In partnership with the African Union, the United Nations and others, the US Department of State has launched an initiative to help African farmers and governments prepare for and adapt to food security challenges caused by change. climate.
Dr. Cary Fowler, the US special envoy for global food security, launched the new program Wednesday at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.
“Crops adapted to climate, pest, disease and market needs are a prerequisite for food security,” Fowler said. “Poor soils do not produce a bountiful harvest.”
Fowler, who recently visited Zambia and Malawi, warned that there is an urgent need to develop crops that are prepared to withstand the effects of climate change and the agricultural productivity demands of Africa’s growing population.
“At a time when Africa is experiencing weather extremes and population growth is increasing, we see a real opportunity to promote healthy soil and climate resilient crops in Africa,” Fowler said. “By the end of the century, as you probably already know, Africa will be the most populous continent in the world, but there are already 300 million food insecure people on the continent.”
Historically, most adaptation efforts have focused on a handful of crops like corn, rice and wheat, Fowler said. That attention, he said, must include lesser-known crops that are rich in vitamins and micronutrients.
“Other crops, such as cereals, such as sorghum, millet and teff, and almost all root and tuber crops, and the hundreds of indigenous African fruits and vegetables, have received a lot of attention,” he said. “It is not surprising that their yields are low and their potential has not been realized. For many of these crops, there has never been a single scientifically trained breeder working on them in the entire history of agriculture.”
This initiative is launched in partnership with the African Union and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Ambassador Cindy McCain, the US permanent representative to the UN agencies in Rome, was at the launch. She said that overlapping crises – armed conflict, COVID-19 and climate change – are testing global food systems. And that is affecting everyone, especially the most vulnerable around the world.
“Throughout my travels as the US ambassador to the UN agencies in Rome, I have seen the effects of conflict, water scarcity and extreme weather conditions from Kenya to Madagascar, from Sri Lanka to Laos and more,” he said. “As world leaders sought climate solutions at COP 27 in Egypt last year and at the Negev forum in the United Arab Emirates last month, it is clear that we must harness science, technology and innovation in agriculture to feed a growing population, and requires a united global effort.”
Fowler said that in addition to the FAO and the AU, entities such as the Rockefeller Foundation, Columbia University and the CGIAR, a global association that unites international organizations dedicated to food security research, are also involved in this effort. He said this is like a potluck dinner where the State Department puts in some resources and maybe an entrée, but other partners need to contribute to the effort to make it a success. Fowler noted that the process described is part scientific and part consensus building and compromise.
