WASHINGTON - With the era of cheap food and fuel over, the
United States must double global food aid and help poor countries upgrade
farming techniques little changed from antiquity, a Washington-based think tank
urged.
A task force for the Center for Strategic and International
Studies released a series of recommendations including a doubling of US
emergency food aid to $3.2 billion annually and a determined effort to raise
farm productivity around the world.
"In some parts of the world, farmers are trying to feed their
families with technology that would not seem out of place in biblical times,"
said Sen. Richard Lugar, who co-chairs the task force with Democratic Sen.
Robert Casey of Pennsylvania.
The report said $1 billion should be spent on developmental
projects to promote rural agricultural productivity.
Lugar, an Indiana Republican, said "overcoming the science
deficiency" would greatly help nations experiencing food shortages. Developing
nations need better seeds and fertilizers, sustainable farming techniques and a
global network of agricultural schools to help contribute to meeting global food
needs, he said.
"We must not allow an aversion to modern agricultural
technology to doom a part of the world's population to chronic hunger and
poverty," Lugar said.
At least 25 percent of US aid, growing to at least 50 percent over five
years, would be earmarked for regional purchases of food aid, as relying on
US-grown crops can take up to six months to reach the needy. - Reuters
