Food Security: Silver Lining in Dark Clouds?

Dr BK Mukhopadhyay

A noted management economist and an international commentator on business and economic affairs.

He may be reached at m.bibhas@gmail.com

Actually we are into a difficult stage globally and nationally in agriculture. Agricultural output will need to double by 2050 to feed a growing world. Produce more; conserve more and improve farmers’ lives and that is sustainable agriculture! Given the pattern and trends in land use time is ripe to seriously think over intensive farm practices so that the demand and supply forces get treated simultaneously. The farm sector is still to go a long way before a satisfactory position is arrived at.

The ongoing situation, thus necessarily, calls for giving a big push to farm investment, especially keeping in view the plight of the entire developing nations. Though 60 per cent of South Asian countries are still dependent on this sector, yet the growth rate of this sector in particular leaves much to be desired. In the entire developing block this is the reality emanating mainly from inadequate investment, rural infrastructure, research and development and inadequate diversification to high value crops. Side by side: non-availability of quality and cost-effective inputs, low efficiency of inputs use and fast-deteriorating soil health and water resources remain as the critical concerns. Agriculture requires a big push and so as to realize the much coveted high growth rate vis-à-vis food security.

Dimensions and Gaps

Clearly, if the current trends are of any indication, the food and agricultural policy system is in disarray. The symptoms of such a disarray are not difficult to locate – incoherent/inadequate response to exploding food prices; slowdown in agricultural productivity growth; water problems; a disorderly response to continuously disturbing energy prices; rapid concentration in multinational agri-business corporations without adequate institutional innovation aiming at properly guiding them; lack of progress in addressing scarcity; widespread nutritional problems [hunger / obesity / chronic diseases] plus agriculture related health hazards [avian influenza, etc] and adverse impacts on climatic fluctuations.

Underinvestment in areas related to food, nutrition/ agriculture [research/infrastructure/rural institutions] invite spillover effect / global impacts, among others.

Actually the real challenge in making agriculture an instrument of development lies outside agriculture – managing the political risk (political economy of agricultural policies and simultaneously strengthening governance for their implementation). The crucial need is there to share the ideas, experience and expertise, setting up of a common seed bank, joint research centre, surveillance and early warning system between the nations. Investment and regional cooperation in research and development must be at the top of regional meets be it north or south. Building up partnership with the scientists and research bodies have now become more essential than ever before - rapid technological innovation.

Positive signals also should not lose sight of. So far fast emerging economies like India are concerned the fact remains that the ongoing trend is steadily moving in terms of registering quicker growth in agricultural productivity. Good going - growth and modern farm practices and inclusive technologies are being implemented in order to foster the rural growth process.

Time Has Changed, So Also the Tasks Ahead

It is also a fact that cellular technologies, wireless communication networks as well as GIS-based agro-software technologies are reaching rural India to disseminate vital information and updates on weather, farming technologies, fertilizers, livestock, commodity prices as well as stock markets. Still, a huge number of villages do not have access to advanced farming technologies and interactive communication networks, not to speak of the pace of rural electrification and clean drinking water availability. Is it not the appropriate time to broaden the sight and look at vital aspects – re-identifying policy dimensions and initiatives; capacity building through PPP, individual initiatives and joint ventures; boosting agri-business and agri-marketing; GIS mapping and harvesting trends; mitigating climatic change hazards; precision farming – optimum utilization of resources; leaning heavily on most modern agri-practices; micro-finance and micro credit and attaching top importance to food security? Needless to say the responsibilities are to be shouldered not only by banks [who have been duly responding to FM’s call of doubling the credit flow to this sector], but also Government Departments; NGOs, Commodity Exchanges; agri-marketing and State Marketing Boards and of course the Extension Departments of various States.

Time is, thus, ripe for a more well-knitted coordinated actions so as to: initiate inter-sectoral-linkages; progressive decision making, information sharing and performance improvement; capacity building; creating more opportunities for partnership building, development reorganization and capacity enhancement for the rural stakeholders.

More delay means more damage – no planning is better than wrong planning. Time is come when this myopic tendency is done away with. A non-traditional approach is also experienced when the ongoing process is supplemented steadily. Fast creation of self-help-groups does mean a little if not corrective / supportive measures are not taken to resist the same from breaking down. What is the failure rate is never looked into. It is better to remember that under a comprehensive environment two and two not always make four. Expected loss call for making provision along with keeping the wolf at bay (read unexpected loss). Potato cultivation is better financed when food-processing activities extend friendly hands! It is not to be forgotten that the under-privileged section is bearing the brunt of climate impact as they are neither equipped enough to prefigure meteorological changes nor do they have the capacity to mitigate the impact caused by climatic hazards and no specific early warning system to forecast natural disasters.

Countering the Challenges: Need for Global Cooperation

Farming feeds the world, which, in turn, depends on vital natural resources and as such we will need to do a lot with the solution nature already provides incessantly – rainwater. The main challenge for farmers is squeezing the most out of unpredictable rainfall, which, in turn, depends on putting the latest science-backed tools in farmers’ hands, inclusive of advanced hybrid and bio-tech seeds – the seeds which can increase the yield significantly and can effectively extend a helping hand to the farmers - to use one-third less water per unit produced, as rightly observed by the leading agri-experts.

The challenge remains: how can we squeeze more food from a raindrop inasmuch as non-irrigated agriculture produces still 60 per cent of the world’s food and judging by the ongoing facts and circumstances it will definitely need to do more.

Rightly, the Bangkok Conference referred to boosting renewable energy, combating wide-scale deforestation and improving the drives for energy efficiency so that the very issue of climate change could be tackled to the extent practicable.

It is high time sincere collaborative programmes were resumed among the countries in order to adequately address opportunities and challenges. Intensive agriculture has to lead the process keeping in view the intense competition over land, crop-wise [intra-sectoral] and activity-wise [inter-sectoral]. The very recent development definitely raises hopes.