Programme spécial pour la sécurité alimentaire dans les pays à faible revenu et à déficit vivrier de la FAO
Les tendances
qui apparaissent dans de nombreux pays à faible revenu et à déficit vivrier
indiquent que depuis les années 70 la production alimentaire ne permet pas de
répondre aux besoins d'une population croissante. Dans la plupart de ces pays
cela se traduit par une forte hausse des importations de céréales et un recul de
la consommation alimentaire moyenne par habitant. Le service de la dette et les
problèmes de balance des paiements des PFRDV limitent leurs possibilités
d'importer des produits sur le marché mondial, et les lacunes de l'aide
alimentaire qui ne peut constituer une solution durable aux problèmes chroniques
d'approvisionnement sont largement reconnues.
Le Programme spécial pour la sécurité alimentaire (PSSA) est une initiative qui a été unanimement approuvée par le Conseil de la FAO à sa cent sixième session en mai-juin 1994 pour tenter de résoudre cette situation. Axé essentiellement sur les PFRDV, ce programme d'action est mis en oeuvre au niveau des pays pour accroître rapidement les disponibilités alimentaires globales, stabiliser la production et créer des emplois et des revenus dans l'agriculture et dans d'autres secteurs afin de stopper la courbe croissante de l'insécurité alimentaire et de la malnutrition. Ce programme englobera tous les PFRDV, actuellement au nombre de 82, dont 41 en Afrique subsaharienne.
El Programa Especial de la FAO para la seguridad alimentaria en los países de bajos ingresos con déficit de alimentos
Las tendencias
observadas en muchos países de bajos ingresos con déficit de alimentos (PBIDA)
indican que, desde los años setenta, la producción de alimentos no se ha
mantenido al paso con las necesidades de una población en crecimiento. A
consecuencia de ello se ha verificado, en la mayor parte de estos países, un
brusco aumento de las importaciones de cereales y una reducción del consumo
medio por habitante. Las obligaciones del servicio de la deuda, así como los
problemas de balanza de pagos que aquejan a los países en cuestión, limitan su
capacidad para importar alimentos adquiriéndolos en el mercado internacional;
por otra parte todos reconocen las deficiencias de la ayuda alimentaria como
solución duradera para los problemas crónicos del suministro de
alimentos.
El Programa Especial de seguridad alimentaria de la FAO es una iniciativa aprobada por unanimidad por el Consejo de la FAO en su 106º período de sesiones, celebrado en mayo-junio de 1994, a fin de responder a la situación mencionada. El Programa, que se dirige a los países de bajos ingresos con déficit de alimentos, está orientado a la acción a nivel nacional y tiene por finalidad lograr un rápido aumento de la disponibilidad global de alimentos, estabilizando la producción alimentaria y generando empleo e ingresos en la agricultura y en otros sectores, a fin de contener la difusión cada vez mayor de la inseguridad alimentaria y la malnutrición. El Programa abarcará todos los PBIDA; actualmente el número de éstos se eleva a 82, de los cuales 41 se encuentran en el Africa subsahariana.
Trends in many
low-income food-deficit countries (LIFDCs) show that food production since the
1970s has failed to keep pace with the needs of a growing population. This has
resulted in a sharp rise in cereal imports and a decline in average per caput
food consumption in most of these countries. Debt-servicing obligations and
balance-of-payments problems restrict their ability to import food on the world
market, and the shortcomings of food aid as a durable solution to chronic food
supply problems are widely recognized.
In 1994, the 106th Session of the FAO Council unanimously approved the Special Programme for Food Security (SPFS), a country-level action-oriented initiative aimed at rapidly increasing overall food availability, stabilizing food production and generating employment and income in the agricultural and other sectors in order to combat food insecurity and malnutrition. The programme will cover all LIFDCs, currently numbering 82, of which 41 are in sub-Saharan Africa.
Trends in many low-income food-deficit countries
(LIFDCs) show that food production since the 1970s has failed to keep pace with
the needs of a growing population. This has resulted in a sharp rise in cereal
imports and a decline in average per caput food consumption in most of these
countries. Debt-servicing obligations and balance-of-payments problems restrict
their ability to import food on the world market, and the shortcomings of food
aid as a durable solution to chronic food supply problems are widely
recognized.
As population grows, per caput availability of arable land will decrease even further. Thus, in order to meet the growing food requirements using diminishing land resources, there is a need to intensify agricultural production. "Agriculture has to meet this challenge, mainly by increasing production on land already in use and by avoiding further encroachment on land which is only marginally suitable for cultivation" (Agenda 21, Chapter 14.1)2. Agricultural production can best be intensified on
lands where sustainable agricultural production techniques have already been
introduced, or where modern husbandry methods may help to make more intensive
production sustainable.
In response to the above-mentioned challenge, in
May-June 1994 the 106th Session of the FAO Council unanimously approved the
Special Programme for Food Security (SPFS), a country-level action-oriented
initiative aimed at rapidly increasing overall food availability, stabilizing
food production and generating employment and income in the agricultural and
other sectors in order to stem the growing incidence of food insecurity and
malnutrition. The programme will cover all LIFDCs, currently numbering 82, of
which 41 are in sub-Saharan Africa.
The SPFS will be a crucial vehicle for
the implementation of the World Food Summit Plan of Action for food security in
LIFDCs at the individual, household and national levels. Its implementation
takes place in two phases: a pilot phase of about three years followed by an
expansion phase.
The Pilot Phase, which is made up of four interrelated and complementary components, is planned and implemented by the governments and rural communities concerned through the mobilization and training of local personnel and the supply of seeds, tools and equipment within the framework of people's participation and gender-sensitive activities. Technical and financial assistance is provided by national and international sources. The four components are as follows:
The expansion phase is made up of two components:
The SPFS therefore does not only deal with productivity, production and instability of supplies, but also trade and access to food (the other aspects of food security). However, without more stable and increased production when demand is growing, there may be a scarcity which can only be overcome by costly imports, making access more difficult, particularly for poor and vulnerable groups.
The SPFS has been implemented in 18 countries but is now being extended to other countries, as results have generally been positive and resources have become available. The main results of the programme in the initial ten countries participating in sub-Saharan Africa are summarized below.
In 1990 the Government of Burkina Faso set the enhancement of food security as one of its three objectives in formulating an agricultural adjustment programme. It was decided to formulate priority programmes and specific actions for the cereal subsector, especially rice and maize. In 1994 the need to raise rice output through irrigated and lowland cultivation and by introducing rainfed rice where possible was emphasized. It is within this context that the SPFS was devised. The pilot phase of the SPFS became operational in January 1995 in the regions of Comoé, Hauts Bassins and Mouhoun. The target crops are rice and maize. The yield of irrigated rice in 1996/97 is between 5 and 6.6 tonnes/ha which is under the target level of 7 tonnes/ha. A comparison carried out in only one of the sites indicated an increase of about 20 percent on demonstration plots compared with a control group. The yield of rainfed rice doubled in 1996/97 compared with the 2.4 tonnes/ha in 1995/96.
Increased food security in Eritrea requires widespread increases in food output that can be consumed or exchanged locally, not just an increase in the surplus available for sale in urban areas. Perhaps the most important long-term constraint on agricultural growth is the country's arid and variable climate. For this reason, programmes to reduce the drought sensitivity of agriculture will play a major role. The objectives of the SPFS converge with the Eritrean Government's food security policy and strategy, the aim of which is to raise the country's level of food security by increasing the production of staples for domestic consumption and high-value agricultural products for export. The pilot phase of the SPFS became operational in July 1995 in three agro-ecological zones: the central highlands, the western lowlands and the eastern lowlands. Target crops are teff, wheat, sorghum, barley and sesame. In 1995/96 (which was a year of drought) trial fields generally did better than local fields. However, the results were not economic. The preliminary results of the 1996/97 season are very positive, with yield increases of at least 100 percent.
Food insecurity and malnutrition are prevalent on a wide scale in Ethiopia. It is estimated that no less than 50 percent of the population is food-insecure, of which 75 percent consists of the rural poor and 25 percent of the urban poor. Transitory food insecurity is more common in drought-prone areas even among farmers with more resources and among pastoralists. The SPFS is designed within the framework of the Ethiopian Government's Agricultural Demand-Led Industrialization (ADLI) strategy which aims to use the agricultural sector as the base for overall socio-economic development. Central to this strategy is the enhancement of the productivity of small farmers and achievement in the medium term of food self-reliance at the national level. The pilot phase of the SPFS started in January 1995 in Wofla, Habra and Gonder Zuria districts. Target crops are teff, wheat, maize and sorghum. In 1995/96 yields in demonstration areas generally more than doubled, with an average value-cost ratio (VCR) of about 2.42 compared with neighbouring areas under traditional practices, showing the net income of participating farmers to have doubled.
The SPFS is consistent with the strategic agricultural development objectives as defined by Guinea's Agricultural Development Policy Letter (ADPL), which identifies the reduction of rice imports through the rehabilitation of local rice production as crucial to national food security and the surest means of maximizing farm incomes and re-establishing the balance of payments. A new ADPL (ADPL2) is being prepared in which specific reference is made to the Special Programme on Food Security. The SPFS became operational in May 1995 in the Guinea-Maritime and Haute Guinea regions. The target crop is rice. The 1995/96 crop output showed an increase in yield in the range of 71 to 146 percent compared with 1994/95. A cost-benefit analysis, although not conducted on a full scale, indicated a positive result. The 1996/97 harvest has been completed but the definite outcome is not yet known.
The economy continues to be dominated by agriculture, which accounts for 30 percent of GDP, employs 78 percent of the labour force and generates more than 60 percent of the value of exports. Food production has not kept pace with population growth, with cereal output per person being halved over the past 20 years. Almost 40 percent of the population is chronically undernourished and 46 percent of rural families live below the poverty line. With the high population growth (more than 3 percent per annum) projections to the year 2010 indicate that substantial increases in per caput food production will be required to avoid a widening deficit. There is a large convergence between the Kenyan Government's national and household food security policies and the approach followed by the SPFS. The SPFS became operational in January 1995, initially in Western region and progressively expanding to Central and Coast regions with rainfed soybean and maize-based systems, and to Eastern and Coast regions with an irrigation component. There are no measurable results yet for maize because the first full season of work with farmers was scheduled to begin in March 1997. Good results have been obtained from soybean.
The SPFS is fully in line with the Mauritanian Government's strategy for food security, which includes the rehabilitation and water control of existing irrigation schemes to increase rice, sorghum and maize production. The pilot phase of the SPFS started in June 1995 in Traza (Senegal River Valley), and has been extended to Gorgol, Brakna for irrigated agriculture. Target crops are rice (irrigated), vegetables, flood-recession maize and sorghum. In demonstration plots, rice output showed an increase of 24 to 32 percent compared with control fields, on average reaching as many as 7 tonnes/ha. The results of a cost-benefit analysis, conducted for fertilizer use only, appear to be positive.
The SPFS fits in with the integrated and participatory approach and components of the Niger's National Food Security Policy. The pilot phase started in May 1995 in Tillaberi and Maradi Departments. Target crops are millet, sorghum, rice and vegetables. In 1995 the rainfed areas showed a negative result owing to the drought in that year. The 1996 results for the rainfed areas showed an increase of 30 to 60 percent on the demonstration plots compared with control plots.
The SPFS is in line with the Government of Senegal's agricultural development policy, which gives priority to the improvement of food security. It stresses irrigation improvements, promotion of rainfed agriculture and increased meat and milk production in a participatory approach. The pilot phase of the SPFS started in January 1995 in the Casamance and Senegal River areas. Target crops are rice, millet, sorghum and maize. In 1995/96 rice yields on demonstration plots in the Senegal River Valley varied from 4.2 to 6.7 tonnes/ha. In the inland valleys of Kourouck, Sounaye and Banny of the Casamance sites, yields varied between 1.1 and 1.9 tonnes/ha. However, some farmers in Kourouck obtained yields of up to 4.5 tonnes/ha.
Food insecurity remains a big problem in the chronically food-deficit regions. Fifty-one percent of the population is estimated to live below the poverty line, and 85 percent of these poor are in rural villages. The SPFS was designed within the general framework of the Tanzania National Comprehensive Food Security Programme (CFSP). The pilot phase of the SPFS became operational in July 1995 in Dodoma and Morogoro regions. The target crops are maize and rice. The results showed that, compared with 1994/95, the 1995/96 rice production doubled on demonstration plots and maize production more than doubled.
Zambia's Agricultural Sector Investment Programme (ASIP) is the first of an intended series of four-year programmes aimed at implementing the government's medium- and long-term goals of improving national and household food security. The SPFS is to be implemented within the framework of ASIP. The pilot phase of SPFS started in August 1995 in Kalomo and Kaoma districts. The target crops are maize, bullrush millet, legumes and cassava. Farm budget studies for all demonstration areas are currently under way but the results for demonstration sites in the 1995/96 season show that there was a significant variation in yields of maize (from 1.2 to 7.4 tonnes/ha) and bullrush millet (0.024 to 1.2 tonnes/ha).
Implementation of the SPFS is expected to begin in 1997 in Angola, Mali and Mozambique, while formulation of the programme is also under way for Madagascar and is planned for a considerable number of other countries.
The SPFS started in 1994/95 with a modest allocation of
"seed" from FAO's Regular Programme budget. As resources become available from
external and national sources, a mix of inputs from participating governments,
FAO and donors are now supporting the programme. A number of bilateral and
multilateral donors are already supporting the programme. International
financial institutions are showing interest in a partnership whereby FAO would
provide the technical expertise and they would take the lead in socio-economic
and investment issues. Within this framework, Memoranda of Understanding have
been signed with the World Bank and the African Development Bank. Contacts have
been made with the Islamic Development Bank and more are planned with the
European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the European Investment Bank
and the European Development Fund. In addition, a number of bilateral donors
(Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Canada, Spain, France and Japan) are already
supporting or expected to begin supporting the programme soon, but still more
donors are needed. The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) is
the first member of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural
Research (CGIAR) to decide to participate in the SPFS, particularly in the study
of socio-economic constraints.
Moreover, a South-South Cooperation
initiative has been launched within the framework of the SPFS. Under this
arrangement, a large number of experts (roughly 100) are fielded from an
advanced developing country to another developing country to work from two to
three years with farmers and rural communities involved in the programme in
order to achieve a critical mass and create an impact.
This cooperation is
already under way in some countries, notably in Ethiopia, which is negotiating
cooperation with China whereby China would provide a large number of irrigation
experts, and in Senegal, where a total of 52 Vietnamese experts are expected.
The first nine Vietnamese experts have arrived in Senegal and 34 more will
arrive in the course of 1997.
India, Morocco and Brazil have stated their interest in participating in South-South cooperation by providing experts to other developing countries.
1Low-income food-deficit countries (LIFDCs) are defined as those countries with a per caput income in the range used by the World Bank for International Development Association (IDA) lending, and a negative cereals trade balance, averaged over the previous five years.
2 The Special Programme for Food Security (SPFS) draws on Agenda 21, unanimously adopted at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992.
