LE PRESIDENT:Nous allons pouvoir reprendre nos travaux.
Je signale, comme vous le savez, qu'hier la délégation de la Yougoslavie a, dans sa déclaration, lancé un appel en faveur de la reconstitution des fonds du FIDA. Cet appel a été transformé en projet de résolution actuellement en cours d'examen au niveau du Comité des résolutions. Après cet examen, à ce niveau, le projet de résolution nous sera transmis pour examen demain ou après-demain.
En outre, je voudrais porter à votre attention que, compte tenu du léger retard que nous avons pris sur nos travaux, ainsi qu'au niveau du Comité de rédaction, je vous demanderai d'être brefs dans vos interventions et au besoin de nous les transmettre, lorsque les déclarations sont suffisamment longues, pour que nous les insérions telles quelles à notre procès-verbal.
WU TIAN XI (China)(Original language-Chinese) : We have read with great pleasure documents C 81/21 and C 81/22 and listened to the interventions of nearly two dozen previous speakers. We are of the same opinion of those who have said that the development of food and agriculture constitutes a very important element in the international development strategy. This is because most of the developing countries, where the overwhelming majority of the world's population live, are virtually agricultural states, as was pointed out by Professor Islam in his summary of the Agenda item we discussed yesterday. In 70 developing countries the income gained from the export of agricultural commodities accounts for more than 50 percent of their total income from foreign trade. This is evidence enough to prove that the development of food and agriculture is crucial to the general enhancement of the national economy in developing countries, such as ours;thus it is an indispensable link in the establishment of a new international economic border in the International Development Strategy for the Third Development Decade, adopted at the last session of the United Nations General Assembly.
The Chinese delegation supports this Strategy, for we believe it will be of considerable significance in the development of our country's food and agricultural production in the years to come. What is left for us to do is to take necessary actions and measures aimed at achieving the various targets quoted in the Strategy. In this connection, I would like to take this opportunity to highlight two points concerning the regional and national developing strategy.
First, in C 81/22 some ways and means have been suggested to suit the different conditions in the various areas of developing countries, with emphasis on increase of food production. In Asia special efforts must be made to improve rice production, as we consider this to be essential. In 1980, rice in China accounted for 29 percent of the total grain area of the country, and provides 43 percent of the total grain output, including tubers and pulses, so it is very important for China to improve her rice production. However, more than half of her population still has other cereals for their staple food. As yield of coarse grain, tubers and pulses is still low and only limited inputs are required per unit area, there is room for increase in their production. Moreover, the by-products of coarse grain, root and tuber crops and pulses can be used as fuel and feed in rural areas. This is also the case with some other Asian countries. Increased production of these grains in accordance with the local conditions will therefore greatly facilitate the acceleration of the overall grain production.
Secondly, the question of population and employment is one that must be taken into consideration in implementing the International Development Strategy on Food and Agriculture. This is particularly important to many of us Asian countries. More population means more labour resources, an important factor for the promotion of development. But more population also gives rise to employment problems, and if not handled properly, there will be a large flow into the cities, thus creating many social problems. So it is imperative, first of all, to control population growth through family planning and, at the same time, solve the employment problem of the rural population. To "encourage rural industrialization" as mentioned in Para. 95 of Document C 81/21 is a very good solution to the problem of employment. Since the 1960s, China has set up 1. 4 million communes and brigade-run enter prises which have absorbed more than 30 million of the rural labour force and turned out a large quantity of products to serve agricultural production and people's livelihood in the countryside. The income from these enterprises accounts for one third of the total revenue of the rural people's communes, thus not only increasing the income of the commune members but also accumulating funds for production development. Besides, the state also gives support to the commune members in running side line occupations and restores and introduces hundreds of channels for production. Practice has proved that to develop a diversified economy and engage in comprehensive development in rural areas is an important approach in accelerating the development of the rural economy.
Thirdly, to strengthen the existing international agricultural research centres and establish a regional and sub-regional agricultural research network is an important aspect for the promotion of technical cooperation among developing countries and the realization of the International Develop ment Strategy objectives. We would like to suggest that FAO carry out a special study of this issue and put forward concrete measures.
M, BUENO GOMEZ (España): Siguiendo sus recomendaciones acerca de la brevedad de las intervenciones y en la línea expuesta ayer por el Dr. Islam de completar en lo posible los documentos que estamos ana lizando, la delegación española considera que debería hacerse alguna mención a los problemas de la sub-región de la Europa meridional en el documento C/81/22, en el apartado que se refiere a Riego y Ordena ción de Aguas.
En efecto, es cierto que los problemas de riego y ordenación de aguas no son hoy en Europa comparables a los que se presentan en otras regiones, pero es seguro que se van a producir en la Europa meridional situaciones conflictivas en relación con el uso alternativo de aguas para la agricultura y otros secto res, debido a cuestiones de polución y ecológicas.
Podría, pues, ser oportuno señalar esta situación en el citado documento. Además, los esfuerzos que pue dan realizarse durante los años 80 en esta subregión de Europa, para desarrollar técnicas de ahorro o para utilización de aguas de riego, podrían ser de gran utilidad para la contribución de Europa a otras regiones en plan de desarrollo.
C. FRENCH (United States of America): We have been asked to comment on the UN International Development Strategy for the Third Development Decade and also about regional and national development strategies. However, since our views on the International Development Strategy formulated by the UN are a matter of record, we will not dwell on them here. We believe however that it would be useful for the next FAO Conference in 1983 to consider a report on the progress made in the agricultural sector, in order to aid the UN General Assembly in its review of this matter which is scheduled for 1984.
We commend Dr. Islam and the Secretariat for taking the initiative to prepare document C 81/22, which appropriately makes a succint statement introducing various important components of a regional or na tional development strategy, which could not be highlighted within the necessarily limited agenda of the conference overall. Further, we commend the Secretariat for its attempt to draw regional inferen ces about development areas-a task which we recognize as laden with difficulties and possible contro versies.
The document touches upon so many elements of development strategy that this must leave it open for criticism from dissenting fora and to challenges to the relative priorities which it gives. We think it prudent for this forum to resist the varied posibilities for criticism generally, and to concentra te on the guidance given by the paper for priorities generally. It would be a worthy goal for this forum to attempt to sharpen the priorities at both national and regional level.
The document makes a good start, but could be enriched by discussion with these priorities in mind. We ourselves would wish that at the national level the paper did more specific linking of foreign policies and food policies in an integrated approach to increasing food supplies and improving distri bution generally. We would have liked to see the report distinguish very carefully between research and operational development matters.
The Strategy next implies a need to gain information of a political, social and technical nature. How ever, the paper tends to speak more as if it was setting an agenda for needed research. Many of the research needs are set out in various documents such as the US National Academy of Science-World Food and Nutition in 1977 and its related volumes on individual research matters.
Document C 81/22 could well be improved by comparingit against such documents, and relating specific research priorities to the areas. The analysis in the Report is heavily weighted on production and we generally think that is appropriate. However, we would have liked more emphasis on non-technological matters, for example paragraphs 59-72 singled out fertilizers and waters as being of particular and direct importance in gaining additional crop production-one can hardly quarrel with that. But failing to emphasize incentives to producers with specific regard to such matters as agrarian reform and farm price incentives leaves much unsaid, but not everything can be covered in a paper like this, but more emphasis on non-technological matters and agrarian reform would have enriched the document.
Ms. W. B. EIDE (Norway): The United Nations International Development Strategy for the Third Development Decade is a document of basic importance. It is a comprehensive, positive and long-term framework for our common goal to foster a global development.
The strategy must be seen as a whole, its goals and objectives and policy measures aiming at develop ment in general. Therefore a number of paragraphs that are not explicity dealing with food and agri culture nevertheless are of direct relevance to these problems.
Paragraph 8 of the preamble states that the primary responsibility for the development in the Third World rests upon the developing countries themselves. The international community must, however, take effective supportive action. This is of course evident but nevertheless represents an important guide line for our work.
The special goals and objectives and policy measures for food and agriculture that is contained in the IDS, cover essentially the entire field of food and agriculture and a wealth of policy directives. Together with the Programme of Action of the World Conference of Agrarian Reform and Rural Development, the conclusions and recommendations of the 1981 Session of the World Food Council, and the highly rele vant material contained in FAO's important work on "Agriculture Towards 2000", we have indeed been equipped with basic advice. The question of global negotiations has for quite some time been very thoroughly discussed. I will not at all get involved in this issue but simply state our view that glo bal negotiations should be started as soon as possible by the United Nations.
With regard to the prospects for progress in the field of food and agriculture, my delegation also appreciates the prominence given to matters of food and agriculture in the summary from the meeting in Cancun. This is both a support and a challenge to member states as well as to FAO and other relevant UN bodies, active in the field of food and agriculture.
An important dimension of the IDS is that it provides a total basic philosophy to steer this development and its various components. I would like to dwell somewhat with certain aspects of this basic philo sophy which should not only remain cosmetic to the document. It needs to be seriously considered in relation to each component and traslated into the respective terminologies.
While IDS reminds us that development is an extremely mixed process, is also gives guidance as to cer tain critical elements of development that must take place simultaneously in order to achieve real results in relation to the overall goal:to improve the lives, well-being and dignity of all people in the world.
The IDS points to three fundamental elements of development: economic growth, productive employement and social equity. We could also think of them as building blocks of development. If so, however, they would have to be building blocks that interlock with each other, not blocks to be put one on top of the other. This was the way we believed development could be built in earlier decades:first, growth, then jobs, the social equity.
Today many of us believe that all this must occur in parallel, and in an integrated way, rather than as disparate and successive steps. My delegation therefore welcomes the emphasis of the IDS on the indivi sibility on the three fundamental elements. It provides an impetus to rethink some of the modalities wherby development should take place.
Of course, we must be conscious that different goals such as economic growth and social equity may some times be contradictory. It is obviously the task of governments to balance such possible contradictions, taking into account the special conditions in each country. What will the IDS and the recent Cancun statement mean in terms of the approach of FAO and other institutions dealing with food supply and nu trition in the 1980s?
My delegation would like to pose certain questions concerning how the basic philosophy of the IDS can be translated into the most appropriate framework for practical action concerning agriculture, food and nutrition.
The summit, of Cancun reiterated that hunger should be eradicated by the year 2000. As the distinguished delegate from India pointed out yesterday,back in 1974, at the World Food Conference, the goal was set for 10 years from then, that is, 3 years from now. It is however well documented that the situtation regarding hunger and malnutrition in the world is actually worsening in many areas. It is of particular concern that, the situation is still as bad, or sometimes worse, in areas where food production has increased in relation to population growth. '
How can we avoid another failure to fulfill the goals within the time frame set? Is it enough that the time frame has been moved forwards and even been extended?
My delegation believes that some fundamental self-critical questions have to be posed by the world community. Why are we now further from the goal we set in 1974 than then? It is not enough, we think, to ask for more political will. We must also reconsider the modalities of the development efforts, including in the field of food.
Could it be that we used to work with separate building blocks which did not interlock, and which there fore remained separate and sometimes wide apart? Were the plans for increased agricultural production linked to plans for how the products were going to be consumed, and by whom, guided by a principle of productive employment and social equity? Or did production targets remain goals in themselves while the other goals were left for other sections to handle?Could it be that irreversable processes thereby were set in motion, which made it impossible to implement goals for social equity, because the way in which production was steered, in fact, might deepen social un-equity?
My delegation would like to commend FAO for its willingness to consider a number of questions from a new angle. For example, in Chapter 4 of Review of Food Programme and many other points. May I also recall our own Minister of Agriculture who, in his official statement to the Conference, stressed that we must be receptive to new ways of thinking, and that imagination and new ideas are needed to meet the problems encountering the world today.
It is of course important that new thinking is not restricted to theory and hypothetical situations, but rather develop in close relationship to practical tasks. This is always easier when new ventures are embarked upon: for example, the Cancun meeting reiterated the idea of defining and implementing national food strategies, as launched by the World Food Council. These strategies are supported to encompass the entire food system of a country. Norway has had some hesitations in accepting this concept as being anything new beyond the food and nutrition policies that we talked about in the 1970s. However, the food strategies seem to have come to stay, and the task then is to see to it that they do generate new ways of "thinking food". We maintain that this can best be done in the context of the WCARRD recommendations. The most promising specific element of the food strategies as they have hitherto been defined, seems to us to be the weight put on linking production to consumption. In the language of the, IDS development philosophy, this would in principle be the same as linking growth to social equity.
How is it theoretically and practically possible to do so? It is not for us to give the answer, and, as we all know, a universal answer does not exist. However, we believe that a greater attention to consumption needs as the point of departure for national plans or strategies, rather than isolated production targets, could help us along. The production, or rather, supply targets, would thus be fitted to the consumption needs, and a stepwise harmonization between consumption and different types of production could be realized.
How then would consumption needs be defined? We are not thinking in terms of calories and protein primarily. Maybe nutritionists in the past have done more harm than good by offering to the planners such a limited set of norms for consumption. Calories and proteins reflect physiological needs, but demand is not primarily determined by physiological needs.
Consumption patterns have a much more complex basis: they are formed as a result of many factors, relating to a country's cultural heritage, social and economic structure, ecological resource base and technological skills and experience. Furthermore, consumption patterns are intimately related to the experiences, skills and priorities of women as procurers of food for the family. The relative strength between the various factors will vary depending on each different situation. But a better understanding of how they interplay will help in understanding also changes in consumption patterns. It is within such a framework that we should consider, for example, what happens to consumption in the process of modernization, urbanization and an increasing inter-dependence between countries and cultures.
My delegation was extremely pleased to see this point taken up in the Third Progress Report on International Agricultural Adjustment that we have recently discussed in this Commission, more particularly in connection with guideline 4. The document pointed out that major changes in traditional consumption patterns tend to follow urbanization. This is an area, it was said, to which governments seem to have given too little attention.
We would add that nor do they seem particularly concerned with a closely linked problem: that of import of unfamiliar and expensive types of foods, which also are often of low nutritional value. Such products from the industrialized countries are increasingly flooding the markets in the Third World. We also know that certain types of food aid may tend to work in the same direction. It is inevitable that this, in the long run, creates new values, new preferences and new demands. This will in turn, we believe, affect the overall supply both from import and domestic production.
For those who can afford it, it may at best mean a shift to the kind of dietary diseases prevailing in the rich countries. For the poor, in addition to their already low purchasing power, it means a risk of breakdown of consumption patterns that used to guide their choice of food products, and that to some extent protected them nutritionally.
The example of breast milk versus commercial babyfood is but a token example of a much deeper problem. That example has found at last a partial solution in the recent adoption by members of WHO of an international code of conduct for the marketing of commercial babyfoods. The joint FAO/WHO CODEX Alimentarius Commission formulated in 1979 a code of ethics for international trade in food in general, the latter having obtained much less attention.
To sum up, in any case here we are faced with a new global problem, and one which is about to affect food consumption and production patterns all over the world. If we want to preserve diversity in consumption and demand, and thereby the basis for diversified food production, we need to give the issue I have raised maximum attention from the beginning of this decade. There are no doubt national and regional differences in the degree of vulnerability of food cultures to external influences. It would be most useful if the Secretariat could consider the preparation of a special document that reflects the problem I have raised, for example, before the meeting of the Committee on Agriculture in 1983..
MAZLAN bin JUSOH (Malaysia): I would like to compliment the Secretariat for preparing an excellent document and to congratulate Professor Islam on his clear and concise introduction to this agenda item. The documents C 81/21 and C 81/22, which to my mind are inter-related, elaborate the major elements of a world food and agricultural strategy in a most comprehensive manner, with the latter, that is document C 81/22, specifically defining the major issues concerning regional and national development strategies.
We are in agreement with the intent of paragraph 5 of document C 81/22 which emphasises the need for countries to give priority to agriculture. Increasing food and agricultural production is a major responsibility of all countries, especially the developing ones. Measures taken by the international agencies to increase food production should be complimented and supported by the efforts of the countries themselves. While global and regional strategies provide the basic guidelines for national food production programmes, the final responsibility for implementing these programmes falls squarely on the countries themselves. External aid and assistance would only help in ensuring that national development efforts are sustained.
Malaysia has been, and is, giving high priority to agriculture in its development plan. With regard to the production of rice, the staple crop, our objective is to achieve a higher level of self-sufficiency above the current level. This sector of our agriculture is therefore given due emphasis through increased investment and the development of infrastructure such as drainage and irrigation works, storage and handling facilities. Subsidies and other supporting services have been increased together with research in the development of high-yielding varieties and prevention of post-harvest losses.
With regard to fisheries, the new changing regime of the sea provides us with the opportunity to increase our fish production to meet domestic consumption demand. However, due to increased distances and depths of water, a higher level of technology is needed to optimise exploitation of the fish stocks within our Exclusive Economic Zone waters. It is heartening to note that FAO has already initiated the formation of various sub-regional, action-oriented committees on the Development and Management of Fisheries, such as the Committee for the Development and Management of Fisheries in the South China Sea and the Committee for the Development and Management of Fisheries in the Bay of Bengal.
We hope that the FAO through such committees will be able to provide the necessary technical back-up for countries to undertake essential activities such as resource studies, monitoring, planning and management of fish stocks within their Exclusive Economic Zones.
Cooperation among neighbouring countries with contiguous water bodies is essential in the management of shared fish stocks. Perhaps FAO through these committees for Management of Fisheries, could help in the establishement of common user research facilities for the use jointly or individually by members of these committees.
For higher fish production we also look towards aquaculture to supplement our protein needs. In this field, most countries are still handicapped by lack of technology in mass fry production, intensive culture techniques and formulating of feed using local materials. Efforts on these aspects should be further intensified.
As alluded to earlier, the document on Regional and National Development Strategies highlights in a
very selected manner a few important issues which will be useful when Member Countries formulate their
development strategies at the country level, or decide to undertake cooperative programmes and policies
at the regional level.
My delegation shares the view of Yugoslavia that in view of the contributions made through various studies, as well as through on-going deliberations in various FAO fora on food and agricultural problems and strategies, we hope that, if and when the global negotiations are under way, FAO will have an active role to play. Within the framework of global negotiations at the United Nations, as well as a part of such negotiations and appropriately linked with these, we hope the technical discussions or negotiations on the food and agricultural sector can be held at FAO. FAO is the UN specialized agency for Food and Agriculture, equipped with a large body of experts and supported by its various specialized committees, the CFS, CCP and CFA. Advantage could be taken of the voluminous fund and expertise that are available within the Organization.
SHIN-HARENG HUH (Republic of Korea): I would like to extend my appreciation to the Secretariat for the preparation of the selected issues on regional and national development strategies. I believe that the Secretariat has documented well a series of issues which are likely to assume increasing importance in the next decade as countries attempt to achieve agricultural development objectives. However, I would like to make brief comments on some of the issues concerned.
First of all, all the issues can be more systematically elaborated by classifying regions and/or countries into several stages of agricultural development, because problems and issues differ depending upon the development stages of regions and individual countries. The classification of development stages with various issues would help Member Countries to set up workable strategies without undergoing trial and error. Therefore I hope the Secretariat will consider the re-arrangement of the issues by classification based on the stages of agricultural development.
Secondly, as some delegates pointed out earlier, it would be better for countries to have integrated development strategies instead of separate strategies, because most of them are inter-related, so that higher efficiency and cost saving can be achieved by integrating some or most of the strategies under consideration.
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Thirdly, FAO can play a greater role in Member Countries' agricultural development by providing analytical works on research and development in relation to past issues and problems that advanced countries have already experienced. When developing countries face new problems and issues arising from their own agricultural sectors they usually waste time in trying to figure out the nature of the problems and finding solutions for them which become, most of the time, problem areas that developed countries have already dealt with.
Fourthly, as many delegates have already pointed out, training manpower and the development of high-yielding varieties should have high priority on issues. These areas will become very important especially in densely populated countries like Korea.
Fifthly, I believe that all the issues of economic and technical cooperation among developing countries will be increasingly important in the coming decade, because these can be an effective and inexpensive means of drawing on the experience of similarly placed countries and in the higher-income countries/ regions. In addition, cooperation among Member Countries in trading raw materials as well as manufac tured goods will be necessary to improve self-reliance in food in those developing and least develo ping countries which lack natural resources.
Finally, I would like to stress the importance of the agricultural marketing area in the coming decade, because it easily becomes a bottleneck as many developing countries attempt to develop their agricul tural sectors while striving for industrialization. Therefore an efficient marketing system is defi nitely necessary for farmers to get fair prices for their products, and hence they can be stimulated for quick adjustment to changing circumstances and for an increase in production.
K. OULAI (Côte-d'Ivoire): Ma delegation félicite le secrétariat pour la clarté des documents qui nous ont été soumis. Elle apprécie les analyses faites et les orientations indiquées. Elle souhaite que toutes les parties, à la recherche de l’autosuffisance alimentaire mondiale, puissent appliquer toutes ces directives qui sont très importantes pour l'humanité. Ma délégation voudrait seulement faire un commentaire sur quelques points du document C 81/22.
La recherche sur la riziculture: la riziculture irriguée est sans doute la forme qui a bénéficié de gros efforts de recherche; les résultats obtenus permettent d'affirmer que la recherche doit avoir une place capitale dans le développement agricole. Le riz irrigué présente des avantages certains: faible sensibilité aux aléas climatiques, rendements élevés, deux cycles annuels dans certaines conditions. Quant à la riziculture pluviale, elle est sensible aux aléas climatiques et les variétés disponibles ont de faibles rendements et des cycles longs. Ce type de riziculture n'a pas bénéficié des efforts qu'elle mérite eu égard à l'importance des surfaces qu'elle occupe et au nombre des producteurs touchés, plus particulièrement en Afrique.
Ma délégation souhaiterait que des efforts soient soutenus et accrus dans le cadre de la recherche sur le riz pluvial, La Côte-d'Ivoire, quant à elle, accorde déjà une place importante au riz pluvial dans ses programmes de recherche, convaincue que cela présente un intérêt capital pour l'Afrique.
Le prix d'achat aux producteurs: un prix rémunérateur au producteur est un stimulant important, mais tout prix fixé doit s'accompagner d'une garantie d'achat par une organisation efficace de la collecte. En effet, on a pu constater des prix fixés sur certains produits qui n'ont jamais eu d'effet parce que la collecte était mal organisée ou que l'organisation était inexistante. Le paysan, dans tous les cas, ne produira que s'il a intérêt à le faire. Cet intérêt, dans un système monëtarisé, réside dans le revenu qu'il se procure grâce à sa production.
Agriculture traditionnelle: une importance doit être accordée au petit producteur qui est l'acteur principal du développement dans les pays sous-développés.
Le document souligne à juste titre le problème de l'agriculture de demain dans laquelle le paysan n'acceptera pas les conditions actuelles de production. Les jeunes déscolarisés de nos pays auraient pu être orientés vers l'agriculture qui semble être le lieu pour créer le plus d'emplois, mais cela signifie que l'on modifie les conditions de travail afin que l'agriculture leur procure un revenu intéressant. Il faudra les former, les aider pour leur installation, leur apporter un certain nombre d'avantages (crédits à terme plus long, détaxation du matériel, etc. ). Cette action, à notre avis, doit concerner aussi bien les femmes que les hommes. En effet, la femme a toujours joué un rôle très important dans la production alimentaire.
Stockage: le stockage demeure un élément important. Ma délégation pense qu'il faudra améliorer le système de stockage au niveau du producteur lui-même, afin qu'il puisse se prémunir contre les aléas. Toutefois, ce type de stockage ne pourra pas retenir les produits mobilisables rapidement pour les villes. C'est pour cela qu'il faudra sans doute un autre type de stockage au niveau national qui sera la garantie pour les consommateurs non producteurs. Ce stock sera d'autant moins élevé que le stockage au niveau du paysan sera bien organisé. La disponibilité d'un stock permettra également de jouer sur les flambées de prix de certaines denrées non conservables lorsqu'elles manquent sur le marché. Mais tout n'étant pas stockable, il faut transformer. Cette transformation permettra sans doute aux autres produits alimentaires locaux de mieux répondre aux exigences de la consommation urbaine qui est de plus en plus importante.
Ma délégation apprécie l'idée de lutte contre la mouche tsé-tsé pour favoriser l'élevage bovin. Toutefois, eu égard aux essais réalisés en Côte-d'Ivoire, ma délégation souhaite que l'action soit menée sur une zone très vaste pour éviter les problèmes de réinfestation à partir des régions hors programme. L'expérience du programme onchocercose doit être prise en compte dans l'action à mener contre la mouche tsé-tsé,
J. B, JACKMAN (New Zealand): My delegation wishes to respond to Dr. Islam's call for comments on the agricultural policy issues following the lead of document C 81/22. Essentially we believe agricultural policy should focus on the environment, social and economic, in which farmers operate, as opposed to specific technical advances. Agricultural policy makers have to create a climate for growth against a background of competing claims for resources from other sectors. A four percent growth target as adopted in the UN International Development Strategy is a very challenging goal. Targets of this high order are very difficult to sustain, and to achieve them technical advances must be adopted without delay and this is why the environment becomes so important. Growth means change and change requires resources. However, an individual farmer will not change unless he is convinced both he and his depen dants will gain from that change. Where family standards or survival may be compromised by change the farmer will be especially cautious. If farmers are not taking what appear to be worthwhile opportunities then on closer examination we can expect to find obstacles to change from the farmers' point of view. No one purposely chooses a second best way without a good reason. Our success as agricultural policy makers will be measured by the extent to which we can modify the conditions which cause these real or imagined obstacles.
The key to to increasing production or improving efficiency is, first of all, to recognise opportunities. Worthwhile opportunities are usually based on some local advantage or skill or on a thorough analysis of the strength and weakness of a production system. Further research and development will be required to transform an opportunity into a reality. As problems arise, they have to be solved. The ideal is a partnership between farmers, researchers, and marketeers. Farmers possess a wealth of experience and they will respond to the stimulus and support of professional helpers if they are taken into an equal partnership with them. Some research workers distance themselves from farmers. To them, I say "you will not discover the real problems of farmers unless you first look where the problems are on the farms and within the farming community". Research and extension are important components of the development process but this process should begin and end on the farm. Greater adherence to this principle would improve the effectiveness of research and place it more integrally into the whole development process. We all face the problem of escalating costs of production, particularly in inputs like fertiliser.
While we might feel tempered to insulate producers from the impact of higher fertiliser prices, the only lasting solution is to redouble efforts to use fertiliser more efficiently. Adjustment to new circumstan ces is always painful, but usually less painful if tackled immediately. Input subsidies can only be justi fied if farmers undervalue the input in some way or if other national objectives such as the balance of payments benefit indirectly.
There is also a temptation to insulate local farmers from the full impact of international competition. As the pressure for change is reduced, the local producers will probably become less and less competitive. We believe a measure of international competition helps spur local producers to greater efficiency. Competition encourages change.
There are some elements of agricultural policy which need some firm government initiative, for example, action to stimulate or to promote structural change in land tenure or irrigation and drainage projects. New Zealand is unusual among nations for its purposeful efforts to give young farmers management responsi bility early in their career. We believe this factor contributes to adaptability and to the acceptance of new ideas.
My delegation would also like to express our view on regional development policies. A regional approach to agricultural development is useful in that it highlights the diversity of developing country situations and effectively isolates the common problems which must be tackled. In our view, however, two difficulties are posed by the type of selective regional analysis employed by FAO.
First the danger exists that byemploying this type of approach to food questions, the scope for improving the food situation of certain developing countries through increased inter-regional trade in food products will be neglected. Some may infer from the FAO analysis that domestic food produc tion must be increased at almost any cost. For the poorest developing countries, however, it is a fact that the expansion of food imports is not a viable option. Constraints on the availability of foreign exchange mean that these countries must attempt to increase food production from domestic sources. On the other hand, increased food imports can be contemplated by middle income developing countries which have increasing per capita incomes and rising demand for such products as livestock and fish. Some of these countries, especially those in South East Asia and the Near East, have a comparative advantage in the production of minerals or manufactured products and domestic food produc tion can be increased only under extremely high cost conditions. Increased food imports by these countries will benefit not only their own populations but also the food exporting countries.
Second, the analysis concentrates entirely on the continental areas of Africa, Asia, and Latin America, and appears to ignore the prospects for agricultural development in regions comprising island developing countries. The South Pacific region is one region which warrants increased attention in this respect. With the exception of Fiji, between 50 percent and 85 percent of the labour force of South Pacific continue to be engaged in subsistence agriculture largely comprising the shifting cultivation of root crops. Impediments to increasing agricultural production include high transport costs for inputs such as fertiliser and the region's extreme vulnerability to natural disasters. However, as the populations of South Pacific countries are growing at rates of between 2 percent and 3. 5 percent per annum, the issues involved in increasing food production must be faced squarely in the near future.
New Zealand generally endorses the validity of the regional approach to development and it is for this reason that as a country with limited ODA resources we concentrate almost 70 percent of our bilateral aid in the South Pacific region. As South Pacific island states face special and pressing problems, New Zealand would welcome increased emphasis by FAO on the problems of the region.
B. D. COLY (Senegal): Je voudrais tout d'abord, M. le Président, et cela parce que je prends la parole pour la première fois au niveau de cette Commission, vous féliciter, vous et vos proches collaborateurs que sont les deux vice-présidents, pour votre brillante élection, en souhaitant cependant, ainsi que vous l'avez fait d'ailleurs durant tous nos travaux, que les débats qui vont générer ici des décisions que nous souhaitons opérationnelles puissent être mis en oeuvre effectivement.
Je voudrais précisément faire un commentaire à deux niveaux, d'abord au niveau que l'on pourrait appeler un peu philosophique dans la mesure où nous avons le sentiment que les idées ne manquent pas à la communauté internationale pour voir comment combattre la pauvreté à travers notre planète. Nous pensons qu'en fait nous sous-estimons notre capacité, la capacité de la communauté internationale à éradiquer la pauvreté sur cette planète; nous la sous-estimons dans la mesure où, dans des situations quasi-similaires et précédentes, la communauté internationale a su faire montre d'idées ou de foi pour mettre au point des plans opérationnels qui ont sauvé une bonne partie de notre société.
Je veux parler entre autres du plan Marshall, qui, après la seconde guerre mondiale, a permis à une bonne partie de notre planète d'être tirée d'une situation qui est pratiquement similaire à celle d'aujourd'hui. Peut-être que les raisons, les causes de cette situation ne sont plus tout à fait les mêmes. J'évoque plus simplement ce plan sur la base de l'approche philosophique qui a animé les concepts de l'oeuvre et des artisans de cette oeuvre de solidarité humaine. Il faut donc tout simple ment que la communauté internationale, que ce soit pour les pays développés ou les pays en développe ment, soit animée d'une volonté politique et pratique pour venir à bout de la misère à travers notre planète. Les documents qui nous ont été distribués ont généralement établi qu'il faudrait entreprendre d'une façon positive pour aller de l'avant, c'est-à-dire lutter contre la faim et la malnutrition dans le monde. Mais malheureusement ils ne font pas assez état des mesures qu'il faut pour les combat tre et des attitudes qu'il faut prendre, parce que ces attitudes sont précisément ce qui va nous per mettre d'aller de l'avant. Le discours de M. le Directeur général de la FAO dans son introduction de la conférence McDougall a été clair là-dessus. Il s'agit des attitudes nationales ou de sous-groupes qui n'ont que la vertu de retarder notre objectif commun, il s'agit simplement du protectionnisme, de l'inflation que l'on voudrait bien faire croire n'être qu'une fatalité et autres artifices qui ne sont pas propres à nous aider dans notre marche en avant.
Nous estimons aussi, et nous avons remarqué, que dans le document qui nous est soumis la valorisation et la formation de l'homme ont été quelque peu sous-estimées et même largement sous-estimée dans le document C 81/21 relatif à la stratégie mondiale pour le développement. On n'a pratiquement pas un chapitre sur la formation de l'homme, or l'homme est précisément le premier facteur de production alimentaire quelque soit d'ailleurs le but économique et social. Nous estimons que ce niveau de dévelop pement aurait dû ne pas être noyé; c'est un aspect fondamental de la production alimentaire, de la sécurité alimentaire dans des chapitres tels que la Conférence internationale. En tous cas c'est ce que nous avons relevé dans ce document.
Nous avons également conscience qu'en faisant appel à la communauté et à ses efforts les pays à assister constituent en fait le substratum de ces efforts et doivent assurer en toute plénitude leur responsa bilité entière, à savoir, prendre une part active dans l'oeuvre qui est commune. Cela ne devant en aucune façon exclure la solidarité internationale. C'est seulement en tenant compte de ces idées que nous pensons que la communauté internationale peut en venir à bout parce qu'elle en a les moyens et nous avons eu des précédents pour venir à bout de la misère et de la pauvreté sur notre planète. Enfin, nous allons passer à quelques détails qui ont trait au document C 81/21 notamment en ce qui concerne la formation. J'en ai parlé tout à l'heure dans le document C 81/22 également au paragraphe 20' il est fait allusion, à propos des fonds des grandes vallées, d'une approche par projets, laquelle approche, à notre avis, nous paraît, et cela n'est pas spécifique à l'aménagement des grandes vallées, bien moins performante qu'une approche par filière, c'est-à-dire une approche qui aborde toutes les questions, toutes les opérations d'amont en aval, qui vont de l'approvisionnement en intrants agricoles ou même en équipement de production jusqu'à la tranformation et même la vente au consommateur du produit obtenu. Nous donnons la préférence pour une telle approche. Nous avons noté dans ce même document qu'au para graphe 22 du document C 81/22 il y a une mention de l'augmentation si nécessaire et nous soulignons "si nécessaire" de la production des cultures vivrières de base qui est à souligner en Afrique et dépendra non seulement de progrès essentiellement techniques mais également de considérations économiques et culturelles. En fait nous voudrions appeler l'attention de la Commission sur la mention "si nécessaire" parce qu'il faut savoir si ces cultures vivrières sont de base ou non et si elles sont de base nous ne pensons pas qu'il faille faire mention de "si nécessaire", tellement l'approche nous apparaît fondamentale.
Enfin nous voudrions aussi, en ce qui concerne l'élevage, qu'en Afrique comme dans d'autres pays et dans d'autres régions il soit souhaitable d'envisager l'augmentation de la ration en protéines nobles des populations en misant également sur les productions animales d'origine volaille parce que dans le document qui nous est mis à disposition on insiste sur le gros bétail, notamment les bovins, et nous estimons que le cycle concernant la volaille étant nettement plus court il serait certainement judicieux d'appeler sur cet aspect l'attention de la FAO, autrement dit de mettre l'accent sur la production de volailles. Enfin, à propos des engrais aux paragraphes 60 à 67 du document C 81/22 nous avons constaté que le recours à d'autres formes d'engrais que les engrais chimiques est mentionné dans une phrase bien nette. Il s'agit notamment du recours aux engrais organiques, biologiques et même à des opérations d'amendement calcique qui peuvent s'imposer dans certaines zones et dans certaines conditions de production. D'autant plus que le document le fait ressortir, le coût d'instal lation des unités de production d'engrais chimiques est généralement prohibitif. Nous estimons que, pour préserver le potentiel de productivité du substratum de production qu'est le sol, nous devons mettre l'accent sur les engrais organiques, biologiques et également les engrais spécifiques tels que les amendements calciques et à ce niveau il s'agira essentiellement d'opérations de réhabilitation de sols. Le cas de mon pays est là pour en témoigner puisque par l'intensification de cultures pluviales sur des sols sableux nous assistons aujourd'hui à une acidification croissante de ces sols sableux. Il s'agira donc de réhabiliter par des amendements calciques ces sols et à l'avenir les préserver d'une dégradation de leur niveau de fertilité en leur ajoutant une des formules de fertilisation plus intégrale aussi bien par la compensation des exportations des cultures et également du maintien sinon du renchérissement du niveau de fertilité des sols. Voilà ce que j'avais à dire.
H. HAUSER (Austria) (Original language German):Like many preceding speakers, I would like on behalf of the Austrian delegation to thank the FAO Secretariat for the preparation and submission of the two excellent documents C 81/21 and 22. At the same time I would also like to thank Professor Islam for his very·constructive and analytical introduction to those documents. Very many excellent and remark able contributions have been made to this discussion yesterday afternoon and this morning, therefore I would like to make a few statements of principle with regard to the documents.
As far as Austria is concerned, the path towards a new international economic and social order has been stressed as being absolutely essential. The great potential and available resources of the in dustrialized countries must be used in order to give the developing countries the possibility of developing their agrarian and other infrastructure. We feel that this is only possible through a programme of action which will be subscribed to by all industrialized and all developing countries.
In this connexion I would like to mention that in the view of the Austrian delegation the results of the Cancun North-South Conference, in their final formulation of a new economic and social order, could provide a basic orientation, because it was clear in Cancun, and it was stated unanimously, that a programme and measures for food security, and in particular for an increase of food production in the developing countries, needed to be given the highest priority.
Austria welcomes in particular the fact that the UN International Development Strategy For The Third Development Decade gives high priority to agriculture and food. In paragraphs 81 to 95 (C 81/21) there is reference to this point. In paragraph 28 of the same document it is stressed quite clearly that hunger and malnutrition should be eliminated as soon as possible.
We feel that in the course of the implementation of the International Development Strategy FAO, with its excellent team of experts and world-wide institutions and machinery, should be given the leading role in the field of agriculture, food, forestry and fisheries. This very important task of FAO was stressed in the statement made by the Federal Minister of Agriculture and Forestry in plenary.
FAO should also, in the eyes of my delegation, be concerned with the preparation of a New Economic Order.
Concerning the very complete and interesting document C 81/22, thé Austrian delegation would like to stress that we give our full support to what is contained in this document, because we feel that the national and regional measures and strategies which are called for in this document will make a con tribution towards the desired progress in the developing countries.
In conclusion I would like to stress that the very complete statements which have been made in par ticular by Norway and Colombia have been followed by us with a great deal of interest, and that what they say concerning the importance of the Development Strategies and their rapid implementation should be given our full support.
A. B. RAMADAN (Libya)(original language Arabic): As this is the first time I have contributed to this debate, I would like to congratulate you, Mr. Chairman, on your election. I would also like to congratulate the two Vice-Chairmen.
I would like to thank Dr. Nural Islam on his brilliant and clear expose of the two documents under consideration, and also the Secretariat for the good work it has done.
Document C 81/21 has taken up a few issues and tried to throw light on some regional particularities. In our opinion this document is a supplement to what is contained in other documents, for it has considered some of the issues relating to natural resources in certain regions, in particular the Near East and North Africa. We agree with the definition of the factors of production, apart from the climatic conditions in this region, especially as concerns the countries bordering on the deserts, we especially agree with the definition relating to crops and plants as well as livestock which will be acclimatized to the weather conditions prevailing in this area.
In this area, when we find water (which is the main natural resource) it is usually limited, and in sufficient to meet the irrigation requirements, or else it is not of the kind which should be of in terest to us in agricultural projects. Quite often we cannot use it for that reason. When we find the right kind of soil, which is usually very rarely, it is often unsuited for agricultural purposes -because of salinity, erosion or desertification. It is therefore of poor quality and needs special treatment-fertilizers to make it suitable for agriculture -- and I say this knowing that fertilizers are usually insufficient because of a shortage of resources for biological and organic fertilizers required in our area.
The climate in this area is unstable and incompatible with a high level of agricultural production. The differences between the maxima and minima of temperatures and between the temperature prevailing during the day and at night, as well as the different prevailing winds affect crops and their ability to absorb plan nutrients and water. These factors also affect the reaction of soil to plants and organic matter-and make for a poor output. All these elements affect agriculture in the areas near to deserts.
The question that comes to mind is: is it necessary to set up agriculture in such areas? Can a country convert such areas to make them suited for agricultural production?-they are deteriorating day after day to a preoccupying degree, the more so as the desert covers about 90 percent of the sur face of the Libyan Republic, which is one of the countries of North Africa which borders the desert. On the basis of our experience, we believe that we can provide these areas with the possibility of playing their role in food production to arrive at a reasonable rate of food production to achieve a certain measure of self-reliance in food, especially since the discovery of subterranean water in the desert. Experience from agricultural projects which were set up in the last Development Plan has proved that it was possible to arrive at production rates that have reassured us in our attempts to achieve production averages under the prevailing water conditions; this is indicated in document
C 81/22. This means that we have to take into account proper irrigation methods and correct utili zation of appropriate fertilizers, which in turn means that we have to carry out research, and this research should be given top priority-furthermore we have to carry out studies which will help us decide how to best use the subterranean reservoirs and to link them one to the other.
The Libyan Arab Jamahirya is making every effort to achieve fruitful cooperation at the regional level through the regional division for irrigation and livestock, which has emanated from the CILLS. This Committee has already held its first meeting in Tripoli in April 1981.
Some of the speakers here who preceded me have mentioned the importance of setting up gene centres, and in this respect I would like to say that I strongly support this view, because I believe that we have to count on gene resources in every region. These are the resources which are best adapted to every region and their improvement has been affected, throughout the areas. Transferring these gene re sources is not a sound practice:it may be responsible for the failures which we have witnessed in developing agriculture in many areas. We would like to say on this occasion that the Libyan Arab Jamahirya has started on the Gene Centre, with the assistance of some other centres, both regional and national, in order to provide authentic gene resources which can be applied. We are in cooperation with the Gene Centres in Bari, Italy, and in Western Australia.
Since we believe that the human element is the cornerstone of economic development, especially as far as agricultural production is concerned, as was mentioned both in the document and by some of the speakers I would like to state that the Libyan Arab Jamahirya has started training technical staff and farmers in this regard. We have successfully implemented a few programmes. We have trained farmers in the rural sector, and the 1981/85 Plan includes a programme for setting up 125 centres for training farmers and extension workers, in addition to the existing centres and workshops, and the cycles which are now being held at various levels of agricultural production in Libya and in friendly countries but within the framework of the Technical Cooperation Programme. We have now more than 200 trainees per year. We have also tried to link agricultural research with agricultural extension and instruction in order to directly serve the production process and to participate in training this human element which will take over food production in future, and also to assist the farmer and supply him with the necessary information to raise productivity.
In conclusion, and to be brief, I would say that food aid, however improved, whatever the methods used in order to supply aid is not enough to increase food production in the world. The real security in food problems lies in the capacity of the developing countries to achieve self-sufficiency, or near self-sufficiency in food production. We believe that the freedom of nations and the dignity of man is directly linked to their possibility of being self-sufficient in food production. Hence, we believe that assisting developing countries to raise food production and to achieve self-sufficiency should be the cornerstone of the Development Strategy in the future, and that all efforts should be made to this effect, in pursuance of Resolution No. 35/36 of the General Assembly. We agree with other delegates who have said that food security cannot depend on storage, because storage manage ment may lead to different problems such as problems related to storage location and delivery, which is why developing countries should be helped towards self-sufficiency in basic food items. That is the way we should proceed.
R. BRUGGER (Switzerland): We would like to commend the Secretariat on the very informative paper it pre sented to us on Regional and National Development Strategies. Document C 81/22 is in fact a prime example of how generalization and detail can successfully be combined, a compromise which, as Dr. Islam reminded us yesterday, it is difficult to achieve in a satisfactory way. Equally interesting and valuable in this document is the attempted synthesis of natural, technological, economic and social cultural factors affecting, agricultural development in the different regions of the world. Such an inter-disciplinary approach, while rendering solutions more elusive, ensures that they will be more realistic.
We entirely agree with the Secretariat that growth of food production in low income countries is cen trally imperative for the coming years. Judging from the discussions in this Commission to date, it may be safe to say that this is the unanimous view of FAO member countries.
We also appear to agree that the purpose of such increased production is an improvement to the nutritional status of rural and urban populations alike. But, when we investigate by what means increased production and improved nutrition can be achieved we immediately find ourselves confronted with the dilemma pointed cut by our Swedish colleague yesterday and referred to in paragraph 22 of the document at hand. Farmers cannot be expected to increase production for the market unless lower production costs or higher prices give them the incentive to do so, and unless the additional earned income can be translated into in creased consumption and improved conditions of life. While change of modes of production, irrigation, plant protection, use of fertilizer and high yielding crops do, and have had, favourable effects on
labour productivity and production costs, many constraints, dangers and uncertainties afflict a strategy bent on rapid modernization of the agricultural sector in the Third World. I do not want to elaborate on this problem since document C 81/22 very ably does so. If, therefore, there are limits and constraints to cost reduction measures in agriculture, sustained increases in food production must, barring force, be achieved by increased production incentives. But, here lies the dilemma faced by policy makers in poor food deficit countries, for it is precisely the malnourished segments of the urban population who are least able to absorb such price increase. Food aid might be a short run, stop-gap measure, but we know its long-term dangers. Growth of the secondary and tertiary sectors may in the long run provide some of the employment and income required. But, additional jobs in urban areas tend to have a multiplier effect, accelerating migration and unemployment even more.
The interesting idea of food consumption subsidies discussed in the recent session of the World Food Council may be impracticable as governments do not dispose of the necessary funds for financing the difference between high producer prices and low consumer prices. Simple answers to this very serious dilemma cannot be come by and we certainly cannot offer any. We would simply do not like to emphasize that we consider the demand side of the food security and food production issue to be crucial and in need of further analysis and research. It deserves as much attention as the productivity issue which still dominates the agricultural development debate.
We also wish to express the view that we consider the quality of rural life to be as crucial a factor as adequate producer prices in encouraging farmers to produce more rather than migrate to urban centers.
We would like to encourage the Secretariat to focus its attention, even more, in the future on the links between rural development, remunerative prices and production, the links between migration, adequate consumer prices and urban demand for food and on the ways in which governments may, with the aid of the international community, be able to bridge the divergent needs of consumers and producers alike.
M. EL-HAMOUD (Saudi Arabia)(original language Arabic): My delegation would like to give its opinion on the significance of document C 81/21. We would like to thank the Secretariat for its excellent presentation on food production and on the food production problems that face the countries of the world.
We would like to refer to some of the paragraphs in this document. We believe that improving perfor mance of food production is one of the main requirements of social and economic development. We would like to refer you, with special attention, to the rice strategy which will be reviewed by the International Rice Commission in 1982. Agricultural estimates for the year 2000 have shown that animal production should increase by 4 1/2 percent between 1980 and 2000.
However, as mentioned in paragraph 42, it is required to improve the produciton of fodder in Asia and to make use of grains as food for poultry and livestock. We should also make use of harvests that are not utilized at all, or partially, and any livestock residues. Such action is the object of technolo gical cooperation in Asia.
Paragraph 43 has stated that efforts for genetic improvement in dairy products are feeble at present and should be improved.
Paragraph 44 stated that dairy producer cooperatives may be the solution to provide incentives to small farmers to raise production.
Paragraph 53 has stated that we should set an integrated programme for grazing and pastures in order to solve most of the problems that are facing us today in this sector.
Paragraphs 136, 137 and 138 state that in developing livestock resources new technology and agricultural residues are being used. ICARDA in cooperation with national centers are working now in order to solve the problems. However, resources earmarked for this task are slight and there is talk of setting up an integrated network among regions in order to solve specific problems. This will help us avoid setting up new centers, and through reading this paragraph we see that we should make more efforts and that we should focus our efforts on specific issues in order to increase demand for livestock produc tion. The estimate was 4. 5 percent increase.
As for water resources, paragraphs 73 to 78 mention that water in northern Africa and the Middle East is a most important element in agricultural Production. In Saudi Arabia we attach great importance to water resources because this is the main element that will help us in agricultural development. We have carried out studies on irrigation, drainage, and dams and other projects such as de-salinization.
E. HJELMAR (Denmark): The paper prepared and introduced by Professor Islam presents in a succinct and realistic manner a global view of some key elements relating to the question of supplying more food for the people in developing countries.
It is realistic in the sense that it indicates a number of options available in developing countries for action by the developing countries. We all realize that a major effort has to be made by these countries themselves. FAO can do a lot, but can do nothing without the effort and cooperation of developing countries.
The Conference is invited to identify those options for action, so its increased attention should be paid.
For our part we would like above all to underline the importance of the actual participation of the people, men and women. We, in particular, think it is important to organize farmers' unions and agri cultural cooperatives such as referred to in a number of paragraphs. I might refer to paragraphs 44, 54 106 and 113. Weunderline also the importance of support to small farmers which often are the very nucleus in rural society. We would like to refer to the experience gained in connection with the Indian "Operation Flood" which deserves to be copied in other regions.
On fertilizers, we would like to support not only the establishment of new production capacity in devel oping countries such as mentioned in paragraph 67, but also to emphasize the importance of programmes for educating farmers at local level in using fertilizers.
We believe also that there are vast possibilities in intra-regional trade and in technical cooperation between the developing countries. The possibilities should be exploited with the full support of FAO.
A. K. OSUBAN (Uganda): Mr. Chairman, in compliance with your request for delegates to be brief, I think I will skip the formality of thanking the Secretariat for the documents and congratulating Professor Islam on his introduction.
The Delegation of Uganda would like to associate itself with the sentiments expressed by previous speakers on the relevancy of the issues raised in the papers under discussion.
The need for improved production performance, the necessity to lay emphasis on traditional crops and the value of integrating livestock into improved farming systems, etc. are all key factors in the mat ter under consideration.
In the case of Uganda, I should like delegates to recall that Uganda experienced very serious food shortages in the last two years. As a result of this, the Government has had to re-orient its policies to promote food production. Food production has been placed on a higher plane of priority generally and the staple foods in particular.
A number of projects have been identified and are in various stages of implementation, aimed at increasing food production. All the projects so identified are based on integrated rural development, with the basic aim not only of raising food production, but also raising the general standard of the rural communities.
With regard to agrarian reform, the pattern of land ownership in Uganda is such that land is in the hands of smallholders. The objective of agrarian reform therefore in our country is one of consoli dating fragmented holdings and discouraging further fragmentation. The class of thelandless does not exist.
In connexion with irrigation water, Uganda is known to receive ample rainfall, enough to support crop production. In recent years, however, the pattern of rainfall has been unpredictable and unreliable. In the period 1979-80 the country experienced drought on a scale never before known, resulting in severe food shortages in the country. This proved beyond doubt the need to develop the irrigation potential in the country. One-seventh of the surface area of Uganda is covered by water. The pos sibilities for irrigation therefore exist and it is now Government policy to exploit this potential.
The use of fertilizers is likely to remain low because of our inability to pay for it and we therefore urge that the international fertilizer scheme be reactivated.
In the livestock sector our greatest concern is disease control. While we are happy with the pro grammes for the control of trypanosomiasis, there are other diseases of great concern which should receive urgent attention. One of these which comes to mind immediately is rinderpest. At the OAU/FAO/ OIE meeting on the eradication of rinderpest in Africa, held in Nairobi early this month, it was re solved that a joint campaign for the eradication of rinderpest in Africa be mounted as a matter of urgency. As diseases do not respect international boundaries, my Government would like to put on record the urgency of controlling the disease on a regional basis. This rinderpest situation is very worrying as it impedes our national efforts to improve and increase animal production. We therefore urge the FAO to assist in mounting a joint campaign for the eradication of rinderpest in Africa.
In the field of fisheries, we are again happy to note that something is being done to help developing countries benefit from their EEZs. It is our feeling, however, that programmes for the development of inland fisheries and the establishment of commercial aquaculture in developing countries, and especially in landlocked countries, should be formulated. Such programmes should be based on relevant research.
Since the vast majority of our fishermen are artisanal, programmes aimed at introducing better fishing methods should be followed. This will inevitably result in improving the general welfare of such fishermen.
We do appreciate the efforts of the Director-General in establishing the CIFA Sub-Committee on the Development and Management of Lake Victoria. We hope that this assistance will be extended in cases of other shared lakes.
In the field of forestry development, the main thrust of our efforts is in afforestation and the pro tection of existing forests. It is in this area that we require the greatest assistance. Alongside this is the need to establish the exact status of our forestry resources. The available data on this is now out of date and there is urgent need to carry out a fresh forestry inventory.
We are also developing forestry programmes for rural community development to ensure self-sufficiency in woodfuel, building poles, and also to help to conserve soil and water resources.
I must add that in all this we are ready and willing tocooperate with our neighbours in efforts to overcome any problems that we face regionally.
S. A. QURESHI (Pakistan): My delegation proposes to deal with the problems of regional and national development strategies highlighted in document C 81/22. Before I proceed to express the views of my delegation, I must congratulate FAO on the quality of this document, on the perception of analysis, the breadth of scope and the balance of strategy implicit in the recommendations.
While discussing regional policy in paragraphs 25 to 39 this document makes certain well-conceived observations. May I invite the attention of this Conference to paragraph 26 which suggests that the regional plan for the Asia would essentially be based on rice, but it notes at the same time an exception, my country, Pakistan. Pakistan is the only major country in the Asian region which has wheat as staple food. Might I supplement that by saying that more than 80 percent of the people of Pakistan, who number 85 million, consume wheat. But wheat consumption is not limited to Pakistan in the Asian region. China produces 57 million tons of wheat against 97 millon tons of rice. India produces 34 million tons of wheat against 64 million tons of rice. These are rather large quantities. In fact these three countries together contribute 102 million tons out of the total world output of 450 million tons of wheat. Not only are these quantities large but they are cultivated and consumed in large contiguous areas within these countries. Therefore, it is important to attend to the production and trading aspects of wheat also even though we recognize that rice is the major food commodity of Asia.
My second observation is in relation to rice. While we agree with the need to diversify the technology of production in order to cover rainfed farming, deep-water rice and upland rice, we cannot ignore the observations made in paragraph 29 of the document that irrigated rice has a better potential yield. With 36 percent of the area it contributes 55 percent of production. It also notes that irrigated agriculture extends the period of water availability. It permits multiple cropping which monsoon agriculture may not.
In view of the fact that the production potential of systems other than irrigated is somewhat limited whilst formulating a strategy, this has to be kept in view. The strategy so formulated. should be essentially a strategy to supplement and not to substitute the work on irrigated agriculture.
In paragraph 39 of the document it has been stated that the International Rice Commission would carry out a review of the rice strategy in 1982. We welcome the prospect of this review. My delegation hopes that it will not only concentrate on problems of production but will also take into account the problems relating to international trade in rice. It is not sometimes realized that the structure of this trade is somewhat fragile, because rice in the international marketing situation is a narrowly traded commodity. International trade is only 4. 5 percent of total production. The fluctuations are likely to be sharp and frequent. There are two reasons for this. First, the countries which are now on the margin of self-sufficiency will sometimes have a deficit and sometimes a surplus. This will give the market a volatile character. Secondly, with more emphasis on rainfed agriculture, the frequency of fluctuations is likely to be greater. Because of the narrow base of international trade, a small impact on the production will create a large impact on the trade. This is not only a question of foreign exchange outlays and foreign exchange earnings of the importing or exporting countries. It is also vitally linked to the stability of prices.
On regional food security we support the observations made in paragraphs 144 and 151 of the document. We assume that the regional food security arrangements will be based essentially on rice which is quite understandable but the agency which formulates this policy will have to settle how best to deal with the wheat consuming countries within this region and with the wheat consuming areas in each country of the region. Also this agency will have to see how to balance the requirements, interests and objectives of the exporters and the importers because they are not always identical. The creation of a balance, the creation of an identity of interests between the exporters and the importers will become a complex issue, if the price fluctuations are frequent or large.
We note that the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific is going to undertake a study on food security for the region. We hope that the observations made by my delegation are taken into account by that Commission. In attending to these complex problems, some of which have been highlighted in the document and some of which I have tried to highlight in my intervention, FAO has undoubtedly a very significant role. FAO has helped in the identification of problems and in placing them in a long range horizon. FAO has helped in diversifying and planning the approaches that deal with these problems.
We would like to make some suggestions to supplement these efforts of FAO. FAO as the largest expert body in the field of food and agriculture is equipped to work towards the evolution of a low-cost technology. The efforts for a low-cost technology have been confined basically to the countries which are still in the process of development. Some efforts have undoubtedly been made by the aid-giving agencies but the aid-giving agencies and institutions, which are oriented to a disbursement programme within a fixed time horizon, are not very much suited to this role. They concentrate on the viability of their investments and not necessarily on the optimum yields from their investments. Therefore, they are not constrained to find the least cost solutions to some of the problems which the developing countries are facing. It is in this respect that FAO can undoubtedly play a more meaningful role.
FAO could also try to explore the vast untapped potential in the upgrading of the conventional imple ments of agriculture. Even minor improvements in these implements can pay large dividends because the base is large and not enough serious effort has been made in this direction.
Thirdly, FAO could endeavour harder to study certain large scale afflictions of the developing countries, afflictions like water-logging and salinity. These techniques which have been adopted to resolve these problems have been successful in a technical sense. But they are expensive. They are energy-intensive. They require investments of billions of dollars, investments which do not seem visible on the horizon. The need, to find low-cost solutions, to find low-cost technology for dealing with these afflictions is paramount. With 4 000 experts to help it, FAO might be able to play a meaningful role in this field.
FAO should also help in identifying cheap and small-scale machinery for activities like chilling of milk, so that the dairy cooperatives can be helped to bring the new technology within the reach of villages, they can be helped to narrow the gap between the production and marketing of this important commodity.
Again, we hope that FAO might be able to find better and cost-effective techniques of water management. This is one of the problems which has been highlighted in this document. Here, the recent experience of my own country may be relevant, as we have improved 22 000 water courses over the last two years. These water courses have an overall length of nearly 40 000 miles. These were improved with the help of local farmers. The government contribution to cost was only 10 percent which was given as a subsidy. The rest either came from voluntary labour or from bank credit to the farmer community. It is estimated that by this effort the saving in water was 2 million acre feet, I must concede that the improvements which were made in this programme essentially related to earth work, to realignment of the water courses, to desilting, to raising the banks, to clearance of vegetation and not to the masonry work which can ensure
a still longer life for the improvements. But considering the time span in which they were carried out -each of these programmes was carried out within a time span of only three months-and considering their low cost, considering the benefit accruing from additional availability of water of two million acre-feet, these advances are worth emulating.
Another promising field for FAO would be the identification of the potential, as against actual, cropping patterns. In this scientific age, why must we be contented with what the process of natural evolution has given us? We must use our scientific knowledge to find new avenues, to find new cropping patterns, which are feasible and economically attractive and, at the same time, socially desirable. I would cite in this regard the instance of Brazil which has gone into the field of soya bean. In the last few years, from almost nil production, it is now producing fifteen million tons of soya beans. Maybe there is similar untapped potential in other countries. FAO can help in the identification of this potential and in the process of evolution which would help us realize this potential.
In many fields, the non-convential production may be a matter of compulsion. This compulsion is dramati cally visible in the ravages of deforestation. The trees are being cut at a rapid rate. We need a new type of afforestation, fast growing, unconventional trees with which the local people may not be familiar. FAO can help these contries to identify these species and it can give technical and extension support to this effort.
Finally, we would emphasize that whereas FAO has played a meaningful role in evolving the strategies of production and trade or in evolving the policies of aid, it is desirable that FAO might also support work on strategies of transition as distinct from strategies of production. In evolving strategies of transition it will help facilitate quicker adjustment. It will help prevent many a crisis and chances of mismanagement.
The need for a strategy of transition is imminent, for instance, in the fisheries sector where the exclusive economic zone has been extended for 200 miles by many countries but a large majority of these countries do not have the capability for an effective exploitation of the economic zone. It will take time. In the interim they have to be strengthened in order to be able to oversee the exclusive economic zone to work out arrangements for regulation of the zone. A similar need for a strategy of transition exists in the livestock sector. The demand for livestock is growing at the rate of 4. 5 percent as against 3. 5 percent in the crop sector. On the other hand, the grazing grounds are disappearing. We have to help the livestock sector to evolve non-conventional but economic feeds. These non-conventional feeds must be cheap, effective and acceptable. In this effort, FAO can aid a smoother transition, as it is trying to do in our country.
Another field where a strategy of transition can be useful, is the transition from deficit to surplus regimes in food. There are a number of countries, including my country, which are working out a transition, from a deficit to a surplus regime. This requires different arrangements of logistics, different arrange ment for storage, a higher standard of quality control. These are the transition processes which need to be helped, which need to be facilitated. If we have an establishment working on the strategies of transi tion, the transition will become smoother. The bridges between the present and the future will become easier to cross. My delegation hopes FAO would help all concerned to cross these bridges expeditiously and effectively.
G. M. AHMED (Sudan)(Original language Arabic): Allow me at the outset to associate myself with the previous speakers in commending the documents on the International Development Strategy and the pro posals contained therein. We have listened attentively to the comments of previous speakers who have dealt with the two documents under discussion, and I should like briefly to comment on them.
The International Development Strategy for The Third Development Decade is one of the most important resolutions of the General Assembly and should be commended by all delegations. It is important for us to implement this resolution. The second document is related to regional and national development strategies and envisages some issues at both the regional and national levels as well as indicators on how to solve problems.
Among the important issues in the developing countries, especially the African developing countries, which we think need ever increasing attention in the 1980's, is the planning and the better utiliza tion of natural resources such as soil, water and livestock, and their balanced integration in order to eradicate hunger and malnutrition through increasing productivity and improving distribution. It is mentioned in this document that the developing countries must augment development plans, yet we find that the lack of resources and the inability to apply modern techology, such as remote-sensing, hinders the identification of these resources and their different uses. It can also help in monitoring both horizontal and vertical planning.
Sudan is among the self-sufficient countries in maize, and we have a surplus for export to some coun tries in the region. We have big potentialities to expand this area but, there are some hinderances in addition to trypanosomiasis, mentioned in paragraph 16 of the second document, that adversely affect the situation. There are also some negative factors such as the price rise of mechanical agricultural equipment, besides the lack of potentialities in some areas.
Conventional agriculture, which contributes greatly to the production of food in the developing coun tries, and the African developing countries in particular, is rather overlooked owing to the patterns-followed in agriculture on a large scale. Any increase, however small, will be conducive to a rise of productivity at both the national and regional levels. Such a strategy should have priority areas as combatting drought and developing valleys. This order of priorities will help discover and identify their potentialities for increasing agricultural production in general. Subterranean waters need to be exploited in a sound and economic way in order to cultivate vegetables and cereals and to create employment opportunities in the rain-fed areas. This would limit migration to the urban regions.
I would like to mention here that the number of livestock is the criterion in the African countries, and through consistent efforts the number of livestock has increased; therefore the transition from quantity to quality has become an essential aspect especially through the selection of local and domestic species or those imported from outside, through artificial insemination and through keeping high producing varieties with a view to taking advantage of the agricultural residues for animal production. The integration between both animal and agricultural production in the pasturai lands should also be taken into consideration. The success of such a policy cannot be achieved except through stimulating production, giving remunerative prices and the development of rural industries related to livestock production.
We have also to give priority to afforestation in all rural areas to meet national demand on coal and fuelwood.
M. C. DIALLO (Guinee): De l'examen de la stratégie qui nous est proposée ma délégation conclut que l'ensemble des problèmes sont abordés dans leurs grandes lignes et que les objectifs généraux sont bien définis. En effet, les éléments de cette stratégie coïncident bien, pour nous, aux points d'appui essentiels du développement tels que nous les concevons:
- l'homme producteur qu'il faut former et faire participer à la conception et à la mise en oeuvre des projets;
- la qualification des moyens de production et l'amélioration des conditions de production et du cadre d'organisation des mêmes producteurs.
Et, pour cela, il faut féliciter le professeur Islam et son équipe pour avoir mis à notre disposition une bonne matière à discussion. Nous pensons que les discussions de notre commission devraient permet tre d'aboutir à des recommandations concrètes à la Conférence, pour qu'elle donne des directives précises au Directeur général de la FAO quant à la mise en oeuvre de cette stratégie.
C'est dans cette optique que ma délégation voudrait aborder quelques aspects de la stratégie définie par l'Assemblée générale des Nations Unies et qui nous est soumise. Et nous pensons que ce sera l'une des manieres, pour nous, d'avoir la possibilité d'évaluer le poids effectif dans la pratique de nos déclarations d'intention à la première échéance d'évaluation, prévue en 1984.
Ainsi, en vue de favoriser le développement de la production agricole dans les pays en développement, clé d'une sécurité alimentaire efficace, la Conférence devrait demander au Directeur général de la FAO de prendre toutes les mesures nécessaires et possibles pour accroître le flux de ressources financières à destination des pays en développement, et pour faciliter l'affectation efficace du peu de ressources disponibles, d'organiser des missions dans les Etats Membres pour évaluer les mesures prises pour la mise en oeuvre de la stratégie, et d'aider à ajuster et parfaire ces mesures.
Dans ce cadre, la FAO, en coopération avec le PAM, le FIDA et les autres institutions, devrait trouver les moyens de relancer le réapprovisionnement des fonds alloués au développement rural.
A l'occasion de cette relance, nous voudrions appuyer la proposition selon laquelle on devrait attirer l'attention des bailleurs de fonds sur la nécessité de faire l'effort supplémentaire nécessaire pour aider au financement des dépenses locales et des dépenses de fonctionnement, liées à I'exécution des projets de développement agricole.
Compte tenu de la faiblesse des ressources dont on dispose, et dont on va continuer certainement à disposer, il faudra que la FAO veille dans l'élaboration des projets, au rapport coût/efficacité de l'ensemble des composantes des projets à mettre en oeuvre. Elle devra à notre avis appuyer tous les projets des pays en voie de développement tendant à assurer une plus large participation des petits paysans à l'exécution des programmes qui leur sont destinés. En particulier, selon nous, les projets ne doivent plus être conçus sur la base des seuls résultats obtenus dans les stations de recherche, mais de manière à ce que toute réalisation soit à la portée des possibilités humaines réelles des paysans.
En ce qui nous concerne, c'est ce souci de coller aux réalités de la campagne qui a amené le Gouverne ment de la Guinée à créer ce que nous appelons les fermes agro-pastorales d'arrondissement, pour servir de point d'appui à l'application des résultats de la recherche; pour servir de centres de vulgarisa tion pour la démonstration de ce que le paysan peut faire à partir des faibles moyens à sa portée pour obtenir une exploitation économiquement rentable.
La diffusion et l'utilisation de nouvelles techniques ne pourra atteindre l'efficacité voulue que si les canaux classiques de la vulgarisation agricole sont revus. Quant à nous, nous sommes convaincus que l'efficacité du vulgarisateur est liée à sa connaissance concrète des problèmes, des aspirations et des possibilitéshumaines des paysans. Cela ne peut se faire que si le vulgarisateur vit au sein des communautés rurales, et c'est le but que nous visons avec la création des fermes agro-pastorales d'arrondissement, au sein desquelles sont affectés de nouveaux techniciens du développement rural pour démontrer, en grandeur nature, et de manière globale, ce que la science et la technique peuvent appor ter aux paysans.
A notre avis, la FAO doit donner son plein appui à de telles orientations et, une fois créées les con ditions de la diffusion et de l'utilisation de nouvelles techniques, des mécanismes de soutien à l'uti lisation deces techniques doivent être trouvés.
Les documents qui nous ont été soumis mettent l'accent sur deux facteurs de l'accroissement de la production agricole, les engrais et l'eau, auxquels nous ajoutons, quant à nous, l'énergie.
Au niveau de notre organisation, il serait éminemment souhaitable que le Directeur général veille à renfoncer l'action de la FAO pour la mise en oeuvre de ces facteurs. En ce qui concerne les engrais notamment, il faut tenter d'obtenir une aide accrue en matière d'engrais:
1. en reforçant et en perfectionnant le système d'option de la FAO que nous jugeons très intéressant;
2. en négociant avec le Fonds monétaire international l'extension aux engrais et autres intrants agricoles du mécanisme de financement compensatoire, comme cela a été suggéré dans le rapport qui nous a été soumis;
3. en reforçant le programme international d'approvisionnement en engrais de la FAO, qui a l'air de se mourir en ce moment; et il faudrait que les délégations appuient le Directeur général pour obtenir le renforcement de ce programme;
4. et en développant les activités sur la mise au point de l'utilisation des engrais organiques que mon collègue de la Cote. . d'Ivoire a eu à souligner car l'emploi de ces engrais peut amener une diminution des quantités d'engrais minéraux à utiliser dont les coûts vont certainement augmenter puisque leur fabri cation exige de l'énergie dont nous connaissons le prix.
En ce qui concerne l'eau, nous appuyons fortement les recommandations du document C 81/22 relatives au développement des petits projets d'irrigation au niveau des villages.
Là dessus, notre expérience, qui résulte de la mise en oeuvre d'une capacité d'aménagements de 90 sources et de 45 puits par an dans la zone au nord du onzième parallèle de notre pays, nous permet d'affirmer et de confirmer l'efficacité de telles actions.
A présent, nous recherchons le soutien à la création d'une capacité similaire pour la construction de •petits barrages et petits bassins à usages multiples au niveau des communautés rurales, pour l'irri gation, la production éventuelle d'énergie par l'utilisation de centrales de faible capacité même au fil de l'eau, pour la pisciculture et pour l'approvisionnement en eau des hommes et des animaux.
La FAO doit, dans son programme d'action, privilégier de telles initiatives en ce qui concerne les problèmes de l'approvisionnement en eau.
Parmi les facteurs sur lesquels il faut mettre l'accent, nous avons rajouté celuide l'énergie lié à la. production de bois de feu et à la protection de l'environnement. La mise en oeuvre parallèle d'un
programme d'utilisation rationnelle de la biomasse, pour la production d'énergie et d'engrais organique, doit avoir tout le soutien de la FAO. Nous y reviendrons dans le débat sur l'énergie et le développement rural.
En ce qui concerne les problèmes de l'élevage, la nécessité de la liaison de cette spéculation avec l'agriculture a été soulignée de nouveau comme cela l'est depuis longtemps. Mais la mise en oeuvre du mécanisme d'intégration confirme, encore une fois, la nécessité de nouvelles structures institutionnelles pour amener les paysans à l'adopter.
Nous espérons quant à nous y arriver enfin grace à la création des fermes agro-pastorales d'arrondis-: sèment qui aborde, de manière globale, les problèmes de développement rural au sein même de nos villages.
A propos de la lutte contre la trypanosomiase, je voudrais simplement donner une information selon laquelle il faudrait savoir que le berceau de la race de bovins la plus trypano-tolérante se trouve dans mon pays. Conscient de la nécessité de conserver, de perfectionner cette race pour être en mesure de faire face à la demande croissante de certains pays frères africains, le Gouvernement guinèen a mis en oeuvre, en coopération avec la FAO et le PNUD un petit projet dans ce sens; ce projet qui a un intérêt continental devrait, à notre avis, être développé et agrandi pour lui assurer une plus grande portée et une plus grande efficacité.
A. M. S. AL NAKIB (Kuwait)(original language Arabie): I shall try to be brief in my statement, since the preceding speakers have already dealt with this question which is of interest to us.
First of all, I would like to speak briefly about document C 81/22, the document recognizes the fact that the study of the problems of all countries cannot be seen on a global scale, but it does show the characteristics and problems of the various regions and ways and means of solving them. This leads us to thank Professor' Nurul Islam and the Secretariat for their excellent preparation of this document and of this whole subject, and also of the other documents before us. The countries should try and increase agricultural production, food production, and livestock production on a general scale, and this will only be possible if the farmers are assured of having the necessary production factors. This should include, among others, improved soils-soils improved on a wider and wider scale. We should also try and find a way of controlling soil degradation and the desertification. We should try and find modern and improved irrigation systems, and to develop irrigation networks and maintain them, and make maximum use of these networks. We should also make use of improved seed in order to intensify agricultural production since in this way we can bring about the increase for which we are striving. We should also try and find seed of drought-resistant crops-this certainly would have a significant effect on the increase of production.
The role of research is of essential importance for overall development. The fight against -ignorance, underdevelopment, and epidemics among the farmers and the rural population in general will make it possible to improve the development of the economy and of agriculture. The introduction of improved technology would also increase food and agriculture production. Everybody knows that fertilizer makes it possible to increase agricultural yields, and the utilization of fertilizers will increase. This also applies to pesticides and herbicides. Afforestation and the intensification of tree-cropping, of plant ing trees of suitable species, would make it possible to fix the soil to improve the ecology and to produce energy, which is absolutely necessary. All this should be coordinated within the framework of a well-thought out and well-defined agricultural development plan.
We still have the question of availability of financing and liquidity. This of course is of the very highest priority nowadays, whatever development it may be-agriculture, urban development or industrial development, this always remains a very important factor. As you know, the vast majority of the developing countries have a balance of payments deficit. They also have a budgetary deficit, and they cannot import certain agricultural inputs such as chemical fertilizer, certain types of equipment and agricultural machinery and other mechanical aids, in spite of the fact that arable land is available in large quantities, and also manpower. This shows how important international and other sources of financing are, to help the developing countries to develop their projects, to make it possible for them to introduce new technologies, and to increase yields and productivity. These factors are inter-related and they are mutually complementary in order to reach the desired level of productivity and to ensure food security. We need all of these factors-if one of them is missing, this will certainly have an impact on general productivity and production.
A. L. MACHADO DE MORAES (Brazil): We would like to make a few comments on this comprehensive document C 81/22 which has been prepared by the Secretariat.
Starting with paragraph 50 we wish to express our understanding that the major limiting factor to livestock development in Latin America is the protectionist policy of developed countries, expressed in terms of sanitary descriptions. The ample progress which has been made by Latin America in the area of animal health has not been fully recognized by developed meat importing countries.
With respect to the African swine fever, we were able, with the help of this Organization, to control and eliminate this disease. Along that line, the UNDP/FAO project will be implemented in Brazil next year, in support of the work of laboratorial analyses of animal references, which should benefit all the Latin American countries.
In the particular case of Brazil, in addition to the work done on animal health, which keeps under control foot and mouth disease in the country, we are developing a well-organized system of animal inspection service. In fact, Brazil has made huge investments in the meat industry in order to improve its facilities so as to meet the increasingly rigorous sanitary requirements imposed by developed importing countries. The high quality of our meat industry is recognized internationally by the sanitary authorities.
Livestock is an important activity in Brazil, occupying an area of 150 million hectares, which corresponds to three times the area devoted to agriculture. Although we continue to be traditional producer and ex porter of beef, we have not neglected the production of swine, and we have expanded considerably in recent years the production and export of poultry. The meat export target established for the current year, most of which has already been attained, was around 1 billion dollars, out of which 600 million dollars represents beef and 300 million dollars poultry.
Coming now to the problems of peasant agriculture in Latin America (referred to in Chapter 5 of the document) we would like to mention that the performance of Brazilian agriculture has been satisfactory, especially in the last two decades, fully matching the target growth established for developing countries. It is true however that the export of industrial crops has expanded more rapidly in response to market incentives. This is a natural tendency to be dictated by market forces which assumes increasing importance for our importing to developing countries. In reality, given the pressure of oil imports upon the balance of trade, Brazil and Latin American countries, we do believe, could not afford to ignore the contribu tion of agricultural exports towards solving the problems of balance of payments. We consider however that in the particular case of Brazil it is possible to harmonize a food-producing agriculture with agriculture for export, as well as with agriculture for the production of energy.
Along that line, new agricultural policy orientations, have been introduced in the area of rural land tax and credit. The rural tax has been revised to provide on the one hand substantial penalties for continued under-utilization of land resources, and on the other hand, tax exemption for above-standard utilization and yields.
In the case of rural credit, the new policy orientation aims at reducing the implicit subsidy in finance to the sector, preserving however the small farmers who are responsible for about 80 percent of food for domestic consumption. In support of the strengthening of peasant agriculture, the Brazilian govern ment has made an effort to facilitate the access of the small producers to the land. Along that line public and private colonization projects have been the major instrument to promote a more equalitarian personal and regional distribution of resources.
Quite recently the government submitted to the congress a draft law establishing that any person occupy ing privately a track of land of public rural land with less than 20 hectares for 5 years or more is entitled to ownership of that land. In favour of the urban poor and small agricultural producers it was implemented in a well succeeded food programme which consists of facilitating success of food supply to consumers in poor communities. This work is done by a Brazilian food company which buys food on a large scale and distributes it to retailers in those communities. This is a self-sustained programme that has contributed to reducing food prices and stabilizing the food market.
In conclusion, we would like to say that the potentialities of the Brazilian agriculture and the wide range of existing alternatives are a clear indication that there are no major conflicts or dilemmas in promoting a balanced growth of agriculture and performing, at the same time, the new tasks assigned to the sector.
Le PRESIDENT: Avec cette intervention nous allons arrêter nos travaux pour ce matin. Il y a de nouveaux inscrits pour cet après-midi et je signale que nous avons reçu les déclarations de la Thaïlande et Suri name qui seront incorporées dans le compte rendu de notre séance. Je voudrais remercier aussi l'observateur de l'Union internationale des syndicats des travailleurs de l'agriculture, des forêts et des plantations qui nous a fait parvenir sa déclaration qui sera insérée telle quelle. Il nous épargne ainsi un capital temps dont nous avons grand besoin.
NGUEN SRISURAK (Thailand): There are three agricultural development approaches being taken into account for achieving our goals for the coming years. They are:
First, mount commodity production programmes in areas that have immediate growth potential.
Second, launch a few farming-district projects which seek to make the most of the resources of selected geographic areas with recognition that areas with immediate growth potential have different needs from those with future growth potential.
Third, improving the efficiency of the regular agricultural agencies.
These approaches, in our belief, are relevant directly to the United Nations International Development Strategy for the Third Development Decade, document C 81/12, and Regional and National Development Strategies, document C 81/22. My delegation believes that they would fit the strategies to spur agricultural growth if taking the above three ways of development into account effectively. We also believe that we can do nothing in general if there is constraint in our funds. Therefore, we must invest in a specific crop or area where there is potential. Furthermore, neither commodity production programmes nor farming-district projects can deal effectively with a number of factors bearing on agricultural growth that require decisions and actions at the natinal level;ensuring adequate whole supplies of fertilizers and other farm inputs, determining policies regarding farm input and product prices, adopting tax policies, executing land reform programmes, and allocating public investment funds among agriculture and other sectors of the economy.
To deal with these deficiencies, it is desirable to launch an additional activity simultaneously;to seek to improve the efficiency of all regular activities of the Government that influence the rate of agricultural growth. In this connexion, Thailand, in the Fifth Five Year National Social and Economic Development Plan starting 1982 for objectives of increasing crop production as well as incomes of farmers, is going to carry out the above strategy.
Mr. Chairman, my delegation supports the Guidelines laid out in the documentsC 81/21 and C 81/22. 1/
H. LIONARONS (Suriname): Mr. Chairman, my delegation ioins the others which have already spoken on this item of the agenda in commending the Secretariat for the excellent preparation of the document and Prof. Islam for his clear presentation. Already many analyses have been presented by various delegates. As a consequence, our comments can be very brief.
The document under discussion, C 81/21 is without doubt excellent, but to my opinion too much anticipating on the political will in the future of developed countries to assist the developing countries and arrive jointly at the establishment of the New Economic Order.
Paragraphs 81 to 95 clearly indicate the urgent actions to be taken by both the developed and the developing countries in the field of food and agriculture.
Paragraphs 96 to 114, describing the possible financial resources for development are clearly understood by my delegation. In order to be ascertained in an early stage about the realistic financial modalities for the developing countries, I should appreciate to be informed about the progress made as regards the consultations and meetings mentioned in paragraphs 83, 88 and 101. If the results have been negative or not yet concluded, the developing countries will have to seriously consider possible other options to bear their responsibility as mentioned in paragraph 96.
1/ Statement inserted in the verbatim records on request.
As for paragraph 60, I wish to state that my country exerts its best efforts for exporting white rice to developed countries. One basic problem now emerging more and more critically is that the developed countries demand cargo rice, while in terms of our national economic approach we prefer to supply white rice, leaving the by-products and the added employment in Suriname.
My delegation furthermore fully supports the chapters G and H.
As for document C 81/21, Regional and National Development Strategies, let me be brief and make some remarks on paragraphs 55 to 58 Fisheries Development and Management.
Mr. Chairman, it is without doubt that marine fisheries development and management are best approached by regional programmes and projects, since marine fishes do not listen to national boundaries. Small countries, such as mine, benefit very much from the implementation of regional fisheries projects, executed by FAO. The integrated character of the Western Central Atlantic Fisheries Development Project in Panama and the Infopesca-project in Panama, are of great assistance to Suriname in developing its fishery-industry.
It is therefore deeply regretted that due to lack of funds this WECAF project will have to terminate its activities by the end of this year. On behalf of my Government, I therefore urgently request you, Mr. Chairman, to convey my Government's great concern to the Secretariat and all other institutions concerned to do whatever possible to prevent this termination of activities of the Western Central Atlantic Fishery Development Project. 1/
V. KALASHNIKOV (Observer for the Trade Unions International of Agricultural, Forestry and Plantation Workers): On behalf of my organization the Trade Unions International of Agricultural, Forestry and Plantation Workers, I would like to express some views on the problems raised in the document under discussion.
We agree with Professor Islam's remark in his clearly outlined introductory speech that the problems discussed now are closely related with the ones under review in the following papers-namely the document C 81/23 under the title "Follow-up of WCARRD". In some of my observations I would like to refer to part III of the document C 81/22.
It is a well-known fact that poverty in rural areas in many countries of the world is aggravating, that landlessness is on the increase, that poor peasants, landless and agricultural workers are under-employed and unemployed for the most part of the year. The pressure exerted by this part of the work force on the labour market not only devalues the labour in the rural areas, in towns and brings Overexploitation -to name just the child labour, but increases also the number of unemployed in general.
Paragraph 123 of the document states "An additional element of complexity arises from the possibility that increasing disparities between urban and rural development may, in fact, lead to an acceleration of the flight from the countryside".
Leaving aside the definition of the true reasons for the rural exodus, we would observe that the conditional meaning of the sentence does not reflect the existing situation because it is already the reality in many parts of the world.
It seems to us that the adopted approach-the regional description, analyses and options-is somewhat concealing what is common to many-that is:the relationship of dominance and subordination, the continuing process of complete bankruptcy for many and land concentration for some, exploitation and over-exploitation of rural poor.
This exploitation, to our mind, is not limited to the unequal relations between different strata of the local population. It has already been mentioned here that the unequal exchange further undermines the possibilities of the rapid development. Plus coffee there are other agricultural commodities and their cost goes down and down as compared with the goods imported from the developed countries. Transnational corporations not only manipulate the international markets, but many directly exploit the rural poor.
We believe that what is common to many is the necessity of the realization not only proclamation of the true democratic agrarian reforms, bringing benefits to the wide masses of the rural poor and curbing political, economic and social power of the few rich.
We believe and the document clearly states, that the problem of integrating the rural poor being potentially productive forces into the development process "could only be effectively tackled through an overall development approach going beyond the agricultural sector to the economy as a whole".
We believe that what is common to many is the necessity to realize the principles of the New Economic Order.
We would like to state again that no true solution can be found in coming closer to solving the problems without the democratic participation of the rural people, including women themselves, without the democratic participation of their representative organizations at all stages of planning, decision making, realization of plans and projects, concerning the wide masses of the rural population.
My Organization has tried to contribute to the FAO activities in this respect and will do so in the future.
Finally, we believe that solutions can more easily be found under the conditions of disarmament. According to the UN data-only 0. 5 percent of world military budgets would cover the necessary agricultural inputs to increase the production substantially even during this decade-the Third Development Decade. 1/
The meeting rose at 12. 50 hours
La seance est levée à 12 h 50
Se levanta la sesión a las 12. 50 horas
1/ Statement inserted in the verbatim records on request.
