Poor Farm Families to the Rescue

Tom Remington, Catholic Relief Services' principal agriculture advisor for Africa, recently sat down in Nairobi with Debbie DeVoe, CRS' regional information officer in East Africa, to share some ideas of how agricultural programs for poor rural farmers can help mitigate the crisis of rising food prices.

What impact are the global increases in food prices having in Africa?

CRS' innovative voucher-based fairs help poor farmers increase production and incomes by gaining access to seeds, farming tools and livestock. Photo by Debbie DeVoe/CRS

The prices of global cereal grains, especially rice and wheat but also maize, have increased significantly. As a result, the urban poor, who have to purchase their food, are facing considerable difficulties. When you combine this with the increase in fuel prices, they're taking a double hit. Their cost of living has increased significantly, and they are struggling.

Many of the rural poor who are not able to produce enough food to meet their needs will be hurt as well, as they too will have to purchase increasingly expensive food to make ends meet. They may be forced to sell household assets to afford this food, perpetuating the vicious cycle of poverty. This will get even worse as food prices continue to rise globally.

The crisis, however, can benefit rural farmers who have a marketable surplus. For example, Catholic Relief Services works with navy bean farmers in Ethiopia and chickpea farmers in Tanzania to link them to profitable markets. As the prices for these commodities shoot up, the farmers can invest in increasing their production to make more money.

How can CRS help countries respond to the crisis?

Today's rising food prices can be an opportunity for farmers in the developing world if they are included as part of the solution. Make no mistake: The increased prices for wheat, maize, soybean and other edible oils have been a boon for farmers who are exporting from the United States, Europe and elsewhere. The question is, how can we help African farmers also benefit from the increase in prices while contributing to increases in food supply?

CRS is known for an innovative approach that uses vouchers and fairs to get needed assets into the hands of poor farmers. Eligible farmers receive a set of vouchers worth a given sum. They then use the vouchers to "buy" seeds, farming tools, fertilizer or livestock from approved local sellers who typically attend a special fair. This approach helps farmers increase agricultural production and subsequently their incomes. The sellers also benefit, stimulating the local economy further. In countries feeling the price crunch, providing more opportunities for vouchers and fairs would help poor rural farmers increase production, improve yields and tap into rising food prices.

Food-based vouchers could also be used in the short term to help both urban and rural families afford sufficient food during the crisis. Eligible families could receive a set amount of food vouchers to supplement their food supplies when rising prices limit purchasing power. This approach was successfully applied by CRS in 2006 as part of drought response activities in Kenya, with 2,500 expectant and nursing mothers and 3,500 families with malnourished children receiving food vouchers to supplement their food resources.

While many poor families will still struggle to afford food as prices rise, voucher-based initiatives can help reduce the suffering.

Is there a concern that people could become dependent on the vouchers?

Dependency is always a concern in both emergency interventions and long-term development projects. Good programming could avoid this, though. In urban environments, eligibility for aid could be restricted to the neediest and vouchers provided only when rising prices are preventing people from affording a sufficient amount of food for their daily needs.

In the longer term, vouchers could give poor farmers the materials they need to take advantage of these price increases and climb a little faster out of poverty. For example, we could issue a voucher to be redeemed at the local agriculture shop for seed or fertilizer. We would then provide information on the correct use of the fertilizer in small amounts, called microdoses. And we would provide information on the different seed varieties available with recommendations on what to plant so farmers can take advantage of the rising prices.

Some organizations don't like getting involved with fertilizer. But across Africa, the soils are being depleted, with soil fertility considerably lower than it was 10 or 20 years ago. If we're going to increase productivity, we need to reverse that. Since farmers will have difficulty affording fertilizer once we stop providing it, to prevent dependency we could provide a partial subsidy that allows for very judicious use of fertilizer as part of an integrated soil fertility program.

The current "crisis in prices" could be a driver to increase production in Africa. Africa has the potential. Will that potential be tapped? That's the question.