture, and so considerable efforts are being made in IFAP to strengthen the situation of the farmer in the food chain, including through an strengthening the work of the Coop Committee and through lobbying for markets that work competitively and deliver a fair share of the value added to farmers. The global financial crisis has shown just how important it is to have multilateral rules for ensuring that markets work properly and speculation is controlled. In this area, IFAP is also working on the ground in eleven countries with researchers from ECART and support from IFAD and AgriCord in the ESFIM program Empowering Small farmers in Markets). This program is facilitating the inclusion of small-holder farmers in modern food chains. Environmental issues form a large part of the IFAP agenda in 2009, particularly the relation of agriculture to climate change. Agriculture suffers from climate change, and so needs to adapt, but agriculture also has a significant role to play in mitigating climate change. IFAP has made it a priority to work with the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the World Meteorological Organization to build awareness around the importance of agriculture in meeting climate goals, and the necessity of including agriculture in the new post Kyoto climate protocol that will be negotiated in December 2009 in Copenhagen. IFAP addressed the UNFCCC ministerial conference in Poznan last December and will request to do so again in Copenhagen this December. Through these efforts, IFAP wants the positive contribution of agriculture to reducing greenhouse gas emissions to be recognized and accounted for, including carbon sequestration and bioenergy. IFAP will hold a world conference on “Farmers’ Solutions to Climate Change” in Copenhagen in May 2009, linked to the next session of its Executive Committee. This Conference will adopt an IFAP Copenhagen Declaration that will be In this issue: Editorial World Rural Women’s Day Theme 1 2 Farmers’ Priorities for Action - UN CSD 2 2 IFAP at Davos International Economic Forum for Latin America and the Caribbean International Conference on Animal Welfare ESFIM - South Africa ESFIM- Malawi 5th World Water Forum Prep Meetings UPA International Days on Risk Management in European Agriculture South African Food Security Experience Support for Palestinian Ag Sector Farmers’ Share - US UNICEF Report Climate Change, Food Crisis WMO - The air we breathe brochure FAO Price and Policy Update 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 7 7 7 1 World Farmer used as the basis for our lobbying to have agriculture included in the new climate protocol. Linked to the climate change debate are many stability and resource issues for agriculture. Climate change will increase the ‘variability of the hydrological cycle,’ which means that there will be more droughts and floods and tropical storms, and these will be more severe. Farmers therefore need tools to manage these risks. IFAP is collecting experiences from members on different risk management systems, and is also developing a research and policy program on “Accessible systems to manage risks in family agriculture in developing countries - focus on Africa” in cooperation with ECART. Water will become scarcer with climate change, and yet increased irrigation is essential to increase agricultural output, especially in Africa. For this reason IFAP is active in leading the farmers’ group in preparatory meetings for the World Water Forum. Working with FAO, IFAP has managed to put agriculture onto the agenda alongside water and sanitation that dominated earlier discussions. IFAP will have a strong delegation in this Forum when it meets at the ministerial level in Istanbul in March 2009. IFAP will have a strong delegation at the UN Commission for Sustainable Development in New York in February and May, for policy discussions that are dealing with agriculture this year. We will be counting on our member organizations to support IFAP’s lobbying efforts by meeting with their national delegations. IFAP, as the Farmers’ Major Group, drafted its “Farmers’ Priorities for Action” (see here) for the meeting. Finally, IFAP is working to develop a partnership with ILO in its major work new on rural employment. IFAP is already working with ILO as part of an international partnership to eliminate hazardous child labor in agriculture through attacking the root cause which is rural poverty. This new initiative could help to bring resources into the rural areas. It could also be an entry point for an IFAP discussion on ‘green jobs,’; for example, the creation of employment related to agriculture, nature and the environment, as a response to addressing the recession and ecological concerns in one policy. These are some of the highlights of the ambitious work program that I, along with my Vice-Presidents, Executive Committee, and IFAP Secretariat will pursue in 2009. We are counting on your contribution to make this happen and so deliver improvement to farmers in our national member organizations. IFAP is constantly improving its organization for effective participation of its member organizations in its policy processes and international advocacy work, in partnership with AgriCord. In addition to the policy working groups, IFAP’s regional and specialized committees and commodity group structures drive many of our key issues, and also provide a vehicle for empowering women and young farmers. As long as we can keep agriculture on top of the international agenda, national and international organizations will continue to open doors to the views of farmers through IFAP representatives and our concerns will be properly reflected in any international decision-making. IFAP ACTIVITIES World Rural Women’s Day 2009 theme As of 2008, World Rural Women’s Day was considered an official day within the UN system with IFAP as a co-founder. Celebrated on October 15, the 2009 theme is: “Rural Women at the Heart of Innovation”. Recommendations for policy makers and other relevant documents related to World Rural Women’s Day will be released in the coming months. Farmers’ Priorities for Action for the UN Commission on Sustainable Development IFAP released the “Farmers’ Priorities for Action”, which outlines IFAP’s main lobbying points and policy positions for the UN Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD). The CSD-17 will be held between May 4 and 15 2009. An Intergovernmental Preparatory Meeting will take place between February 23 and 27 2009. IFAP, as the focal point of the Farmers’ Major Group within the CSD, will be lobbying on behalf of world farmers, urging governments to increase their engagement with farmers and incorporate priorities centered on sustainable agricultural development into their policies and budgets in order to move forward in reducing poverty and conserving natural resources. To view the “Farmers’ Priorities for Action”, go here: http://www.ifap.org/en/documents/FarmersMajorGroup_ FarmersPrioritiesforAction.pdf IFAP at Davos: President Ajay Vashee Puts Farmers on the Agenda President of IFAP, Ajay Vashee, addressed key agricultural issues at the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting 2009 in Davos held January 28 to February 1. He spoke at the event Unlocking the Food Chain, where he addressed global supply chains. He pushed for investment in local supply chains through a regional approach to develop economies and reach the critical mass required to warrant investment decisions and achieve sustainable supply chains in which farm gate prices are above the cost of production. Vashee met with global leaders, including Bill Gates, Ban Ki-moon, Jacques Diouf, Josette Sheeran and Ministers of Agriculture from around the world, stressing that agriculture is a business and farmers are the entrepreneurs who can translate good ideas 2 january-february 2009 World Farmer and innovations into mutual benefit to achieve global food security. “To move forward in many developing countries, critical investments need to be made to build basic infrastructure, such as roads, ports, railways and communications,” said Vashee. He added that farmers also need secure land tenure and modern equipment for production and processing. To generate these investments that get the quickest results, national political commitments to agricultural development need to be backed up by quantifiable benchmarks, not just political rhetoric, as is often the case. This will facilitate a stable, predictable and conducive public policy environment. Moreover, unnecessary tariff and non tariff barriers need to be eliminated to enable food to move from surplus to deficient areas, supported by the establishment of market information systems that support this, such as tax incentives to multinational companies to source from smallholder farmers. “Yet, all of these commitments are in firmly in the public domain and beyond the sphere of implementation by the private sector. “In order to reduce post harvest losses in developing countries, which are as high as 40% for some crops, massive investments need to be made in steel silos, crop dryers, cold storage and processing facilities and distribution centers, preferably through farmer-owned ventures. Malawi’s fertilizer and seed subsidy program was successful because it was linked to the prevention of post harvest losses through developing better processing facilities and distribution and storage centers, to accompany the availability of subsidized inputs. “The market must work for the producer; farmers are not a factor of production or commodity, but a key partner in the value chain. It is critical that commodity supply chains integrate small-scale agriculture entrepreneurs through cooperatives or farmer commodity organizations. Farmers need capacity to work together to group supplies, meet food safety and quality standards and share price information, ultimately developing complex local and regional markets. “In the face of weather, disease and market volatility, risk management tools are essential for farmers to be able to manage loan repayments. Excessive speculation on the international commodity markets has created high price volatility, which has slowed investment in agriculture, in particular smallholder agriculture. Better governance and increased transparency throughout the entire supply chain is a prerequisite, including government monitoring, regulation and enforcement of competitive behavior and the development of well regulated futures and options markets. “In my own country Zambia, we had a major drought in 1991 that resulted in short production of staple maize. The Zambian National Farmers’ Union worked with the Food Reserve Agency to ensure the performance of the market by having them hedge supply with options on SAFEX (the Southern African Futures Market), which allowed processors and commodity brokers to import the shortfall without government intervention, as everyone had confidence in measures. It also averted donations of food aid, which invariably distort local production. january-february 2009 International Economic Forum for Latin America and the Caribbean The High Level International Economic Forum for Latin America and the Caribbean, organized by the Development Centre of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) was held in Paris on January 26. Senior leaders discussed the region’s economy, the impact of fiscal policy on development and the role of the private sector in bringing progress to the continent. Luis Moreno, President of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) spoke of the opportunities to turn the crisis into an opportunity for sustainable development in the “new world”. Javier Santiso, Chairman of the OECD Development Centre added that the handling of debt and fiscal policy had generally improved in Latin America and the Caribbean although the region could do more to use budgetary policy to reduce inequality. Andrés Velasco, Chilean Finance Minister, stressed that financial policy could serve development. The goal of public policy was to improve people’s lives and this required robust institutions (IDB has indices to measure them) even if the process takes a long time and costs money; priority must be given to spending and investing for the poorest in society. Enrique Iglesias, first Secretary General for the IberoAmerican General Secretariat (1) said there were two main areas to consider: the world crisis and its impact on the region. He pointed to a number of lessons the region had learned from the crisis. It has been called a perfect storm because the banks are not lending and consumers not investing and this is casting doubt on globalization which in turn calls for serious discussion. Our ability to live beyond our means has ended. The system of self-regulation of world markets collapsed and new rules will have to be established. Emerging countries that were the problem in the past are now the solution. The former Bretton Woods organizations have to be reformed. The challenges arising from the crisis will be: to create a new world order that goes hand in hand with effective government presence and which strengthens international organizations; to find engines of investment that bring financial dynamism; to steer clear of protectionist trends and economic nationalism as they compounded the crisis of the 1930s; and to find fair mechanisms to cope with social requirements. He also spoke of the lessons learned from the impact of the crisis in the region: Administration in the region is better and the macro-economy has been well managed despite the need to look at certain microeconomic questions; anti-cyclical polices are very useful (this is borne out by Chile). He also outlined the challenges: We should not lose the gains made in the past 5 years (stability and social improvements), we must strengthen policies that protect the most vulnerable sectors; we should proceed with pending reforms; we must look at reforming the State and re-activate regional cooperation. Iglesias concluded by adding, “We have learned a lot and face several future challenges due to the major crisis of confidence that began in September 2008. I am sure we will win in the end, but it will take time”. (1) For further information on the Ibero-American General Secretariat see http://www.segib.org/quees.php?idioma=esp More information about the event: http://www.oecd.org/document /25/0,3343,en_21571361_41738051_41738649_1_1_1_1,00.html 3 World Farmer International Conference on Animal Empowering Small Farmers in South Africa Welfare The “International Conference on Animal Welfare and Trade” took place in Brussels January 20-21. It was organized by the European Commission in collaboration with WSPA, Eurogroup for Animals, Compassion in World Farming and RSPCA. The conference aimed at discussing the relationship between the welfare of farm animals and world trade. It brought together representatives of different involved parties, such as animal right associations, European and national institutions, international organizations such as OIE, FAO, and World Bank. Numerous IFAP members were also present together with other producers’ organizations such as Interbev IMS and FIL. Ajay Vashee, President of IFAP, made a well-received presentation which was based on the IFAP position on animal welfare adopted in June 2008 at the World Farmers’ Congress and more recent discussions within the IFAP Working Group on Animal Welfare. He emphasized the challenges faced by farmers such as the primary necessity of insuring revenues, the additional costs faced by producers to comply with animal welfare rules and ultimately, the challenge of increasing capacity building for farmers in developing countries. On the other hand, Mr. Vashee highlighted the opportunities for farmers respecting animal welfare: improvement of animal productivity, better market response and enhanced access to international markets. The conference was an opportunity to emphasize several points from IFAP’s position, (see Animal Welfare Policy Brief:http://www.ifap.org/en/publications/documents/ AnimalWelfare_Web.pdf) such as the recognition of farmers’ responsibility vis-à-vis the welfare of their animals; the fact that consumers in industrialized countries are demanding high standards and finally, the need for good governance over systems in place. IFAP insisted on the necessity of striking a balance between what producers can implement and what consumers are willing to pay in terms of animal welfare. Mr. Vashee stressed the need for harmonization of standards for animal welfare to avoid unfair barriers to agricultural trade. All participants agreed on the IFAP view that animal welfare standards must be based on science, tailored to local customs and practices and developed in consultation with the various stakeholders and with farmers in particular. The OIE has been once again recognized as the leader organization to serve as a reference in the development of international standards of animal welfare. IFAP has a seat in the OIE Working Group on Animal Welfare which is represented by Mr. Per Olsen (Denmark). Mr. Vashee’s presentation is available on the IFAP website at http://www.ifap.org/en/publications/documents/ IFAPpresentationAjayVashee_ICAW.pdf IFAP is organizing workshops, Empowering Small Farmers in the Market Place (ESFIM), with its members in eleven counties (Benin, Costa Rica, India, Philippines, South Africa, Kenya, Uganda, Peru, Madagascar, Malawi, and Uruguay). Between January 20 and 21 in Pretoria, South Africa with the National African Farmers’ Union (NAFU) as its host, an ESFIM workshop was held which brought together farmers and farmers’ organization representatives, researchers, agribusiness, government officials, former IFAP President Jack Wilkinson and Hiba El Dahr from the IFAP Secretariat. The overall expected outcome of the workshop was to generate a farmer-driven formulation of a national project proposal which is a farmer-based strategy for participatory policy generation to facilitate small farmers’ access to markets. Specifically, the objectives included the following: • Identify a set of critical issues to be addressed to enhance market access by smallholder farmers in South Africa • Identify strategic priority issues to be dealt with by the ESFIM project, which are researchable and have policy constraints • Identify strategies and steps to address these issues through action research • Identify roles, responsibilities and capacities of different actors • The participants identified three priority areas needed to maximize market accessibility which require further exploration for research and policy development, including: • Mobilizing for collective action for volume, resource access and financial access • Partnerships – between farmers (farmer organizations) and agribusiness • Entrepreneurship – as essential quality for farmers With priorities now defined, a project proposal will be finalized by NAFU in collaboration with ECART researchers and submitted by IFAP to AgriCord for funding within the ESFIM Program. The overall process for all workshops should be finalized by May 2009.The project proposal will be a feasible, evidence-based proposition for changes in key elements in the institutional environment that will enable effective marketing strategies for smallholder farmers in South Africa. Besides the conclusions coming out of the ESFIM discussions, it was proposed that a future strategic planning session for NAFU should be scheduled to determine NAFU’s roles to be able to provide effective support to its membership and to small scale farmers in South Africa. This was considered to be one of the major outcomes and achievements of the workshop. january-february 2009 4 World Farmer Empowering Small Farmers in Malawi Between January 14 and 15, a workshop was held in Lilongwe, Malawi under the auspices of The National Smallholder Farmers’ Association of Malawi (NASFAM). The workshop’s objective was to highlight the main issues that are negatively impacting Malawi’s smallholder farmers’ access to markets - both within and outside Malawi. With this information and a national proposal, IFAP along with Malawi’s farmers’ organizations, set up a common platform from which to lobby the Government of Malawi and bilateral and multilateral donors. Twenty five participants attended the workshop. Jack Wilkinson, former IFAP President and Bader Mahaman Dioula, IFAP Regional Coordinator also attended. The workshop included presentations made by farmers’ organizations and stakeholders as well as working group discussions. The meeting defined catalysts and impediments for agribusiness and market development in the country, particularly focusing on small-scale producers. Key issues affecting marketing access for smallholder farmers were defined, including: low productivity; inadequate agricultural financing and high interest rates; slow progress in agricultural export diversification; poor quality and standards for both domestic and export commodities; limited agroprocessing and manufacturing (low value-adding); poor marketing regulation and trade promotion; poor market infrastructure (includes market information system, cooling facilities and storage/assembling points); low capacity and poor coordination by farmers’ organizations to effectively engage government in policy formulation. A farmer-based national project proposal was drafted. With priorities now defined, research will be carried out by the ECART researcher (Ruth Butterworth, NRI) in consultation with the local consultants (Mr. Heshan Peiris and Mr. Teddie Oliver Nakhumwa). A project proposal will be submitted to AgriCord by NASFAM on behalf of the “farmers’ organizations group” of Malawi for funding within the ESFIM Program. Access to safe water would have a catalytic effect on achieving the other MDGs. Water is a shared resource and therefore, partnerships with civil society organizations are critical for finding solutions and drawing on the strengths of all players. Main amendments to be made to the Chair’s text are as follows: • Be more focused on social and strategic considerations when transforming the Chair’s paper into a Ministerial Agenda; for example, sustainable financing for the social services of water, seeing investments in water as investments in peace • Give more attention to: water conservation, groundwater, and agriculture • Balance environment and development • Broaden the interest of the document to ministers outside the water area • Stress further the role of capacity building A third Prep- Com was hosted by FAO in Rome, January 21-23. This meeting focused on the revisions of the Chairperson’s paper which now bears a new suggested title – the Istanbul Water Strategy Guide - which will be further discussed during the Prep Com IV. The text as a whole contains several pending decisions. An on-line survey (VMS) has been launched between Prep Com III and Prep Com IV to give all parties – international organizations and Major Groups - the opportunity to provide on-line comments regarding the pending parts of this text as well as on the draft ministerial statement. During Prep Com III, the draft ministerial statement was discussed, but Major Groups were only allotted a two minute statement to express their views before the negotiations started. (Please view IFAP’s statement). Major groups remained as observers. Therefore, IFAP managed to introduce its key messages though close collaboration with the FAO. Comments on both texts are due for February 18th. A fourth Prep Com is scheduled for March 3 and 4th at the senior officials’ level. The 5th World Water Forum to be held March 16-22 in Istanbul will also include a Ministerial segment from March 20 to 22. IFAP should have a strong delegation at the Forum and will also likely be invited to one of the ministerial round tables on “Food and Poverty”. IFAP proposed to take part in one of the round tables to be held at the Ministerial level on ‘Water for food and poverty”, along with FAO and the Dutch government who is the lead country for this issue. To view the complete reports: • Second Prep Com: http://www.ifap. org/en/publications/documents/ Reportof2ndPrepComof2008WorldWaterForumGeneva. pdf • Third Prep Com: http://www.ifap.org/en/publications/ documents/PrepComIII_Summary.pdf 5TH World Water Forum, Preparatory Committee Meetings IFAP represents the Farmers’ Major Group in the World Water Forum. The 2nd PrepCom took place in Geneva, December 4-5 2008. At this meeting, the text of the Chair’s paper, which was based on the stakeholder dialogue at the 1st PrepCom in Paris in September 2008 was discussed theme-by-theme. IFAP’s main contribution was to ensure that farmers’ concerns were adequately reflected. Also, IFAP pushed for more attention to be given to agriculture in general and in particular, to rain-fed agriculture as well as irrigated agriculture. Overall, the text was supportive of stakeholder involvement in water policy and management issues. Concerns to meet the Millenium Development Goals (MDGs) were expressed. Working group reports showed that 700 million people do not have access to clean drinking water and 2.5 billion people have no access to water for sanitation. Only $23 billion additional funds are needed per year, in addition to the $270 billion already being spent, to meet the MDG targets on water. january-february 2009 5 World Farmer Food crisis discussed at the UPA International Days on Risk Management in European Agriculture Between December 3 and 4, the Unión de Pequeños Agricultores y ganaderos (UPA – Spanish National Farmers’ Organization) organized the International Days on Risk Management in European Agriculture in Madrid, Spain. It aimed to analyse the situation and measures planned for the agricultural markets crisis and climate change consequences on agriculture production. Approximately 150 people participated in the seminar, bringing together UPA farmers, researchers, officials and other stakeholders. IFAP was present, bringing the world farmers’ perspective and proposals regarding the global crisis to the discussions. With challenges such as price volatility and food chain inefficiencies, the need for a global agricultural policy is stronger than ever and IFAP is lobbying for more investments, better organization of the agricultural sector, development of risk management tools, improved research and facilitation systems, compensation for agricultural non-food services and a better trade regulation. There was agreement that greater trade liberalisation would benefit only large and international enterprises, worsening the situation of family farmers. UPA insisted on an international agricultural policy debate based on new approaches that recognize the interests of family farmers against those of large agricultural enterprises, instead of the usual contraposition between farmers in developed countries against those in developing countries. The timing for the conference was particularly opportune. On the November 20, the “health check” of the EU Common Agricultural Policy was adopted. This agreement includes alternatives to the ongoing easing of the classical market management policy tools, such as intervention and export subsidies. New measures will support developing insurances for both crop and animal productions and the creation of mutual funds. The Spanish agricultural insurance system, which is now 30 years old, is recognized as one of most developed and complete in the European Union. UPA is concerned about the medium-term future of this system, given the discrepancy between maximum coverage and the volume of financial support. In addition, a thorough cost-benefit analysis of the insurance systems is missing to face the crisis and this is crucial as insurances will be increasingly used in the future as an agricultural policy instruments. Management tools particularly adapted to cope with price risks, such as commodity futures, stabilisation funds, price and income insurance will also grow in importance in the farming business. IFAP will soon release information and policy documents on risk management in agriculture for its members. South African Food Security Experience South Africa did not experience major shifts in agricultural production recently, nevertheless imports of agricultural products increased significantly. Mainly due to world commodity price hikes impacting local prices, as well as a buoyant demand resulting from relatively high economic growth. Local food prices also increased considerably. General food prices increased by 18.3% for the year up to September 2008 mainly as a result of a combination of these factors. Grain products(34.7% price increase at retail level) and fats and oils(54.5%) were the main contributors to the observed price trends. Other food products like vegetables (0.3%) and meat (11.9%) displayed more moderate increases over the period. The National Economic and Labour Council (NEDLAC) of South Africa, a tripartate structure consisting of labour, business (including Agri SA) and government, analyzed indepth the impact of food prices on the poor and agreed upon the following: • A multi-stakeholder structure to be established to monitor prices and to make policy recommendations for government intervention; • A dedicated inquiry to be carried out into the value chains of basic food; • Increasing the coverage, scope and utilization of social relief grants as a short term measure; • Extending the National School Nutrition Program to Early Childhood development Centres and High Schools; and • Starter Packs to be issued to emerging farmers, extension services to be improved throughout the agricultural sector and road infrastructure to be improved. No agreement in NEDLAC could be reached on issues like nationalization of certain food chains and certain other direct controls proposed by the labour movement. The minister of Finance, Mr. Trevor Manuel, in his Medium Term budget policy statement delivered on October 21 2008 announced certain interventions in relation to food prices. For example: • Increases in the values of old age grants, child support grants, disability grants and care dependency grants by R20 per month each; and • Extra funding to school feeding schemes. The Minister indicated that R11 billion would be allocated over the next three years to deal with the short and long term implications of higher food prices. The need for a more comprehensive and focused approach towards structural problems in the local agricultural sector was brought to the forefront with the recent increases in food prices. This lead to a renewed emphasis on a trade, tariff and marketing policy for the local agricultural sector currently receiving attention also within the context of the South African strategic plan for the sector which was revised recently. Agri SA through various structures like the Presidential Working Group for Commercial Agriculture, is engaging with government on these matters. MEMBER ACTIVITIES january-february 2009 6 World Farmer Support for the Palestinian Agricultural Sector The Palestinian Farmers’ Union (PFU) have been collecting data regarding the agricultural losses in Palestine caused by attacks in the Gaza strip, citing significant losses. The siege on the Gaza Strip prevented the export of products and entry of seeds, fertilizers and other agricultural inputs. The PFU is asking for immediate material and moral support and called upon IFAP organizations to help in this regard. Confederazione Italiana Agricoltori (CIA), an IFAP member, is organizing on February 21 a local product market in support of the PFU with all proceeds going to the PFU special account for the rebuilding of their agricultural sector. The PFU itself is organizing a conference entitled, “The Agricultural Sector in Gaza between Reality and Challenges” to develop visions and project proposals for the sector. The conference will be held in Amman March 5-6 and aims to set emergency and rescue plans for the Arab and international organizations towards the reconstruction of the agricultural sector infrastructure in the Gaza Strip through the provision of working papers presented at the conference. For more data from the PFU on the losses, click here (their press release). To contact the PFU, Phone: + 970 2 -2971354 Fax: + 970 2 2971358 Email: info@pafu.ps INTERNATIONAL NEWS 2009 Humanitarian Action Report highlights climate change and food crisis The 2009 Humanitarian Action Report was launched in Geneva, Switzerland January 27 by the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF). The Report highlights the effects of Climate Change on women and children, noting that higher food prices and climate change are creating new levels of vulnerability. Higher food prices and climate change exacerbate other problems that children face, such as increasing their exposure to disease, forcing families to take extreme measures like sending children to work or having them marry young and displacement. UNICEF estimates that 175 million children will suffer from climate-related disasters in the next ten years. Some of the proposed measures to deal with this are outlined in the report, such as disaster risk reduction and emergency preparedness. To view a copy of the report, follow this link: http://www.unicef.org/har09/index.html WMO Bulletin Focuses on “Weather, Climate and the Air We Breathe” 29 January 2009: The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) released its latest Bulletin, which focuses on World Meteorological Day, to be celebrated on March 23 and focused on the theme: “Weather, climate and the air we breathe.” The Bulletin contains articles on air quality and its manifestation in urban and surrounding regions, coupling with weather and climate change, and the impact of pollutant deposition, including nitrogen, on the upper ocean. It opens with a message from WMO Secretary-General Michel Jarraud on the occasion of World Meteorological Day, in which he highlights critical linkages between weather, climate, air quality and human health. http://www.wmo.int/pages/publications/bulletin_en/ documents/58_1_message_en.pdf Farmers’ share of retail food dollar - US The National Farmers’ Union of the United States has put together a poster which displays the farmers’ share of the retail food dollar, exposing how little money trickles down to the farmer. For example, for 1 pound of sirloin steak sold at $7.99, the farmer receives $0.81; For ten pounds of potatoes sold at $3.99, $0.73 goes to the producer; An 18 ounce box of cereal sold at $4.49 means $0.09 for the farmer; 1 gallon of milk bought at $3.75 means $1.10 for the producer. According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), off-farm costs including marketing, processing, wholesaling, distribution and retailing account for 80 cents of every food dollar spent in the US. To view the poster and more examples, visit this link: http://www. ifap.org/en/publications/documents/farmershare.pdf Monthly Price and Policy Update (MPPU) from FAO The MPPU is a new information product provided by the oilseeds desk of the Trade and Markets Division of FAO. It reviews the development of international prices for oilseeds, oils and meals as reflected by FAO’s price indices and indicates important policy and market events around the world. The present issue covers developments observed in January 2009. To subscribe to this report, contact: peter.thoenes@fao.org january-february 2009 7 World Farmer Keep us informed … The IFAP Communications Department is continuously working to improve information exchange and dialogue among IFAP membership. If you have a particular issue, event, or document you would like to see in the WORLD FARMER, please share it with us. We would welcome and appreciate your contribution. Details for submissions • The article should be 300 - 500 words • If you have accompanying photos available, please send them as well (high resolution: approximately 300 DPI) • Articles should be in English, French or Spanish • Please submit articles to: jessica.goodfellow@ ifap.org. Call for photos… If you have photos from an event, from the field, or from your member organizations that you would like to include in the World Farmer, please share them with us. Instructions: • Photos should be high resolution (approximately 300 DPI). • Include a caption (names and a description of the photo). • Send your photos to: jessica.goodfellow@ifap. org The WORLD FARMER is edited by the Secretariat of the International Federation of Agricultural Producers and is available in English, French and Spanish. The newsletter can also be viewed at IFAP’s website: www.ifap.org Please send your comments and contributions to: neil.sorensen@ifap.org jessica.goodfellow@ifap.org 60, rue Saint Lazare 75009 Paris, France Tel.: +33 1 45 26 05 53 Fax.: +33 1 48 74 72 12 Note: Readers are welcome to further circulate or to copy this publication, provided the source is properly identified. ISSN: 1282-3554 january-february 2009 8