Statement of Support for U.S. Global Food Security Legislation

Statement of Support for U.S. Global Food Security Legislation
As organizations engaged in efforts to end global hunger, malnutrition, and extreme poverty, we strongly support bipartisan introduction and passage of legislation to ensure continued U.S. leadership in improving food and nutrition security. As the U.S. – Africa Leaders Summit takes place this week, we recognize that legislation is necessary to improve upon and build from the successes that we have seen through the Feed the Future program.
Globally, 842 million people are hungry, and malnutrition causes approximately half of all deaths of children under 5 (3.1 million children) each year. Hunger and malnutrition rob poor people of healthy, productive lives and stunt the mental and physical development of future generations.
After decades of declining support for farmers in developing countries, renewed U.S. leadership from President Bush and now President Obama has sparked a global commitment to help people feed themselves. Governments, nongovernmental and civil society organizations, academic and research institutions, multilateral institutions, and farmers themselves have all recommitted to fighting hunger and poverty through new agriculture-focused investments.
The U.S. government’s global hunger and food security initiative, Feed the Future, takes a comprehensive, sustainable approach to agricultural development and food and nutrition security. Drawing on resources and expertise from 11 federal agencies, Feed the Future is investing in country-owned plans and is helping countries, including 19 focus countries in Africa, Latin America and Asia, transform their agricultural sectors and sustainably produce enough nutritious food to feed their people. Feed the Future has already achieved impressive results: in 2013, Feed the Future reached more than 12.5 million children with nutrition interventions and helped nearly 7 million farmers and producers with new technologies and management practices on more than 4 million hectares of land.
We strongly urge Congress to introduce bipartisan legislation this September, and we pledge to work with Congress and the administration to support passage of legislation that will ensure continued U.S. leadership on global food and nutrition security and poverty reduction. Legislation should include the development and implementation of a comprehensive, whole-of-government strategy to combat hunger and malnutrition in developing countries. This strategy should support country ownership and emphasize the important role of small-scale producers and local food economies. It should prioritize sustainable agricultural development, improving nutrition, gender equality and female empowerment, building the resilience of communities, safety nets for the most vulnerable food insecure populations, environmental protection, capacity building, research, and civil society engagement. It should also improve upon existing monitoring and evaluation practices to ensure U.S. taxpayer investments are implemented transparently, efficiently, and effectively.
Engaging the expertise and unique contributions from U.S. non-governmental organizations, civil society, research and academic institutions, and the private sector will be crucial going forward. NGO alliance InterAction and its members have already pledged to spend over $1.5 billion in private resources on food security, agriculture, and nutrition from 2013 to 2015, as a reflection of a strong commitment to these important issues.
We look forward to continuing to work with Congress and the administration to support legislation and sustainably fight hunger, malnutrition, and extreme poverty around the world.
1. ACDI/VOCA
2. ActionAid USA
3. Action Against Hunger USA
4. Alliance for Global Food Security
5. Alliance to End Hunger
6. American Academy of Pediatrics
7. American Jewish World Service
8. Association for International Agriculture and Rural Development
9. Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities
10. Bread for the World
11. CARE USA
12. Catholic Relief Services
13. Centscere
14. ChildFund International
15. Church World Service
16. Congressional Hunger Center
17. Convoy of Hope
18. Edesia
19. Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
20. Fabretto Children’s Foundation
21. Farm Journal Foundation
22. Food for the Hungry
23. Friends Committee on National Legislation
24. Global Communities
25. Global Harvest Initiative
26. Global Water Challenge
27. GrainPro Inc.
28. Heifer International
29. Helen Keller International
30. INMED Partnerships for Children
31. IntraHealth International, Inc.
32. InterAction
33. International Medical Corps
34. International Relief & Development
35. Land O’Lakes International Development
36. Lutheran World Relief
37. Mercy Corps
38. NCBA CLUSA
39. Nutrition and Education International
40. One Acre Fund
41. ONE Campaign
42. Outreach, Inc.
43. Oxfam America
44. PATH
45. Relief International
46. ReSurge International
47. Save the Children
48. Self Help Africa
49. The Borgen Project
50. The Global Foodbanking Network
51. The Hunger Project
52. The Six-Second Project
53. The United Methodist Church, General Board of Church and Society
54. Volunteers for Economic Growth Alliance (VEGA)
55. WASH Advocates
56. Water for South Sudan
57. Winrock International
58. Women Thrive Worldwide
59. World Concern
60. World Food Program USA
61. World Vision