CWS's McCullough hails U.S. shift to local farmers and nutrition as solution to global hu

[Worldwide Faith News <wfn@igc.org>]

CWS's McCullough hails U.S. shift to local farmers and nutrition as 
solution to global hunger
Wednesday, January 5, 2011

John L. McCullough, executive director and CEO of humanitarian agency 
Church World Service, today hailed the new United States commitment 
to a long-term focus on smallholder farmers, the leadership of women, 
and connections at community levels as the foundation for President 
Obama's new "Feed the Future" initiative.

Feed the Future consult calls on experience of faith-based agencies

UN-FAO: "We need to hear from you because you are in touch with even 
the smallest of the grassroots organizations."

Washington, D.C. -- John L. McCullough, executive director and CEO of 
humanitarian agency Church World Service, today hailed the new United 
States commitment to a long-term focus on smallholder farmers, the 
leadership of women, and connections at community levels as the 
foundation for President Obama's new "Feed the Future" initiative.

The U.S. now has the resources to reverse two decades of 
"disinvestment in food and agriculture." That was the message from 
USAID Administrator Dr. Rajiv Shah at a Tuesday (1/4) USAID 
consultation with executives from faith-based U.S.-headquartered 
development organizations.

The United States Agency for International Development has been named 
lead agency for the initiative.

"We are heartened by what appears to be a big and vital shift in how 
development assistance has been provided, to a focus on country- and 
grassroots-led food security development, with an emphasis on 
smallholder farmers, the leadership of women and listening to local 
communities in poor countries," said McCullough, a participant at the meeting.

The U.S. initiative has identified 20 focus countries, largely 
agrarian in nature. While the majority of the countries are located 
in Africa, others are in Southern Asia, Southeast Asia and Central America.

Shah said the U.S. already has made significant progress in meeting 
with those governments and establishing plans. He asked the 
non-governmental organizations attending Tuesday's consultation to 
help the U.S. reach the grassroots.

Church World Service's McCullough pressed USAID's Shah to share the 
U.S. criteria for its selection of the targeted 20 countries and 
whether a second tier was anticipated.

Ertharin Cousin, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Agencies for 
Food and Agriculture, told the faith-based NGOs, "We need to hear 
from you because you are in touch with even the smallest of the 
grassroots organizations."

Ann Tutwiler, incoming Deputy Director General for the United Nations 
Food and Agriculture Organization, emphasized the need for research 
and education at grassroots levels. She asked the NGOs for help in 
getting information to smallholder farmers and youth and in sharing 
best practices.

'Fifty percent reduction in child hunger over next few years would be 
remarkable'

Shah indicated that the U.S. needed to be more focused in its efforts 
in order to achieve measurable success and cited his hope that a 50 
percent reduction in child hunger over the next few years would be a 
remarkable achievement.

CWS's McCullough emphasized the importance of addressing nutrition as 
well as food security, saying he was pleased to see that both were 
incorporated in the overall Feed the Future proposal and that he 
hoped the balanced approach would persist.

McCullough questioned the U.S.'s stated strategies relative to the 
urban poor. He urged U.S. consideration of strategies that reach as 
deep into grassroots communities as possible, saying, "The goal 
should be one of helping people in rural as well as urban areas 
achieve food and achieving nutritional security and independence." He 
cited homestead or home gardening as part of a viable sustainable 
development strategy in rural and urban environments.

In its own food and nutritional security programs and advocacy, CWS 
supports rural and urban food and nutritional security programs, with 
a dual approach that includes emergency nutrition interventions along 
with longer-term sustainable, diversified food production and 
livelihoods that enable food purchasing power.

Susan Bradley from USAID's Bureau of Food Security said research 
suggested that, particularly in Africa, the focus must first be on 
rural areas, where 70 percent of the poor live.  Bradley said 
successful development strategies in rural areas will in time 
translate into more stable food prices and food security within urban 
communities as well.

Held at the White House, the Feed the Future Consultation with 
Faith-Based Development Leaders was a collaboration of USAID, the 
U.S. Department of Agriculture and the White House Office of 
Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

"While many of the participating organizations are based in 
Washington, there was a stated intentionality to benefit from the 
perspectives of views coming from outside of the beltway," said McCullough.

McCullough called the consultation "one of the most encouraging 
meetings in years with USAID officials," and said it was "equally 
exciting to witness the collaboration with the State Department and 
the USDA.  Under the leadership of President Obama, the government 
seems poised to follow through on his inaugural address commitment to 
work towards eradicating global hunger and poverty."

Church World Service is a relief, sustainable development and refugee 
assistance agency with particular focus on food security and fighting 
hunger domestically and worldwide.

For more, see the 

<http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2011/01/05/administrator-shah-speaks-faith-based-leaders-white-house-feed-future-event>White 
House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships story.