Mr Nelson Godfried Aguyemang, Vice-President, Ghana Agricultural Producers and Marketing Association, Ghana at the International Co-operative Alliance Global Conference in Cape Town, November 2013.
Mr Nelson Godfried Aguyemang: A Comprehensive Co-operative Approach to Food Security
1. A COMPREHENSIVE COOPERATIVE
APPROACH TO FOOD AND NUTRITION
SECURITY
NELSON GODFRIED AGYEMANG
VICE-PRESIDENT,
PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT,FUNDING AND EXTERNAL RELATIONS
E-mail: farmersallianceghana@yahoo.com
GHANA COOPERATIVE AGRICULTURAL
PRODUCERS AND MARKETING ASSOCIATIONAGRIC COOP
2. Global food and nutrition
insecurity and crisis
• 925 million hungry people everyday
• one third of all food produced—an astonishing
1.3 billion tonnes, worth around US$1 trillion—
is wasted or lost each year
• 1.4 billion people live on less than $1.25/day, 1
billion of whom live in rural areas
• Poor People spend 50-80% of income on food
3. The global food and nutrition
insecurity and crisis
Declining public investment in developing country
agriculture
‘In 1979, official development assistance (ODA)
aid to agriculture was 18 per cent of total ODA.
By 2009, it was just 6 per cent. In developing
countries,
government
investment
in
agriculture also fell in this period, by one third
in Africa and by as much as two thirds in Asia
and Latin America.’-IFAD,2012
4. The global food and nutrition insecurity and crisis
• During 2006-2008 global food crisis:
• 100 million poor rural and urban people were
pushed into the ranks of the world’s hungry
• Food price hikes at 2010 levels or higher are
likely to remain for next decade
5. The global food and nutrition insecurity and crisis
• Global food price spikes since 2006 part of:
• Long-term trend of higher and more volatile food
prices, driven by an imbalance between food
demand and supply
• Exacerbated by more erratic and extreme weather
• Poorly functioning agricultural markets
• Strengthening of the link between food and energy
prices
6. Current and Future Global Food demand
• 9.1 Billion population by 2050:
• Global food production at 70%. Food
production to double, by 2050 in developing
countries:
• Extra challenge for food security
• More demand for food, water and land
7. Current and Future Global Food demand
• Natural resource base for agriculture is being
degraded
• Large areas of farmland are being diverted from
food crop production
• Climate change threatens to further reduce
agriculturally viable land
• 40% world’s arable land degraded and to be
exacerbated by climate change
8. Comprehensive food and nutrition security
perspectives and dimensions
“when all people, at all times, have
physical and economic access to
sufficient, safe and nutritious food
to meet their dietary needs and
food preferences for an active and
healthy life.”
IFAD, World Food Summit-Rome, 1996
9. Comprehensive food and nutrition security
perspectives and dimensions
According to FAO:
‘ The widely accepted World Food Summit (1996)
definition reinforces the multidimensional
nature of food security and includes food access,
availability, food use and stability.’
-FAO Policy brief, Issue 2-Food Security,2006
11. Food Availability
which is a function of:
production, a function of inputs- land and water,
favourable climate, labour, capital, toolsequipment, fertilizers etc
supply, a function of effective distribution based
on appropriate infrastructure of a working
value/supply chain
12. INCREASED AVAILABILITY OF FOOD DUE TO
AGRICULTURAL LABOUR PRODUCTIVITY:
1. Increased agricultural labour productivity due to a
healthier, more skilled and equipped, informed and
organized rural workforce
2. Supporting small-scale agriculture and Producer
Organizations (POs)
3. Improving working conditions and avoiding
exploitative arrangements
4. Stimulating employment-enhancing private
investments in rural areas
5. Supporting disadvantaged producers’ groups
(women, youth and others) to access
assets, credit, markets and business skills
13. Food Accessibility
largely determined by:
• purchasing power-AFFORDABILITY
• market integration
• physical access to markets
• access to other assets like Natural resources- land and water
• formal safety nets, such as social protection measures
• informal coping strategies
14. Food Utilization
relies on:
• Sufficient energy consumption and a varied diet
to provide required micronutrients
• Dimension of Nutrition security which needs
expounding
• Nutritious foods availability and accessibility
15. Nutritious foods utilization is enhanced through:
• variety of foods at community and household
levels
• introduction of new crops
• promotion of underexploited traditional food crops
• home gardens
• Nutrition knowledge, a vital missing link in the
ingredients to good nutrition
16. NUTRITION KNOWLEDGE
Sufficient energy and nutrient intake by individuals is
the result of:
• good care and feeding practices
• food preparation
• diversity of the diet and intra-household
distribution of food
• This knowledge must be available to all members
of households and community
17. NUTRITION SECURITY, LIKE FOOD SECURITY, IS A
CONTINUUM:
Individual-Family-Community-National-Global
This Notion must not be lost on us
They are a vital part of:
Complete and Comprehensive Food/Nutrition
security approach
18. Food Stability- Stability in food availability, access
and utilization through time
• the need of a population, household or individual
to have access to adequate food at all times.
• This means they must not risk losing their access to
food as a consequence of sudden shocks (economic
or climatic crises) or cyclical events (seasonal food
shortages)
• Considering food stability shifts attention to risk
and vulnerability and to finding ways to make
households and food systems more resilient in
contexts of uncertainty.
19. IMPROVED STABILITY
• Increased investment in human capital due to
stable incomes
• Improved sustainability of production systems
• Increased empowerment
• Increased resilience to risks and shocks
20. Risks and Shocks to Food and Nutrition Security
They relate to:
• ill health
• climate variability
• Markets
• the costs of important social ceremonies
• poor governance
• state fragility
21. Reducing and Managing Risks and Shocks to Food and
Nutrition Security
5 Complementary approaches
1. Diversification of Livelihood and Income sources
2. Accumulation of Assets
3. Appropriate mix of flexible and diversified
Financing mechanisms and instruments
4. Special and Social Protection measures
5. Strengthening Knowledge, Skills and Capacity
22. Diversification of Livelihood and Income sources
‘Diversification through participation in the rural nonfarm economy is an increasingly important element
of the risk management strategies of rural
households.’-FAO,2012
‘Rural households typically manage risk through
diversification: smallholders may use highly
diversified cropping or mixed farming
systems. And many households use non-farm
activities to complement and reduce the
risks attached to farming – or vice versa’-FAO, 2012
23. Multiple and diversified Income Types
• On-farm income-single or multiple farm
• non-farm income
• off-season income
• value chain related income
• Strategic income
• Spark plugs and catalytic incomes.
•
25. Other risks management includes
• Flexible financing Instruments
• Social Protection
• Strengthening Skills, Knowledge and Capacity
for Managing and preventing risks and shocks
26. THE 5TH DIMENSION-SUSTAINABLE FOOD AND NUTRITION SECURITY:
• All the elements related to sustainable agricultural
intensification
• consideration of ecosystems in our food and nutrition security
efforts
• the avoidance of food waste and losses as a result of
irresponsible consumption and post-harvest losses
• all that relates to sustainability in our agricultural, food and
nutrition security efforts
• implications for the post-MDGs-Sustainable development GoalsSDGs
27. 5th Dimension: Sustainability
‘Sustainable agricultural intensification can be
the answer to enhanced food security,
environmental protection and poverty
reduction.’-IFAD,2013
‘The productivity of smallholder agriculture and
its contribution to the economy, food security
and poverty reduction depend on the services
provided by well-functioning ecosystems,
including soil fertility, freshwater delivery,
pollination and pest control’-IFAD,2013
28. Small holder family farms and cooperatives in
comprehensive food and nutrition security
• 500 million small farms in the world supporting 2.5
billion people
• Smallholders/family farms are main investors in
agriculture in most of the developing world
• Smallholders produce the bulk of food in developing
countries
• They produce 70 per cent of Africa’s food supply
• They produce 80 per cent of the food consumed in Asia
and sub-Saharan Africa together
29. ‘Viet Nam went from being a food-deficit country
to the second largest rice exporter in the
world, largely by developing its smallholder
farming sector. In 2008, the poverty rate fell
below 15 per cent from 58 per cent in 1993.’IFAD,2012
• But the hardships and impediments in the way
of small holders, push them out of
production, seriously threatening food selfsufficiency and food sovereignty
30. Small Holder Family Farmers are Woefully and
Predominantly Food and Nutrition insecure
smallholder farmers comprise
the majority of the world’s
undernourished population and
most of those living in absolute
poverty
31. The great Potential of Smallholder farms for food
and Nutrition security has to be tapped
‘Smallholder farming can potentially impact
human nutrition by providing a variety of foods
in sufficient quantities to enable all household
members to eat a nutritionally adequate diet.’IFAD, 2013
• Smallholdings can address one specific aspect of
well-being very effectively: nutrition
32. smallholder farmers are characterized by marginalization in
terms of:
•
accessibility
•
resources
•
information
•
technology
•
capital
•
assets
•
relative powerlessness
33. Small holder family farms and cooperatives need to be at the
centre of efforts and investments at addressing food and
nutrition security
• more secure access to land and water
• access to financial services to pay for seed, tools and fertilizer
• access to better functioning markets as incentives to invest in
improving production, with less risk
• roads and transportation to get their products to market
• access to technology for up-to-date and reliable market
information
• stronger organizations-Cooperatives
34. Special Contribution of Cooperative Business model
recognized
‘Agriculture – farming, forestry, fisheries and livestock – is
the main source of employment and income in rural
areas, where most of the world’s poor and hungry people
live. Agricultural cooperatives play an important role in
supporting small agricultural producers and marginalized
groups such as young people and women. They empower
their members economically and socially and create
sustainable rural employment through business models
that are resilient to economic and environmental shocks.’
---Rome-based food Organizations,2012, for IYC
35. Special Contribution of Cooperative business model
recognized
‘Cooperatives offer small agricultural producers
opportunities and a wide range of
services, including improved access to
markets, natural
resources, information, communications, technologi
es, credit, training and warehouses. They also
facilitate smallholder producers’ participation in
decision-making at all levels, support them in
securing land-use rights, and negotiate better terms
for engagement in contract farming and lower
prices for agricultural inputs such as seeds, fertilizer
and equipment.’---Rome-based food
Organizations,2012, for IYC
36. Special Contribution of Cooperative Business
model recognized
‘Through this support, smallholder
producers can secure their livelihoods and
play a greater role in meeting the growing
demand for food on local, national and
international markets, thus contributing to
poverty alleviation, food security and the
eradication of hunger.’---Rome-based food
Organizations,2012, for IYC
37. Developing Countries’ and Africa’s Special contexts in
Food and Nutrition security
• South Asia-greatest number of poor rural people
• Sub-Sahara Africa-highest incidence of rural
poverty
• Both regions-worst affected by poverty and hunger
• Africa has the largest share of the world’s
uncultivated land with rain-fed crop potential
38. Africa and Developing Countries need
• personal initiative, enterprise, education, good health
• Good Leadership and ownership of physical assets
• deliberate targeting of special measures for
gender, ethnic and age related access to
power, opportunities, capacity and resources
• local accessibility of resources and markets,
• Good Infrastructure, strong institutions and effective
systems
39. Challenges of Traditional Markets making
Smallholder produce unprofitable
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
sellers of produce,
buyers of food
both.
Market participation uncertain
risky
unfavourable terms
grow their own food
market-oriented crops in the absence of reliable
produce markets.
40. Small holder family farms and Cooperatives in
Food value chain
• Modern Market Characteristics and
Comprehensive Value Chains
• Transformations in scale and nature of demand
• emergence of supermarkets, modern value
chains and high value food stuffs
• organized, coordinated and higher standards
41. Placing Smallholder family farming enterprises in the
middle of profitable value chains
• Small farms as professional rural enterprises
• Capacity to Organize into Cooperative enterprises
linking horizontally in clusters
• economies of scale, bargaining power and higher
prices
• Vertically linking into upper levels of the chaininput supply-production-processing-wholesaling
42. Placing Smallholder family farming enterprises in the middle of
profitable value chains
• higher profits as one moves up the chain
• Moving up the value chain may simply mean selling directly
to processors rather than wholesalers
• or processing on the farm and selling the finished product
• Contractual arrangements for managing power relations in
the chain
• services for upgrading for active and profitable participation
of smallholders in the chain
43. Implications for a way forward and Final Thoughts
• Take Comprehensive and sustainable food and
Nutrition security perspective and Approach
• Support Smallholder family farm and rural
enterprise development
• Support the Contribution of Women, Youth and
other vulnerable groups
• Support the development of Cooperative
enterprises in markets and value chains
44. Implications for a way forward and Final Thoughts
• Diversify rural livelihoods, income sources and
develop rural infrastructure
• Build capacity and resilience for managing risks
and shocks to food and nutrition insecurity
• Coordinate all stakeholder efforts at all levels
• Prioritize Developing Countries and sub-sahara
Africa by Taking action Now!
