By Dr John Deep Ford
Dr. John Deep Ford is Ambassador of Guyana to the World Trade Organization and Food and Agricultural Organization
The COVID pandemic has once again exposed the vulnerability of the CARICOM region’s food security. With eleven countries in the CARICOM region importing more than 50% of the food they consume the threat of food insecurity resulting from an interruption of the supply of food imports is real. This can happen when a food exporting country restricts food exports to protect its own food security, or when cargo shipping services are reduced or when borders are closed. All three factors already exist as a result of the COVID situation. Hopefully, the April 21 appeal by G20 Ministers of Agriculture to keep trade flowing for food security purposes will be heard and the threat of COVID will recede before the food dependence of the CARICOM nations becomes another major crisis.
While for the time being the basic food supply is adequate, the ability to purchase has been reduced for many consumers, especially economically vulnerable sections of the population. The shutdown of all but essential services and curfews have led to temporary, informal sector and wage workers losing their means of earning a living. Food insecurity is increasing. The loss of income means that households are able to purchase fewer food products for their families, and are often purchasing inferior lower priced food products. Many households have become dependent on donations from members of their community, religious organizations and in some countries the national government.
The sources of food supply domestically are also negatively affected by the COVID crisis. With restricted hours of movement by persons and shutdown of most businesses, small farmers and food vendors are particularly affected. The hotel and restaurant demand for local and fresh food is all but non-existent. Household demand for food is shifting to cheaper foods and foods that can be stored, such as imported processed tin foods. Farmers and food vendors are also losing out because of increased food waste and losses due to perishability of the products. Worse yet, as small farmers lose income, they lose the ability to purchase inputs for planting, and also lose access to workers to plant and harvest crops. These sources of local supply that could contribute to filling food gaps from lost imports are being undermined.
It’s unfortunate to point out that these food system weaknesses and food insecurity threats are well known. COVID and its impacts have only highlighted and reminded the region of its vulnerability. Heads of Government, Ministers of Agriculture and food agency professionals and staff have for decades spoken about the region’s high food import bill and the need for a greater degree of self reliance in our food supply. The CARICOM region’s food import bill has increased by 50% since 2000 to more than US$4bn today.
In 2001 after the Twin Towers fell, there was concern for the region’s food security when ports were closed for a brief period.
In the 2008 global food crisis when wheat and rice prices almost doubled and the FAO reported that world food-price index rose to a record high, eventually driving, according to the World Bank, an estimated 44 million people into poverty, the region again voiced great concern about their food supply vulnerability.
On April 15, 2020 at the COVID 19 meeting of the CARICOM Heads of Government, the need to address the “production and supply of food products” was again highlighted.
How will CARICOM nations remember COVID in terms of the region’s food security? Will this be another moment that we sound an alarm but leave the fire burning?
We anticipate that our current food security situation will be much more precarious if more stringent lockdowns are enforced and if import supplies are disrupted. What are we waiting for?
Even the European Union leaders are concerned about their dependence on supplies and are currently speaking about “strategic autonomy”. They intend to reduce their product supply risk by creating greater self reliance. They are working to diversify their production and trade structures, producing more of their needs within the EU and thereby relying less on imports from outside the EU.
It is clear that CARICOM needs to address its food security situation with adequate policies and programmes towards increasing its level of food self reliance.
The reality is that we are in a crisis and the food security needs of the most vulnerable must be given the highest priority and with urgency. The emergency responses of food hampers and income support have started and need to be increased and widened to those facing food hardships. Despite the communication limitations imposed by COVID, we must urgently initiate the programmes that will lead to establishing a food supply and demand system that is characterized by greater local production, processing, distribution and consumption processes enabling availability and access to food under all conditions.
Fortunately, we are not starting from ground zero, we have regional plans, we have experienced food security programme professionals, we have farmers and households in all of our countries who know how to plant. We have countries in the region with large land masses, water and fertile soils. We have rivers and oceans, fisherfolk and fish. We need to act now.
We have a CARICOM Community Agriculture Policy (CAP) and a Regional Food and Nutrition Security Action Plan to restart our efforts.
We have the human resources needed. We can provide our farmers across the region with the support that they need to grow our food supply in efficient and sustainable ways. We need to enlist our agricultural extension officers, rural community development leaders, public health nutritionists, agricultural economists, agricultural engineers, food processors and distributors and others that have worked on food security projects. Two which come to mind in the last decade are the Zero Hunger projects of FAO and the rural enterprise and development projects of IFAD.
No doubt this is an unprecedented crisis but we need to remind ourselves that in the midst of every crisis lies an opportunity. Let us mobilize and demonstrate the political will and great experience of farmers organisations to use this opportunity to transform our food systems and increase our food and nutrition security.
