PRESIDENT:Messieurs les delegues nous allons reprendre nos travaux, avec a l'ordre du jour le meme point, c'est. a-dire la ''situation de l’alimentation et de l’agriculture''.
C. O. SANCHEZ-AVALOS (Argentina):En primer termino deseo sumarme a las felicitaciones por su elecciòn y también deseo felicitar al profesor Islam por su ilustrativa introducciòn al tema desarrollado en el documento C 81/2 y C 81/2 Sup. 1, que, por su contenido, constituye un valioso aporte de la Secretaria para la evaluaciòn de la situaciòn mundial de la agricultura y la alimentaciòn.
Con referenda a dichos documentos, creo importante destacar el parrafo 20 de su texto, referente a la tendencia reciente de las politicas proteccionistas. Se trata de un problema crucial para el comercio de productos agropecuarios originado en los paises desarrollados e integrantes en la Comunidad Economica Europea. Estos no solo han reducido sus importaciones, mediante reducciones arancelarias distorsionan tes de la demanda internacional, sino que también, con la aplicacion de regimenes de subsidio a la expor-tacion a elevados costos, han desplazado de sus mercados tradicionales a los paises en desarrollo.
En materia de ayuda alimentaria, a que se hace mencion en el parrafo 52, juzgamos oportuno recordar que la Argentina es el unico pais en desarrollo donante, dentro del marco de los compromisos de ayuda alimentaria, con un volumen establecido en 35 000 toneladas anuales. A la vez, por intermedio del Pro-grama Mundial de Alimentos, ha formulado el ofrecimiento formal de una donacion en el periodo 1981-82 de productos alimenticios por valor de 2,5 millones de dolares.
En relaciòn con el parrafo 170 del documento que examinamos, sobre el funcionamiento de los acuerdos concertados en las negociaciones comerciales multilaterales, podemos informar en esta reunion que nuestro pais ha suscrito los acuerdos sobre carne de vacuno y las actuales tecnicas de comercio de importacion y de valoraciones en aduana se estan aplicando provisionalmente, mientras se gestiona la debida aplicacion legislativa.
En cuanto a los temas pendientes de decision en las mencionadas negociaciones, el aspecto que mas preocupa a nuestro pais es la virtual exclusion de los productos agropecuarios de la corriente de liberalizacion del comercio, al no contar en la actualidad con un regimen similar al de los productos industrializados.
Senor Presidente, para finalizar y refiriéndome brevemente a la situacion del sector agropecuario argentino, el Jefe de mi delegacion, en su exposicion de la manana de hoy en el Plenario, ha explicado con detalles la significativa evolucion de la produccion agricola y ganadera argentina, si bien conviene agregar algunos conceptos adicionales. El sector agropecuario en la Argentina tiene, sobre el resto de la economia, una influencia muy superior a la que sugiere su participacion en el producto bruto interno, el 14 por ciento, o en la ocupacion de la poblacion economica activa, un 10 por ciento, y esa importancia se deriva de su capacidad para producir alimentos a costos inferiores a los inter-nacionales, proveyendo entre el 70 e el 80 por ciento del valor de las exportaciones, permitiendo bajos costos de la alimentacion en los sectores urbanos. Esta produccion, por supuesto, historicamente ha tenido una evoluciòn que vale la pena comentar. Permanecio relativamente estancada durante la decada de los anos 50 y hasta la mitad de la decada de los anos 60,Crece en ese periodo a una tasa inferior a la de los requerimientos de divisas que necesitaba la economia nacional para su desarrollo. Durante el primer periodo senalado existe un relativo estancamiento para las areas cultivadas y de productividad con la practica sustitucion de agricultura por ganaderia y viceversa. A partir de mediados de la decada de los anos 60, con la incorporacion de los maices, hibridos y del sorgo, comienza un aumento de la productividad agricola, que se ve acentuado con el incremento en el area del cultivo de soja. La apa-rición también de nuevos metodos para el trigo y ultimamente el mayor uso de hibridos y girasol, acompahando esta mejora en la calidad de las semillas y el cambio en el uso de la tierra y de otros
factores de la producción, ha generalizado la practica de cultivos mas eficientes. El uso de nuevos productos y de cambios importantes en la tecnologia de los cultivos, permite mostrar a un agricultor que maneja su explotación con el criterio de empresario, y a su vez se debe resaltar tambien el esfuerzo de otros organismos tanto de caracter gubernamental, como es el INTA, asi como tambien otros organismos privados.
Asi, en cifras concretas y bastante representativas, podemos, por ejemplo, senalar que la agricultura en este ultimo periodo señalado ha crecido con una tasa anual del 6,9 por ciento acumulativo en la ultima decada, mientras que la ganaderia tambien ha crecido con una tasa del 4,3 por ciento anual acumulativo en el ultimo quinquenio.
Por supuesto que estos resultados de mejoramientos en la productividad tambien han traido una incidencia en el comercio de los productos agricolas y fundamentalmente en las exportaciones. Este mayor ritmo de crecimiento trajo tambien crecimientos en las exportaciones. El valor en dolares de las exportaciones de origen agropecuario se ha multiplicado por 4,5 en los ultimos 10 anos. En los ultimos 6 anos han crecido a un ritmo del 15,9 por ciento anual, acumulativo, y en los ultimos 3 anos a un 16,1 por ciento anual, acumulativo. Cabe destacar que este crecimiento del valor de las exportaciones coincide con un periodo de precios internacionales relativamente bajos para nuestros productos y a fines del año 1975 empiezan a caer mas los precios. Se recuperan en 1978 y 1979 y vuelven a caer en el 81.
Y con esta breve información que me he permitido aportar a los honorables delegados, quiero especial mente destacar que esta produccion creciente es produccion de alimentos. En un proximo futuro, segun lo permite prever la evolución de la poblacion mundial y de las circunstancias que vive la humanidad, ha de convertirse, sin ninguna duda, en un generoso aporte argentine para satisfacer la demanda creciente de alimentos y para poder actuar con la solidaridad que se necesita en el campo internacional.
S. HATAHET (United Arab Emirates)(Original language-Arabic): Mr. Chairman, allow me to congratulate you on your election as Chairman of this Committee and to thank you for the able manner in which you are directing our work. I should also like to thank Dr. Islam and express our gratitude to him for the clarity of the documents submitted on this item.
It goes without saying that most nations, and more specifically the developing ones, have included in their development projects the implementation of many programmes to provide food security for their populations and, despite the achievements of some countries in this field, a large majority of develop ing countries, more specifically the poorer ones, are still suffering from hunger and malnutrition. Despite the availability of natural resources which could be used by those countries, their economic progress in attaining food security is still in danger and that is why such developing countries need help to enable them to overcome the food problem, under the prevailing circumstances and taking due account of the availability of resources. This is why this international gathering is of great importance as it enables us to get the priorities in the proper order. For this reason the United Arab Emirates, have taken due account of the proposals made by the Islamic countries to improve their food production and more specifically countries suffering from low incomes and food-deficits, especially if we take into account that the food production per caput in such countries is significantly low. We also note the appeal made by the World Food Security Committee to give local and regional stocks greater priority to achieve food security. This is also confirmed by a proposal of the Director-General to increase the budget.
We also support the Programme of Work and Budget for this Organization's activities:it is a channel that enables us to provide aid and help in all its forms to developing and poor countries, disregarding political considerations.
I also wish to give a brief review of the efforts undertaken by the United Arab Emirates in the field of agricultural development. Food production has increased to a level of 13 percent per annum and within the five-year plan for 1981-85 we have achieved self-sufficiency in certain kinds of vegetables, crops, in poultry and fish production. The programmes of support provided to the production unit have enabled us to improve their efficiency. We are also cooperating with the Gulf countries to coordinate production policies with a view to improve production as well as with the Islamic countries and the Group of 77 countries. We have also increased our country's capacity, within an integrated plan, to achieve set targets and we hope that as a result of the discussions within this Committee we shall be able to pursue certain policies which will help us in fulfilling the objectives we are discussing.
W. S. NAIMOOL (Trinidad and Tobago): My delegation, having listened to the speakers here and in other fora, is more than ever convinced that food sufficiency for the world's millions is within reach but that it requires international effort of much greater quality and seriousness, and more particularly greater effort of flesh and spirit on the part of individual developing countries, no matter how exacting and how painfully sustained that effort might be. In the search for this sufficiency-and I propose to move away somewhat from the familiar on the theme to the not so familiar-we must consider first, the maximum use of indigenous resources, and, secondly, the importation and cultivation in time of non-local resources for indigenous consumption.
With respect to the first point, it is well known that in several countries certain produce, vegetables and fruit, for example, notwithstanding their tastiness and nutrition, are commercially ignored to the point where they are becoming virtually extinct, being replaced by imported products or by other local products difficult to nurture and expensive to the consumer. It might therefore be useful to think internationally in terms of a return, in those countries where it has meaning, to such nutritive food material that is distinctly local and easy to produce and engage in a policy of massive production.
With respect to the second point, the practice of importing certain plants and seeds and adapting them to local use has been going on for many years but more of this should be happening, given the virtually endless list of possibilities, which should be fully explored. My delegation is aware that taste is an individual matter: de gustibus non disputandum est. But taste is acquired, and if it can be acquired, the door should not be closed to a possibly new and exciting experience in food, and I say this with no attempt to question in the slightest cultural or religious imperatives.
During my stay in South America I became enamoured of a delicious and nourishing salad made from cactus. May I repeat that word:cactus. It is well-known in Mexico and goes by the name of Nopalitus and it grows on desert or virtually desert land. I ask myself how many of us here know of this succulent plant or for that matter of the virtually endless variety of spinach, beans, fruits and vegetables that can cross borders-that have crossed borders-and flourish bountifully without demanding much water or particularly fertile land. In Trinidad and Tobago, a small island developing country of the Caribbean, we have for some time been emphasising agricultural production with an alert eye to ecological integrity. The thrust in agriculture is positive and we think dynamic and I might here say that we propose further to involve FAO in this thrust. For us in Trinidad and Tobago this move is particularly significant and we are determined to lay the foundations for the enduring goodness that comes to a nation from a solid and continuing agricultural programme. In this context, and faced with the chilling spectre of food shortages the government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago emphasised its focus both at the regional, that is to say Caribbean', and national levels on the formulation and development of appropriate policies plans and programmes all with a view to increasing food production. At the regional level we have col laborated with our Caribbean brothers in the articulation of a regional food plan, the main facets and strategies of which are now being finalised for submission to regional agricultural ministers early in 1982. At the national level within the framework of an agricultural policy honed on the premise that self-sufficiency and increased food production are of the first importance, strategies have been devised for the reorganization of our sugar industry which for many decades, together with cocoa and coffee, provided the main pillars of our agricultural production. This industry, which now makes use of most of our remaining cultivable productive land will be diversified both within and outside of sugar with the accent on increasing domestic production of fruit, vegetables, cereals, legumes and live stock. I should also mention that we are energetically involved in a programme of fisheries develop ment. In support of this significant agricultural transformation both the research and development and extension education training capabilities within our Ministry of Agriculture Land and Food Produc tion are being strengthened and simultaneously nutrition programmes are being undertaken, particularly at the level of primary school children. In a word I am referring here to our school nutrition programme which is well under way. It is therefore with the greatest of disquiet, in fact with the deepest anguish, that we take note of recent trends to reduce or freeze the amount of funds available to small developing countries like ours, disadvantaged in so many ways but without any lack in that fervent determination to better our circumstances. But this cannot be done, much as we might like to do it, without the financial and human resources indispensible for the implementation of programmes. The answer must clearly be in assistance from the international community and from its institutions. My delegation wishes to stress that what its government and other Caribbean governments are attempting is being undertaken as in the case of so many others in the developing world at formidable odds. We would expect in humanity's name that the international community will not frustrate such efforts by denying small increases in the budgets of organizations such as the FAO or by decreasing assistance generally or by resorting to the punishing practice as mentioned by my colleague from Argentina of protectionism. Punishing, and sterile in the long run. Our cri de coeur, for that is what it is, must be given the attention that it, and indeed the well-being of the world, require. Let us be freed for all time of the haunting hungering eyes of children. I congratulate the FAO for the lucidity and the goodness of the documentation to which we address ourselves and you, Sir, on your being appointed our worthy Chairman.
M. DESSOUKI (Egypt) (Original language-Arabic): My country's delegation, in the light of the analytical statements on these two precious documents, wishes to join the international community in expressing its concern at the drop in productivity in agriculture and its failure to meet consumption and the failure of food production to proceed apace with population growth. This could lead to a negative impact on the agricultural and rural development of developing countries and on the non-oil-exporting countries. This lays the greater burden on the agricultural sector not only to provide food for their populations but also to absorb the excess manpower in each country. This leads to a drop in international buffer stocks which fall below the level required for world food security. Furthermore the increase in the prices of food production and the accompanying deterioration in food levels and the nutritional levels of the low-income families is a source of concern. We also wish to express our concern at the shortage in the flow of food aid in the case of emergencies not only as failure in response but also at the lack of resources. This has led to my country's delegation to urge the international community and the United Nations family to undertake further efforts to seek to prevent this drop of productivity and of buffer stocks and to help food shortage countries to take the necessary steps to avoid such rupture of stocks, and here we wish to commend the role played by FAO in highlighting the precariousness of the present situation and its constant demand for joint efforts and its call on the international community to assume its responsibility and to avoid an international food crisis. And the best evidence of this is the World Food Day celebrated recently by this organization. My country has taken several important steps on the basis of the following reasoning that to achieve food security requires first and fore most a development in the fields of food and agriculture. We have therefore undertaken the following. First of all to increase the area of arable land and to increase our reclamation of desert lands. . We. . have also issued legislation for the appropriation of desert land in favour of individual farmers and co operatives and investment companies. We have also sought to distribute the reclaimed land to farmers and graduates from universities and agricultural institutes. We have also issued a loan which in fact provides tax relief for all companies and individuals undertaking the activity of land reclamation. We have also instituted a higher authority for reproduction, agricultural production, which establishes an investment policy for the development of the arable lands. We are currently developing an integrated plan to prevent desertification and to redistribute populations to avoid the concentration of popula tions on the narrow area of arable land. We are also seeking to prevent the use of agricultural land for construction purposes. Secondly we are trying to develop our agricultural policy which is aimed at the growing of short cropping seasons and varieties of short growth. We are also seeking to adopt a policy of intercropping to achieve a maximum use of the narrow area of arable land available to us. We are also undertaking joint projects with neighbourly and friendly countries to introduce the use of high yield varieties of crops and seeds in addition to providing the farmers with the necessary agricultural inputs at subsidised prices, and we also have provided tax relief, exemption to all imported agricul tural inputs. We are also seeking to implement food security and to establish remunerative prices for agricultural produce. This is in addition to all other measures currently being undertaken to improve livestock through the providing of adequate fodder and to the importing of pure strains and breeds and the establishment of agricultural inter-breeding stocks. A third point deals with the rationalisation of water use and this third aspect of agricultural improvement hinges on irrigation. We have established a map of water resources in Egypt in order to reduce losses and to rationalise the use and water distribu tion system and to optimise the use of water for irrigation. We have also sought to improve the drain age system to retain the quality of arable land. We are currently implementing a major project to rationalise the use of water overall. The fourth point in our national policy is that in our agricul tural credit system we have sought to encourage this system and to provide financial liquidity to such institutions and to reinforce their technical cadres taking due account of the need to link up between extension services and information services aimed at familiarising farmers with the latest in agricul tural technology. My country welcomes what was said in paragraph 129 relating to TCDC in the field of extension services and we do hope that we shall shortly put the final touches to a plan of cooperation with the countries of Africa and the Near East countries, as is the case for certain countries of Asia. We also hope that all international moves currently undertaken shall be successful in solving the problems of agricultural production.
I. OZORAI(Hungary):First of all I take the opportunity to congratulate you on your election as Chairman of this most important Commission. We are convinced that Commission I is going to do success ful work under your guidance. The Hungarian delegation has carefully studied the document before us on the state of food and agriculture in 1981 and its supplement, and would like to express its appreciation to FAO for having prepared this valuable paper. We too are worried about the world food and agricultural situation and we are in full agreement with the statement of the document saying that with the continuing dependence of the world on annual harvest and the gloomy economic situation, especially in the least deve loped and other low-income countries, the state of food and agriculture gives cause for concern. This feeling may be only slightly alleviated by the promising news about this year's harvest. For this reason my delegation attaches high priority to increasing and improving food and agricultural production in developing countries. In our opinion, a permanent and viable solution of the food problem can only be reached by improving their own production. This process will also require, of course, external assistance and a more reasonable information and division of labour.
Hungary has been and always is ready to make our experience available to the developing countries. My Government has already given substantial support for the improvement of food and agricultural production in developing countries through bilateral and multilateral schemes. I would like to mention here as an example the recent assistance which Hungary provides, in cooperation with FAO and the UNDP, for the benefit of some developing African countries. Within the framework of this programme, agricultural cooperatives specialists from six African developing countries are trained on the structure and operation of Hungarian cooperative agricultural production. My Government is prepared and willing to extend, in cooperation with FAO, the assistance to any country interested in becoming familiar with the adaptability of the organizational and technical schemes of our agricultural and food production.
As far as aid is concerned, we fully share the opinion of all those who are sceptical about the long-term effects of aid, although I would like to draw your attention to the announcement of the head of the Hungarian delegation made yesterday to the Plenary Meeting, according to which Hungary increases by 10 percent her pledge to the World Food Programme.
I should like to put two points for your consideration. One is on agricultural investments in western lands, which seems to me to be far from satisfactory. The report for 1981 does not include a special chapter on this issue. There is some information available according to which the share of investments as a percentage of GDP has actually declined in the majority of countries facing food problems. Encouraging efforts of FAO to introduce, elaborate and follow up investment-orientated projects merely volunteer a statement that in many regions a greater financial and policy attention to agriculture in its broadest sense is still to be advocated.
Financial constraints in most countries are well known because of the reasonably expensive feeding of urban and country masses as well as special groups. We, however, feel strongly against any voluntaristic approach not taking into full account the interests of producers, mainly small ones. It is our firm belief that no over-all policy must be conceived and implemented unless it is looking upon agriculture and the producers living from it as an integral part of the national economy as a whole.
My Government considers food of strategic value and importance. Food and the policies attached to its production and distribution must be looked at by all governments and organizations as a basic guidline to their over-all policies which cannot and must not be handled as a separate chapter in their national plans and economic goals.
In spite of the somewhat gloomy picture of the state of food and agriculture in many countries, my Government is optimistic as far as long-run perspectives are concerned. We feel that mankind does have the necessary resources, land and skill to fight all food problems within the next decade or two or three decades. The history of the last twenty years in our agriculture maybe will offer some examples as to that.
I should, finally, like to say some very brief words about the state of food and agriculture in Hungary. In spite of unfavourable weather conditions, we managed to have in 1981 a slightly above the average year. It can be fairly stated that the multi-sectoral features of Hungarian agriculture have helped us in doing so. Actually, four groups are responsible for food production in Hungary:cooperative farms, state farms, household plots of farmers and agricultural. labourers working in agriculture and, finally, the non agricultural population. This last group produces food in the invididual garden plots, and so on, com bining healthy hobbies and leisure time with a profitable activity contributing most to their living standards and to the variety of food or food marketing in the country. It is illuminating, in view of what I have just told you, that at present 14 percent of Hungary's population is living on agriculture and according to a recent statistical survey 52 percent of the population is in some way or other engaged in agricultural production.
A. B. CAWTHORN (United Kingdom): As this is my first intervention, Mr. Chairman, I would like on behalf of the United Kingdom delegation to congratulate you on your appointment to the chair. We look forward with pleasurable anticipation to working under your guidance. We would like also to congratulate Professor Islam and his staff on the preparation of the factually accurate and comprehensive documents. We are pleased to find that these working documents contain a greater degree of valuable analysis than has been presented at recent conferences. We cannot accept all the conclusions without some comment and we are particularly perturbed by the somewhat excessively gloomy global picture of world food security, which does not conform to our views, particularly in the light of the excellent forecast for the 1981-82 cereals harvest. Indeed, the supplementary document provided gives us statistics which encourage us in our view that the situation is not as bleak as was at first anticipated and as first painted.
It is also pleasing to note that recognition is given in the working papers to the view, now more and more frequently expressed, that the only real and lasting guarantee of adequate food security is heavily dependent on the less developed countries' improved industrial-agricultural production base.
But, having accepted that the position of world stocks is showing some improvement, we must none of us lose sight of the fact that continuing problems lie in the uneven distribution of available supplies and there are serious problems facing those countries which must tackle the storage and distribution aspects. If adequate facilities and political foresight and action are not present the hungry will continue to suffer in localized regions of the hinterland, whatever the state of the world food situation. The general decline in production outlined in paragraphs 23 to 29, is alarming, not least the situation in Eastern Europe and the USSR, and we would welcome the Secretariat's views on production and failure in those regions which have affected the world grain trade situation, since it seems to us clear that they must bear a large proportion of the blame for many of the price and trade problems which have arisen in recent years.
Clearly, Eastern Europe and the USSR have not done as well as most developing countries, consequently they compete for food grains and other food resources that are also badly needed by the developing world. With demand from Eastern Europe and the USSR for surplus Canadian and American grain, it is possibly not surprising that strategic or emergency food reserves cannot come to the anticipated or expected targets.
The decline in production is also alarming in the context of population growth, which is covered in section III. Despite the resources allocated to food production throughout the world, one notices from paragraph 41 that little impact is being made and that we are in fact running on the spot-indeed, even moving slowly backwards in some regions of which Africa is the supreme example.
In relation to the recent cereal harvests, attention is drawn to the fact that the world end-year stocks have been run down to about 14 percent of consumption, which gives little scope for surviving disasters It seems to us that given the level of population growth and the trend towards greater cereal consumption, either directly or indirectly as meat, that the world cereal harvest has to be breaking new records each year in order to keep pace with potential demand. The short-term position has improved, but in the long term if the developing countries' potential demand for grain could be backed up by the ability to pay for the grain, then there would be a major increase in world trade. As Mrs. Gandhi pointed out yesterday in the Mac Dougall Memorial Lecture, countries will only increase production if more domestic resources are directed towards cereal production, and it must be recognized that this will come about as a result of higher prices.
There are a number of references to population throughout the paper but there are two general issues to with we would draw attention. The first is that agricultural planners and policy makers assume that population growth is an exogenous factor, even though some recognize that their actions may influence it. If there is to be real progress in feeding the world's population, planners and policy makers must take this factor fully into account. This should not be overlooked by the Conference.
Agricultural projects are one case, and one of the most obvious examples, where this can effectively be done. FAO should consider the best ways to incorporate population factors into the planning/design and implementation of agricultural efforts. The primary purpose being to make a significant impact on the nutritional status of developing world population.
The second important point that we would make is that population problems are not confined to the prob lems of growth alone. There are also problems of size, distribution, movement and structure. These problems are severe for many developing countries, but it is increasingly being recognized that the implications of population problems are a matter of international concern.
If I may, I should like to turn to the section on nutrition, and I regret that I must speak at some length and somewhat critically I do so mainly in response, to comments made by o :her delegates this morning. I have to say that we are not happy with the way that it is generally presumed in this and similar documents that we are faced,with a generally worsening nutritional situation. Paragraph 10 simply asserts that "the nutritional status of the developing world population does not yet indicate any major progress in reducing the incidence of under-nourishment". We simply do not know on what evidence this is based. The Fourth World Food Survey in 1977 tried for the first time to present direct nutritional status data, of children only, on a country and regional basis. It was very incomplete and could hardly be claimed to represent the status of the developing world population. As far as we know, we have even less evidence on which to assess trends. What paragraph 10 seems to be designed to establish is that although the production figures show modest improvements we should not assume that under-nourishment is any less. Perhaps it is not, but the point is that we do not really know. Of course we ought to know, and we believe that we should use every possible occasionto press for more effective collection of data on the actual condition of populations in order to find out.
The problem is made even worse in Section III, which attempts to address the long-run trends in con sumption. It is generally accepted, except fairly obviously within FAO, that balance sheet estimates of supplies are not reliable indicators of consumption and, of course, they give no indication of distribution. The statement in paragraph 79 should therefore be challenged: "The 78th Session of Council may have urged the increasing use of FAO food balance sheet data for monitoring the nutrition situation," however, this approach was heavily criticized at this year's COAG meeting. Elsewhere, it is admitted particularly in paragraphs 90 to 93, that nutritional problems arrive through maldistri bution over space or through time, and that changes in aggregate supplies can tell us little or nothing about that.
The final absurdity of believing in food balance sheets as a measure of consumption and nutritional states is illustrated by paragraph 86, which incorrectly states that calorie intake-presumably for the rich countries-increase and eventually exceed requirements and so lead to obesity. This is not so. Actual household level consumption of calories in the United Kingdom, for example, have declined slightly over the past forty years, whilst the food balance sheet supply has increased. The excess of supply over consumption is now about 25%. In any case, there is no evidence that obesity is simply related to intake in the way that the paragraph suggests.
There is a section here on child nutrition, and the problem with this section is not so much that it is inaccurate-although I must confess we find it very confusing. The real problem with this section is that it fails to identify ways in which connections can be made between the development of agriculture based communities and child malnutrition. The polemic about artificial as against breast-feeding hardly addresses a major area of FAO concern in our view.
What needs to be emphasized here are firstly the environmental components. FAO and agricultural development generally needs to extend its responsibility for resource development, mainly regarding water and fuel, to ensure the improvement and maintenance of the safety of the domestic environment. Water-associated disease and inadequate standards of domestic food storage and preparation are a major ifnot the major-underlying cause of child malnutrition.
Secondly, child care and the economising of the peasant household pattern of land use and labour inputs by a peasant family exert an obvious influence on the availability of time and domestic resources available for child care and running the domestic economy. These factors, as well as those previously mentioned constitute major but neglected aspects of the effects of agricultural change on human welfare. Besides the direct effects of policy, these comments have major implications for FAO in relation to support for the extension by member countries of their regular series of agricultural statistics and data services to include nutritional surveillance, and the inclusion of these wider aspects of nutrition in training in agriculture at all level, but especially, in project planning and extension training.
Finally, a brief point on the terms of trade and prices of agricultural commodities. Paragraph 158 refers to "many agricultural commodities whose prices in real terms have declined". One of the problems in analysing statements of this kind is that it is not clear whether it refers to price per unit of output-for example per ton-or whether it refers to net margins. More usually it is a straight forward division of export value divided by quantity, but this is a very crude measure of profitability. For many agricultural products there have been increases in productivity due to higher yielding varieties etc. As a result producers can still have favourable net margins even when the unit price falls. We would therefore query the basis of this statement.
K. HAMADA (Japan):First of all I would like to extend my congratulations to you, Mr. Chairman and Vice-Chairmen, on your nomination to Chairmanship of this important Committee. And my delegation also appreciates the efforts of the Secretariat led by Dr. Islam in the preparation of the elaborated paper C 81/2 and C 81/2-Sup. l Now, let me make a brief comment on this agenda item, "The state of Food and Agriculture 1981".
According to the paper distributed to us, the world food and agriculture production in 1981 has remarkably improved after the poor harvests both in 1979 and 1980. I am really glad to hear that. However,I noted with interest that in spite of production increase, the world cereals stock still remains at an uncomfortable level due to consumption increase.
As you may be aware, Japan is one of the largest importers of food and agricultural commodities. For example, nearly 70 per cent of the total cereal consumption of Japan depends on supply from overseas. Therefore, we are always concerned with the world food and agriculture situation.
The document also mentioned that production in the developing countries, as a whole, had generally improved in recent years. It is my belief that this increase in production has been brought about by the untiring effort of farmers in the developing countries, in addition to the favourable weather condition. But we have to keep in mind that some low income countries in Asia and Africa are suffering from keen food shortage, leaving hundreds of thousand of people in hunger and malnutrition. "Free from hunger" is one of the basic human needs. We must get together to save those people.
Japan is extending our cooperation in financing and technology to these countries which endeavour to increase food and agriculture production. In this connection, as the head of the Japanese delegation stated at yesterday's plenary session, Japan has set a new medium-term target for Official Development Assistance last January, despite severe fiscal constraints it faces. Under this newly set target the Government of Japan will make efforts to more than double the total ODA distributed in the latter five years of the 70s namely, approximately 10,7 billion.
For this purpose, the Government of Japan will firstly, aim at more than doubling the aggregate national budget related to Official Development Assistance allocated in the latter five years of the 70s, in the first five years of the 80s; secondly, endeavour to increase positively in its official loans; thirdly, respond positively to the request for capital subscription and so forth to be made by inter national development financial institutions.
The Government of Japan intends to continue to expand its Official Development Assistance in a positive manner on the basis of this newly set target.
In proceeding economic cooperation, the Government of Japan intends to place priority on rural and agricultural development. We consider that rural development should be promoted in order to increase food and agriculture production in the developing countries. For this purpose, integrated rural development schemes are to be set up, with special reference to improving the social and economic status of landless labourers and tiny-scale and poor farmers. Regarding this, I would like to say to the FAO people that we appreciate their activities to solve world food and agriculture problems. We consider that it is prerequisite to identify and clarify where the problems exist before tackling them.
In this sense, Japan requests the FAO Secretariat to place special emphasis on information and analysis programmes. We can do nothing without timely, adequate and reliable information on and analysis of the world food and agriculture problems.
Finally, I would like to say again that higher priority should be given to the FAO information systems.
O. AWOYEMI (Nigeria): Please accept the congratulations of the Nigerian delegation, Mr. Chairman, on your appointment to the prestigious post of Chairman of this Commission. My delegation would like to comment briefly on "The State of Food and Agriculture".
The Secretariat document C 81/2 is a very comprehensive and objective assessment of the world food situation. The document affirms thatcertain regions of the developing world have had modest food production increases, while the African region has had very marginal growth rates when matched with population increase. The improvements observed in parts of Asia and Latin America are not unconnected with the concentration of international efforts in these regions some ten to fifteen years ago. The shift of focus in Africa is therefore very welcome, and it is hoped that a combination of national and excellent technical and financial resources will soon place many African countries on the path to recovery.
My delegation would like to suggest that in the effort to make the African region self-sufficient in food more emphasis must be placed on the following elements: intensification of research with a view to improving local production technologies, which have not experienced any notable changes over several decades; drastic improvements in the extension services through staff training and provision of recruitment and logistical support;intensification of efforts to implement action programmes on rural developement, particularly the development of rural infrastructures; articulation of incentive policies and programmes to motivate investment by small, medium and large-scale farmers.
All these call for the devotion of more internal resources to agriculture. At the international level, emphasis must shift in the production of the systems to help developing nations to produce their own food, unless on direct food aid.
Secondly, their earnings from agricultural export production must increase through the stabilization of prices and removal of all tariff and non-tariff barriers to trade. There must be a healthy relation ship between the export price of farm produce and the cost of imported inputs to agricultural production.
The situation in which the price of export crops dropped by as much as 50 percent within a period of twelve calendar months can only have disastrous consequences on the economies of the nations concerned. Paragraph 159 of the document under consideration is a sad reflection on the present system of inter national agricultural trade.
This organization must therefore continue to fight for the farmers of the developing world if the world food and agricultural situation is ever to improve.
S. POHORYLES (Israel):First of all I would like to express our congratulations to the Chairman and to the Vice-Charimen and to Professor Islam's excellent heterogeneous statement. According to FAO classification the three main features of less favoured areas are limited length possibilities, in fact, in length combined with declining or low based agricultural population and specific handicaps necessitating conservation or preservation methods. The arid and semi-arid type of less favoured areas contribute a multiplicity of all defining criteria and is affected by their ecological, physical, and demographical and economical aspects. Maybe the Isreali case of arid development can surface examples of less favoured area transformations. Thereby natural organic constraints in fact in length and water shortage can be overcome by comprehensive planning technology and organizational and administrative adjustments. The average geographical rate of growth which means the average real rate of growth in one generation, it means statistically 25 years is 10 percent, or it means twelve-fold growth during 25 years in arid and very unfavourably arid and partly semi-arid conditions.
I should like to present a few directions of research and practices which have been established during the last two years which may be of interest for countries with similarecosystems. Israel has improved its original plan reproduction material which brought about a revolution by constantly increasing the plant's resistance to both leaf disease such as sectoria and teraste. We have achieved grain varieties which yield us as high as 1. 25 kilogrammes per cubic meter of rain water or 6. 5 or 7 tons per hectare in semi-arid regions and up to 3 tons per hectare in arid regions. In arid regions with rainfall not above 250-300 mm it became clear that planting at intervals of 30, 40, 45 cm is preferable to planting at 15 cm intervals. In the longer interval method yields were up 50 percent without any additional irrigation.
This discovered wheat varieties which increased the growth of wheat as well as varieties available to the growth resisting and resisting improved seeds. Some of the newly discovered varieties are adaptable for higher protein content up to 22-23 percent and have been approved by the Wiseman Institute.
We consider that the cultivation of the wheat varieties into high yielding wheat will considerably raise yields of some wheats and those genetic improvements could be transferred to other countries.
Israel has a fine world record in growing potatoes in hot climates throughout four seasons of the year as well as preparing local seed for the second planting season. Interesting experiments are being carried out also in the preparation of plant reproduction material for frog tissues. Those achievements were demonstrated in the '81 congress for growing potatoes in hot countries It was visited by researchers and farmers from over 30 countries. It has been proved beyond any doubt that high yield of potatoes can be achieved in hot countries. Interesting experiments are under way also in the goats sub-branch by crossing desert goats with the wild ibex. A new breed of goats was developed. This new goat was adjusted to desert regions and produced plenty of meat.
In recent years interesting experiments have been carried out in cultivating water plants and algae in saline water in which the initial results are quite surprising. The eucalyptus variety yielded twice as much biomass as ordinary varieties and can surface a source of energy in developing countries. Interesting results have been achieved in the use of saline water; they managed to develop irrigation systems adjusted to high yielding varieties in a number of field crops and vegetables like specific desert crops.
AMIDJONG MARTOSUWIRYO (Indonesia):First of all I would like on behalf of the delegation of Indonesia to congratulate the Chairman on his election to this very important committee. I wish also to express my delegation's appreciation to the Secretariat for the high quality of the document under discussion and the introduction given by Dr. Islam which gives us a clear and (comprehensive picture of the world food situation and agriculture.
My delegation on the report of the Director-General on the State of Food and Agriculture in 1981 would like to make a few comments, but I will confine myself to a few points. I think we have noted that there are improvements in food and agriculture development and some encouraging indications for the '81 crops mainly on seed and grain. The world food situation remains uncertain and there is no assurance for achieving food security particularly in developing countries in the very near future. This world wide noting that the solution to the food security problem is increasing production in low-income countries and those which have a potential for food and agricultural production, through both the efforts of unification programmes as well as area expansion programmes wherever appropriate and in putting utilization in appropriate quantity and suitable time, and provision for incentive policy to the farmers, appropriate management and extension using such improved stolid facilities and access to market facilities and distribution. It might be worthwhile to inform you what has been done in my country, in Indonesia, for the information of the committee; the Indonesian delegation would like to inform you that under the third five-year development programme agriculture remained the highest priority of the country's development policy. Since the first period of its five-year development plan, food production has been progressing significantly with an average annual increase of 4 percent. More importantly, in 1980, we have been able to achieve an extraordinary record of production, 20 million tons of milled rice compared with that of 17 million tons in 1977/79, or 13. 3 percent increase. The 1981 rice production is expected to exceed 21. 5 million tons. This was the result of our serious development effort through: firstly, rice production programmes with the intervention of output such as improved variety of seeds, fertilizers, insecticides and the provision of credit facilities and other incentives to encourage farmers to accelerate productivity;secondly, area expansion through the paddy field formation and trans-irrigation programme;thirdly, effective extension of approach of motivated self-improvement and full participation of farmers in food production programmes in addition to conventional extension methods, such as training and visiting broadcasting services and others. The weather conditions helped us in our efforts in achieving our aims in developing self-sufficiency in food.
A substantial increase has also been obtained on corn production by 11. 4 percent in 1980 and peanuts 12 percent in the same year.
The production of meat, eggs and milk has been progressing significantly with respective increases of 4 percent, 5. 2 percent, and 8. 6 percent in 1980, in comparison with preceding years. Similarly, production both marine and pesceray has increased by 6. 3 percent and 2. 1 percent respectively in 1980 compared with 1979 production. In the case of increasing foodin the low-income countries due to its important food production it would remain an essential undertaking to ensure the World Food Programme.
A substantial increase has also been achieved on current production by 11. 8 percent: in 1980 and peanuts 12 per cent in the same year. The production of meat, eggs and milk has been progressing particularly with an increase of 4 percent. 5. 2 percent and 8. 6 percent in 1980 in comparison with the preceding year. Similarly on fishery production, both marine and inland fisheries have increased by 6. 3 percent and 2. 1 percent in 1980 compared with the 1979 production.
The Indonesian delegation therefore extends its appreciation to the IMF for the action taken in the implementation of FAO Conference Resolution 3/79 with regard to the provision of additional balance of payments to meet the increase in the food income bills of low-income countries due to the food shortage and rising prices.
We would also like to confirm once again our endorsement of the target level of ten million pounds of food aid as well as five hundred thousand pounds for food grain in the 1974 World Food Conference. In this context the Indonesian delegation expresses its gratitude and appreciation to the Director-General of FAO for his efforts to mobilize increased assistance. We appeal to developed food surplus countries to increase their contributions to meet the target.
The Indonesian delegation fully supports the opinion involving food aid provision from developing countries other than recipients and even from local supplies. As far as food aid is concerned, the Indonesian delegation would like to suggest that assistance should only be given to the most severe cases. Further assistance should be directed towards the implementation of social activities to enable countries to achieve self-reliance and a self-reliant approach.
A. IRAQUI (Maroc): Permettez-moi, M. le President, de vous faire part des impressions que m'inspire la situation de l’alimentation et de l'agriculture dans le monde a la lumiere de l'etude du document C 81/2 qui s'y rapporte. Au cours de ces dernieres annees, nous avons assiste a plusieurs rencontres internationales touchant directement ou indirectement le domaine agricole. Toutes ces rencontres aboutissent a. des prises de position courageuses, a. des plans d'action, des stratégies
visant la protection de notre monde contre la faim et la misere et demandant pour ce faire la mobi lisation et l’orientation vers le secteur agricole d'une nouvelle et importante ressource humaine et financiére. Malheureusement, la situation mondiale de l’alimentation s'aggrave. L'economie mondiale elle-meme subit une recession generalised et les annees 1980-1981 sont considérées comme l'une des periodes les plus difficiles de l’apres-guerre.
En effet, la production alimentaire stagne. Les stocks cerealiers s'amenuisent; les crises alimen-taires augmentent, la part de l’agriculture dans le commerce mondial des marchandises diminue. Au niveau des pays en developpement la situation alimentaire est préoccupante. Le besoin d'importation des produits vivriers augmente. La dette a moyen terme des pays en développement a quadruple pour atteindre 300 milliards de dollars, et leurs échanges se degradent.
En ce qui concerne l'Afrique, la situation est veritablement alarmante. La production alimentaire par tete d'habitant a diminue de 10 pour cent par rapport aux annees soixante. Les disponibilités energétiques diminuent et ne representent que 80 pour cent des besoins alors que ces memes disponi bilités dépassent 30 pour cent dans certains pays riches. L'explication de cette situation peut etre recherchée dans les conditions climatiques defavorables de ces dernieres annees puisque sécheresse et inondations sévissent en Afrique et en Asie. Elle peut etre recherchee egalement dans l’explosion démographique qui a vu la population mondiale atteindre 4 milliards et demi d'habitants en 1980. Elle peut être également recherchee dans le tarissement des ressources mondiales en terres et en eaux. On peut egalement imputer dans une certaine mesure la gravite de cette situation alimentaire aux pays en developpement eux-memes parce que certains d'entre eux n'ont pas accorde la priorite voulue dans leurs plans de developpement au secteur agricole. Mais au-dela de ces raisons, l’essence du probleme reside a notre avis dans le maintien des relations economiques internationales profondement injustes et irrationnelles. Je n'en veux comme preuve que l'usage des aliments comme instruments de pression politique, de blocage des négociations sous le nouvel ordre economique, la montee du protectionnisme applique contre les produits alimentaires a l’exportation des pays en developpement ce qui reduit le volume du commerce mondial, entraine une depreciation des cours et empeche les pays en développe ment de valoriser leur production. Il y a egalement la tendance a favoriser l'aide bilatérale au detriment de l'aide multilaterale, le non respect des engagements pris en vue de consacrer 0,7 pour cent du PNB des pays industrialises a l'aide au developpement.
Si l’elimination de la faim dans les pays en developpement depend en premier lieu de leur volonte politique comme on se plait a le répéter, il n'empêche que la fagon de sortir de cette situation qui a la longue se repercutera ineluctablement sur les pays industrialises eux-memes, reside a notre avis dans une refonte des relations economiques et sociales internationales permettant l’utilisation judicieuse des ressources disponibles dans le monde.
Ceci est d'autant plus vrai que de l'avis general, les disponibilites alimentaires actuelles suffisent a satisfaire les besoins minima de la population du monde et c'est l'équilibre dans la repartition géographique et économique de ces disponibilités qui fait défaut.
II est clair qu'a travers cette situation se profile pernicieusement le danger d'une crise alimentaire plus aigue que celle des annees 1970 et il est deconcertant de constater qu'on persiste a vouloir rester au stade de la prise de conscience des problémes d'alimentation, de la mise en oeuvre des structures de reflexion au moment ou ces indicateurs reflétent l’inexorable degradation de la situation alimentaire dans le monde et au moment ou les perspectives a l'Horizon 2000 s'annoncent sombres, puisque si les mêmes tendances de la production alimentaire persistaient le deficit cerea lier depasserait 130 millions de tonnes et le nombre des pays sous-alimentés se situerait autour de 650 millions d'individus. La restructuration des relations economiques internationales et du secteur alimentaire en particulier nous parait non seulement indispensable mais vitale. Cette restructuration du secteur alimentaire necessite l’accroissement de la production alimentaire des pays en developpe ment a un rythme annuel de quatre pour cent durant la décennie 1980, la mobilisation des ressources financiéres et techniques accrue, l’affectation par les pays développes et ceux qui sont en mesure de le faire de 0,7 pour cent de leur PNB a l'aide au developpement et enfin le renforcement du cadre international de securite alimentaire par les ameliorations nécessaires du commerce mondial des produits alimentaires. C'est au prix de ces efforts, de cette volonte, qu'on peut esperer lutter contre la faim dans le monde.
T. DIARRA (Mali): Je profite de l’occasion que vous m'offrez pour vous adresser toutes les félici tations de la delegation malienne pour votre election a la présidence de cette premiere Commission. Je reste convaincu que votre experience permettra à la Commission d'aboutir a des résultats positifs. La delegation malienne, apres avoir pris connaissance du rapport sur la situation mondiale de l’alimentation et de l’agriculture, ainsi que de son supplement est parfaitement d'accord avec ce qui a ete dit par l'auteur.
La situation mondiale de l’alimentation et de l’agriculture continue de susciter beaucoup d'inquie tude a l'echelle internationale suite au déséquilibre entre la production d'une part et la consomma tion et la croissance démographique d'autre part. Cette situation est beaucoup plus critique dans les pays en voie de developpement et plus particulierement dans les pays du Sahel dont fait partie le Mali qui, depuis plus d'une decennie, souffrent d'une sécheresse endémique dont les retombees se traduisent principalement par un deficit vivrier permanent.
C'est pourquoi la delegation malienne estime que d'enormes efforts doivent etre deployes en faveur de ces pays pour maitriser davantage leurs conditions de production et particulierement acceder aux facteurs de production a des prix abordables.
Parallélement, conformement au paragraphe 45 du rapport C 81/2 au paragraphe 39 du rapport C 81/2 Supplement 1, la delegation malienne estime que des efforts supplementaifes doivent etre faits par la communauté internationale pour augmenter l'aide alimentaire a destination des populations affamées de cette region du continent.
Depuis quelques annees, mon pays a donne la priorite à la production vivriere afin d'atteindre l'autosuffisance alimentaire a travers des structures d'intervention specifiques appelees opera tions de developpement rural et de participer ainsi à la securité dans le monde alimentaire.
Toutefois, compte tenu de l’augmentation sans cesse croissante du prix des intrants et des équipements de l'enclavement de notre pays et de l’instability des prix sur le marché international, nos efforts de developpement restent le plus souvent compromis. Nous souhaitons vivement l’accroissement de l'aide de la communaute internationale dans notre pays afin que notre participation à la lutte contre la faim et la malnutrition soit davantage effective.
J. B. JACKMAN (New Zealand) : The New Zealand delegation congratulate you, Mr. Chairman, on your election to the Chairmanship of this Commission. We also appreciate the clear, concise presentation of Dr. Islam.
The objective we all strive for is to improve the welfare of people with a particular focus on the nutritional component of human welfare. It is very clear from the FAO analysis of trends that the primary requirement is to increase food production. Without product all efforts to build buffer stocks or to improve the distribution of food will come to nothing.
In our observation farmers are closely attuned to the environment, economic and social, in which they operate. This environment has a national and an international dimension. Planners tend to focus attention on the quantity or quality of the resources which farmers use, in other words the land, building, machines, fertilizers, livestock and plant species. We must not overlook the less obvious factors particularly the way the producers manage those resources which are available to them. Within farming communities there is a wide range of output per hectare among individual producers who have essentially the same resources of soil and climate to work with. As a country which specializes in low input farming systems we can confirm that productivity can be increased significantly by attention to management even where inputs remain low.
Farmers are highly influenced by the risks of new technology as they perceive them. More intensive production systems undoubtedly increase the quantity produced and may be more profitable but farmers also take account of risks and this factor may explain the slow rates of adoption of intensive techniques. Unstable product prices also raise the risk of adopting more intensive production systems and those countries like New Zealand who are dependent on international trade are deeply conscious of this source of uncertainty which inhibits producer's decisions to invest for greater production.
Similar remarks also apply to land tenure. To recoup productive investments farmers need secure tenure of their land. At the same time it may be desirable to encourage land transfers from the older generations to younger ones.
Agricultural technologists in my country see many opportunities to improve productivity. Let us continue to press for the development of appropriate technology, for increasing capital resources for the farming sector, for improved management at the farm level and for measures designed to increase farmer confidence to accept the risks of adopting new methods.
LA XUAN DINH (Viet Nam) : Permettez-moi de vous adresser mes felicitations a vous M. le President ainsi qu'à M. le Vice-President pour votre election a la presidence de cette Commission.
Je remercie M. Islam de la presentation claire et succincte de la situation agricole et alimentaire et des problémes qui en découlent. Je suis d'accord qu'il faut souligner que la situation alimen taire reste loin d'etre satisfaisante surtout quand on l’examine sous l’angle du rapport production/démographie et sous l’angle nutrition,
Certes, les pays en développement pris dans l’ensemble ont applique les politiques de developpement adéquates et ont recueilli des progrés qu'il ne faut pas minimiser.
Cependant, le manque de bases materielles et techniques les empeche de parer d'une part avec succes aux calamités atmospheriques qui ne cessent de deéaster les cultures et d'autre part, d'exploiter les potentialites latentes principalement en terre et en force humaine. Dans notre pays par exemple, nous avons déploye de nombreux efforts pour le redressement de l'economie apres-guerre, pour l’augmentation de l’infrastructure matérielle et technique, pour la formation de la masse paysanne et des cadres techniques en les initiant a la technique avancee dans l’agriculture, la foresterie et les pêches. Nous avons aussi pris des mesures pour l’amelioration de la gestion de l'economie agricole tant dans le secteur collectif que privé.
Tout en nous basant principalement sur nos propres efforts, nous avons accueilli l’assistance et la cooperation des pays fréres et amis, ainsi que des organisations internationales parmi lesquelles il nous faut citer la FAO.
Toutefois, tous ces efforts conjugués ne nous permettent pas encore d'arriver a l'autosuffisance. Cette année-ci, des typhonssuccessifs et des vagues d'insectes ont cause des degats notables a nos récoltes de riz de sorte que l'objectif que nous avons fixe pour 1981 risque de ne pas etre atteint.
En ce qui concerne l'aide exterieure, d'apres nous, cette aide doit s'accroitre et venir seconder efficacement les efforts personnels des pays en developpement; elle doit revetir plusieurs formes : l'aide alimentaire pour remedier aux cas des penuries d'urgence et surtout pour soutenir les projets de developpement, l'aide sous forme d'intrants-engrais et pesticides etc. -tres nécessaire pour l’ intensification des cultures, et enfin l'aide sous forme de credit a des conditions avantageuses.
Nous nous rallions à la suggestion inscrite au par. 148 du document C 81/2 qui stipule ". . . qu'il faut non seulement accroitre le volume de l'aide aux pays les moins avances, mais egalement en adapter les procedures et les modalites aux capacites administratives techniques et financieres des pays re"cipiendaires''.
Nous voudrions ajouter une autre idee;que l'aide exterieure au developpement ne doit pas etre subordonnee aux considerations politiques, en particulier l'aide alimentaire ne doit pas etre utilisee comme une arme pour des pressions politiques comme l'a souligne M. le Ministre de l’agriculture de la Hongrie dans sa declaration a la pleniere et comme des delegues l'ont declare a cette commission avant moi.
F. MARTINEZ GOMEZ (Mexico): Nuestra delegacion desea felicitarle a usted y a los Vicepresidentes por su elección en esta Comisión.
Señor Presidente:el anàlisis de los resultados de la produccion que realiza la FAO permite observar que la tasa de crecimiento de la produccion mundial de alimentos agricolas en el periodo 1976-80, ha sido considerablemente menor que en el periodo 1971-75. La situacion es aún mas preocupante en el caso de los cereales, que constituyen la base de la alimentación en la mayoria de los paises en desarrollo. El crecimiento de la produccion de cereales en los paises de economia de mercado en desarrollo, senala la FAO, fue de 5,8 por ciento en 1966-70 y paso solo del 2,2 por ciento en 1976-80, lo que trajo como consecuencia que las importaciones netas de cereales se duplicaran entre 1966-68 y 1977-79, pasando de 23,4 a 50,1 millones de toneladas.
El sector agricola se ha visto desactivado a nivel mundial, a pesar de la existencia de millones de seres malnutridos y con hambruna. Esta tendencia en la produccion no ha sido identificada recientemen-te, pero sin embargo las medidas tomadas no han modificado sensiblemente esta tendencia; por el contra-rio, la situación parece agravarse en los paises menos adelantados.
Señior Presidente: Es grave perder de vista el fondo del problema, ubicandose en acciones que muy margi-nalmente le dan solucion, y mas bien parece tratar de ir encaminado a tranquilizar inquietudes. El problema comun senalado para todos los paises en desarrollo, parece, a nuestro juicio, tener en muchos casos las mismas causas. Sin lugar a dudas, las relaciones de precios de los alimentos con respecto a los precios de los insumos y a los precios de productos no alimenticios tanto en el interior como en el exterior, constituyen factores importantes, sobre todo en estos ultimos anos en que el desajuste monetario y la inflacion han alterado la economia, desactivando en muchos casos la produccion de basicos alimentarios. La modificacion en el coste del capital y los cambios monetarios estan decididos en gran medida por los paises màs poderosos econàmicamente en función de sus intereses. Este tipo de circuns-tancias afecta al nivel de la producción mundial de alimentos. La necesidad de establecer un nuevo orden económico internacional es cada vez mas necesario. Los paises deben tener muy en cuenta las relaciones de precios, de tal forma que el productor tenga incentivos para producir alimentos y poder tener los paises la oportunidad de lograr la autosuficiencia y asegurar asi su soberania nacional.
El proceso agroindustrial y comercial de los alimentos incrementa su importancia relativa sobre la producción agricola, de tal forma que sera un proceso de dependencia generada por el tamaño y poderio de las empresas agroindustriales y comerciales. A este respecto, el desarrollo de las empresas tras-nacionales requiere ser analizado. Algunas estimaciones de UNIDO indican que para 1985 las corporacio-nes lideres concentrarian el 58 por ciento de la produccion mundial, y que para el año 2000 su control podria alcanzar el 72 por ciento de la produccion de alimentos.
Para conocer objetivamente las tendencias a largo plazo del desarrollo alimentario y agricola es nece sario analizar mas detenidamente las relaciones de precios y el efecto que las grandes empresas agroin dustriales y comerciales tienen sobre el volumen de la produccion mundial. La participacion de los paises en desarrollo en el comercio mundial continua su tendencia descendente, lo cual es una muestra de las politicas mundiales y nacionales que han generado la desactivacion de la produccion de alimentos basicos en los paises en desarrollo.
Evidentemente un elemento importante que contribuye a esta situacion son las dificultades para la entra-da de productos provenientes de los paises en desarrollo al comercio internacional, y las dificultades para obtener ingresos adecuados de las ventas de estos productos a causa de las medidas que establecen las grandes corporaciones y los paises industrializados. Las tendencias del crecimiento de la poblacion son importantes, mas no ayudan mucho a explicar las tendencias del desarrollo alimentario.
Consideramos que toda mejora en la productividad agricola, utilizando mas efectivamente los insumos agricolas, estara supeditada a la decision basica de poder producir. Es muy posible que los niveles tecnológicos en los paises en desarrollo no hayan disminuido en los ultimos cinco anos, por lo que la razón de que la tasa de crecimiento de la produccion agricola disminuyera en los ultimos anos se debe màs a problemas de indole estructural, economico y politico. Como ya se senaló en la Conferencia Mundial de Reforma Agraria y Desarrollo Rural, los problemas de la produccion agricola no se resolveràn sin luchar contra los factores que impiden el acceso equitativo a la tierra y otros recursos.
R. E. STENSHOLT(Australia): Mr. Chairman, may I join with the many others who have said how fortunate we are indeed to be working under your guiding hand in this Commission.
Having heard Professor Islam's introduction, which of course was of its usual high standard, I would like to make a few comments on the cereals outlook in Australia in order to help round out the total picture of the finely balanced world food security situation. Australia entered the 1981-82 season with lower wheat stocks than in the previous year, following low production figures in 1980-81. However, this year, after good rains, a record acreage was sown to wheat. Lack of rainfall, however, throughout the cereal belt from mid August to late September dashed hopes for a record crop. Fortunately, shower activity in the first half of October has improved the situation somewhat, so that at least average yields can be expected now, with final wheat production now estimated at between 15. 5 and 16 million tonnes production. Oats and barley should rise significantly in 1981-82, with barley production forecast at 3. 45 million tonnes and oats at 1. 84 million tonnes, and if average seasonal conditions prevail sorgum production is forecast to rise to 1. 3 million tonnes and maize production at this early stage is forecast to rise to 130 000 tonnes in 1982. Rice production, however, is estimated in 1981 at a record level of 761 000 tonnes compared with 615 000 tonnes in 1980. We judge and this is confirmed in the supplementary document before us-that the immediate world food situation has shown a welcome improvement and the outlook has now become more favourable than was earlier thought. For example, FAO estimates that the world coarse grain production in 1981 should reach 780 to 800 million tonnes, 11 percent higher than last year. The International Wheat Council estimates a small rise in world wheat production and a slight increase in carry-over stocks in the five major exporting countries at the end of their 1981-82 seasons. Rice production is also expected to be close to last year's high level.
In sum, we believe it can now be anticipated that world cereal supplies-i. e. wheat, coarse grains and rice-should be sufficient to meet general consumption needs in 1981-82 and to allow for some modest replenishment of stocks.
SHIN-HAENG HUH (Republic of Korea): As this is my first opportunity of speaking in the Commission, Mr. Chairman, please allow me on behalf of the delegation of the Republic of Korea to contratulate you on your election to the Chairmanship of this Commission.
I want to express my sincere appreciation to Professor Islam for his excellent preparation on the state of food and agriculture. I am in agreement with most of the statements in relation to the food and agriculture situation contained in documents C 81/2 and C 81/2-Supp. l, reported by the Director-General for the Twenty-First Session of the FAO Conference. Most of the statements made clearly understood the immediate and longer-term problems with respect to adequate supply of food for people in our member countries, especially the developing countries.
I agree with most of the issues and problems stated in this report. However, I would like to make a few comments on issues and measures in the light of our experience.
First, one of the central issues here is to increase food production in order to meet food consumption requirements. Regarding an increase in food production, many delegates have stressed the importance of the improvement of irrigation systems, the development of technology, the training of farmers and the provision of such inputs as cheap fertilizers, pesticides and energy, but some of the important factors affecting agricultural production must not be overloocked. For instance, providing incentives to farmers must not be neglected. Production incentive can be given to farmers through guaranteeing a high price for their productionand/or a low price of production factors. In addition, it is very important for internal or external organizations, like individual governments and FAO, to encourage farmers to work hard. However, a high price for agricultural produce may harm the poorer in consuming adequate food while continuously rising input prices do not allow us to have low production costs. The only choice available to us is to encourage the farmers to produce more, subject to the given conditions.
In this context, the Government of the Republic of Korea has been successful in launching Saemaul Undong, which is an integrated rural development programme focussing on the establishment of an efficient rural infrastructure since the beginning of the 1970's. Although Korean farmers were in difficult circumstances, they have been greatly encouraged through this movement to work hard, to help each other and to save greatly, so that they can be able to increase agricultural production and improve their welfare.
We sould like to share our successful experience with other member countries which are in a similar situation as ourselves with respect to the state of agricultural development and other aspects of the economy.
Secondly, the reduction of fluctuations in food production is very important. As we are all aware of widely fluctuation food production from year to year, primarily due to weather conditions, we would urge FAO to put one of the first priorities on the improvement of land, with special emphasis on irrigation.
In this context, the Government of the Republic of Korea has trained a large number of agricultural experts from FAO member countries in the field of water resources development, land consolidation and agronomy during the last decade, at its own expense and under the TCDC joint programme of the FAO and UNDP and the Korean Government.
Thirdly, an efficient food distribution system is very important to solve the problem of world-wide hunger and malnutrition. We do know that the establishment of an efficient food distribution system has become one of the most important objectives that FAO has tried to achieve. As our economy grows rapidly, our dependance on food importation has been increasing; therefore we are very much concerned with attempts being made by FAO in this regard. We are willing to cooperate with FAO in establishing an efficient food distribution system.
M. C. DIALLO (Guinee): Ma delegation a l'examen du document de travail qui nous a ete soumis tire un certain nombre de constats, le premier c'est que la population des pays en voie de développement continue de croitre et le second c'est que comme ce sont ces pays qui subissent la malnutrition et la faim, en fin de compte la population mondiale qui a besoin d'aide alimentaire continue de croitre chaque année. Ces deux constatations doivent nous permettre de ne pas nous etonner que le programme de travail et de budget que le Directeur general a presenté ait connu une légére augmentation. Lorsque lfon se trouve de notre bord on aurait tendance à dire que le Directeur general de la FAO et 1"ensemble de ses collaborateurs ont été trés modestes dans leur evaluation puisque nous aurions tendance a avoir peur de ne pas pouvoir beneficier dans les années à venir de toute 1"assistance dont nous avons besoin pour augmenter notre production agricole.
Il faut done rendre hommage au Directeur general et ses collaborateurs pour avoir eu le courage, aprés les conclusions qu'ils ont tirees de 1!annee 1981 et 1982 qui est une periode des plus difficile de l’apres-guerre, de proposer un budget qui non seulement permet de constater qu'il y a un serieux effort d'economie dans son elaboration mais aussi un effort qui tient compte des necessites des programmes des pays en voie de développement. En ce qui concerne ma delegation nous pernsons que 1 "effort fait chaque année pour soulager ceux qui ont faim, si l'on veut esperer arreter cette aide un jour, il faudra bien que les pays qui acceptent d'apporter cette aide envisagent un effort plus grand pour aider a ameliorer la base de la production agricole et en particulier la production alimentaire dans les pays en develop pement. Comme le dit le rapport sur la situation alimentaire mondiale de 1"alimentation et de 1"agri culture, au paragraphe 128 du document 81/2, le meilleur moyen de lutter contre la faim est de faire en sorte que les paysans des pays en voie de developpement disposent progressivement d'une garame de progres techniques nes d'un programme dynamique de recherches agricoles ainsi que des moyens financiers de les exploiter, et particulierement d'un ensemble d'aptitudes techniques qui leur permettra d'appre-cier l'interêt de ces progres et de les appliquer. L'application d'une telle politique exigera de la part de tous des efforts importants et ces efforts doivent aussi provenir des pays en voie de developpement qui en tout premier lieu devraient valoriser les ressources humaines.
Dans mon pays qui est conscient de cette situation et partant du principe qu'en fin de compte le developpement rural n'est possible qu'avec la participation consciente de l'homme que seule l’education permet, en particulier en ce qui concerne la formation des jeunes, des efforts extre'mement importants ont ete fournis, primo par une reforme generale de l’enseignement qui a introduit, dans tous les niveaux de la formation des jeunes des notions d'agriculture qui vont en s'amplifiant de l'ecole pri-maire a l'universite. Deuxiemement il a ete decide que la moitie des bacheliers de l’enseignement secondaire devraient etre orientes vers des sciences tendant a la formation dans les domaines du deve loppement rural. Une des réformes les plus importantes qui a ete prise il n'y a pas longtemps e'est que les jeunes gens qui ont bénéficie de cette formation au lieu d'avoir desormais à faire de la vulga risation discursive passive devront se rendre sur le terrain, vivre la vie des paysans au sein de fermes etablies aupres des villages pour faire de la vulgarisation active. Mais l’effort de nos pays aussi bien dans le domaine de la formation que dans celui de l’acquisition d'intrants pour ameliorer la pro ductivity sera limité compte tenu de la conjoncture economique mondiale qui fait que les sources prin-cipales de recette pour nos pays reste constamment sous la pression des termes de l'echange. II faut done a notre avis que de la part des pays nantis un effort supplémentaire soit fait pour nous aider a nous passer de cette aide alimentaire qu'ils nous accordent généreusement chaque annee. Cette aide doit etre basee sur le soutien aux projets tendant a nous permettre d'avoir une plus grande maitrise de l'eau et de l’energie a la campagne, tendant ii nous permettre d'avoir la maitrise des technologies les plus appropriees faisant un large usage de nos moyens locaux pour ameliorer les conditions d'exis tence des petits paysans. Nous pensons que ce sont la les incitations fondamentales qu'il faut ac-corder aux petits paysans pour qu'ils puissent participer a l’effort de production. Seule la conduite de ces efforts conjugues doit nous permettre a notre avis d'assurer une sécurité alimentaire, passez-moi l’expression, sure. Je voudrais m'associer a ceux qui m'ont precede pour vous feliciter de votre election a la presidence, ainsi que le Prof. Islam, et le staff de sa division pour le travail extr§me-ment clair et la notice bien posee et qu'ils ont présente dans le rapport sur la situation mondiale de l’alimentation et de l’agriculture.
A. K. OSUBAN (Uganda): Since this is the first time we take the floor, I should also like to take the opportunity of congratulating you and the Vice-Chairmen on your election to guide the deliberations of this Commission. We extend the same congratulations to the Secretariat for producing this very illuminating paper which we are discussing now.
As you may know, Uganda for a long time used to be a self-sufficient country in basic staples. In the last few years however-especially from 1978/79-we suffered from food shortages which necessitated our seeking emergency food aid from the international community. It was estimated that in that
period, we had a deficit of 305 thousand tons of cereal equivalents. This figure improved slightly to 108 thousand tons in the period 1979/80, and by the end of this year we are expecting that this figure will have been reduced to approximately 70 thousand tons. It is our hope that, weather permitting, we should be able to return to a situation of equilibrium in 1982.
There is however a problem of world shortages of essential animal proteins which has resulted from all the setbacks which led to the decrease in agricultural production generally. The agricultural sector had been badly neglected. This when coupled with the effects of the liberation war which ended only two years ago, plus the severe droughts experienced in 1979/80, meant that the management of the livestock sector, like the crop sub-sector, equally suffered.
We have however already outlined measures to improve our management and disease control in both sectors. Programmes have been worked out to improve the exploitation of our water resources which, as you know, constitute one seventh of the total land surface of the country. We are confident that, these measures fully implemented, we would be able to come back to a situation of sufficiency and possible export surpluses. The problem is therefore one of our ability to finance the investment which is required.
We are however encouraged by the pronouncement that has been made in international fora, exampled by the declaration of the Cancún conference, the resolution by the European parliament in October on the resolve to eradicate hunger from this world.
Therefore, if the political will is translated into action, we expect that the programmes which have been worked out by the financial organizations-particulary FAO, which is directly involved in the implementation of programmes related to food-will receive full support from the international community so that countries like Uganda which are striving with meagre resources at their disposal to extricate themselves from these problems will be able to receive the necessary support, both financial and material.
H. L. CHAWLA (India): First of all I would extend my congratulations to you Mr. Chairman on your election to the chairmanship of Commission I. I must express our deep appreciation for the remarkable analysis of the world food and agricultural situation carried out by the FAO Secretariat. It has caught the imagination of all countries in the world, and the consciousness generated on the problem of hunger, malnutrition and poverty seems to be almost unprecedented.
Since it is late in the evening, I shall confine myself only to a few points. We notice that some of the highlights which this report has brought out clearly indicate that the food situation in the world is quite precarious. The world carry-over stocks of cereals, despite improvement in 1981, would be only 16 percent of the world consumption, which is below the minimum safe level for world food security. The world is thus critically dependent on the state of harvest from year to year. This is a warning that the world has to heed and we have to do something to improve the situation.
It has also been very aptly brought out that the cereal imports of developing countries have marked a sharp rise, whereas food aid which has not gone up correspondigly now constitutes a considerably smaller proportion of the food imports in developing countries. It is also noticed that the target of ten million tons of food aid which was laid down by the World Food Conference in 1974 is still not being reached, whereas the export assessment is indicating that the requirements are even larger. Similarly even the modest target of 500 000 tons for IEFR is not fully subscribed. Further, much of the population in developing countries is deriving its dietary energy largely from cerals.
Over five hundred million people, mostly in developing countries, are suffering from malnutrition. This makes them susceptible to disease and death. The capacity of developing countries to pay for rising import bills for energy and management, and also cereal imports, is inhibited by productionism and stagnation in the price of their traditional exports. The outlook for trade in a number of commodities exported by developing countries-for example, tea, jute, sugar and other tropical products-is decreasing. Vigorous efforts are needed on the part of the world community to solve these difficult problems. Although for immediate alleviation of suffering food aid has an improved role if the basic problem to be dealt with over the immediate and long term is to give all possible aid to the developing countries to raise their production of food and other agricultural products. This document clearly brings out that the major proportion of dietary energy comes from cereals. Now, the subsidiary foods like sugar, oils and vegetables, fruits and animal products have an important role in improving nutrition. May I suggest that your Secretariat may kindly give increased attention to the analysis of this aspect of the food problem. Our experience in India shows that there is a stagnation in the production of policies which are the principal source of protein especially in the diet of low income and poor people. The same is true in the case of vegetable oils where large imports are proving to be a significant drain in limited foreign exchange resources of the country. We are trying to increase
production of these commodities, however, it appears that considerable help could come through new ideas, information, and new technology for raising vegetable oil production in developing countries or in countries like India particularly. Technology for the production of rice bran oil, modern processes for de-oiling groundnuts without crushing and development and utilization of oil-bearing forest trees and information of a related nature we believe would be of immense value to several developing countries.
We are thankful for the attention which FAO has given to the problem of imports. Fertilizers, among the imports, are perhaps the most important. The high prices of fertilizers and fertilizer feed stock are inhibiting growth, fertilizer growth. The hardest hit in this regard are the small and marginal farmers who are not producing for the market but mainly for subsistence. This is an aspect to which a great deal of attention needs to be focussed.
Related to this are certain other needs of developing countries such as intensive research on more efficient utilization of fertilizers so that the high priced fertilizer can go further to produce more food and other agricultural commodities. There are other papers in which we would get more details and suggestions for dealing with problems of imports and energy. This evening I would not go further in dealing with other points but I think if there is time we will make a few more suggestions tomorrow.
Sra. R. MEDERO (Uruguay): Lo primero que desea mi delegacion, Sr. Presidente, es felicitarle cordial-mente por su designación, y tambien hacer resaltar el importante trabajo redactado por la FAO.
Nuestro pais ha analizado la documentación de la FAO, y en esta primera intervencion quiere senalar especialmente lo que esta reflejado en el documento 81/2 en relacion con el deterioro de los factores de intercambio y de las practicas utilizadas en el comercio de los productos agricolas.
Con referenda a las practicas empleadas en el aumento de la producción de alimentos hemos de insistir en que las practicas de comercio utilizadas son una traba que conlleva el que los recursos no pueden emplearse en forma eficiente.
En especial, segun ha mencionado nuestro ministro en la Sesion Plenaria, queremos referirnos a la comercializacion de la carne a nivel internacional.
Uruguay ha recibido creditos de organismos internacionales y de paises desarrollados para fomentar la producción de carnes y mejorar las practicas de produccion actuales.
En realidad, se han alcanzado metas importantes, pero nos hallamos con la dificultad de colocar nuestra producción en el mercado internacional. Y ello se debe a las practicas de algunos paises desarrollados que no solo han alcanzado el autoabastecimiento mediante subsidios a sus producciones, sino que ademas, otorgando importantes subsidios a las exportaciones, vuelcan sus excedentes a los demàs mercados.
Nuestro pais, como pais en desarrollo y productor de alimentos y materias primas, quiere pàrticipar dentro de sus posibilidades en la lucha contra el hambre y la desnutricion, pero nos encontramos con unas practicas proteccionistas y unas barreras arancelarias y no arancelarias, que son una traba para lograr nuestro anhelado aumento en la produccion.
Consideramos, compartiendo lo expresado por el Sefior Director General respecto a practicas comerciales y a las dificultades de los paises en desarrollo, que en lo que tienen que ver con el comercio interna cional deben ser abordadas en forma completa y detallada con la intervencion de todos los interesados en las correspondientes rondas de negociaciones globales. Nada màs y muchas gracias.
ABU BAKAR bin MAHMUD (Malaysia): Thank you Mr. Chairman for giving me the floor, I will do away with the salutations by sharing the sentiments of all before me. Also, I cannot but congratulate Prof. Islam even if I have to overshoot the time, for his brilliant introduction and also briefly, for that clear and comprehensive document given by the Secretariat regarding the State of Food and Agriculture and my delegation agrees with the findings of the Secretariat.
Now, to cut my statement rather short I just want to remind you that last month we celebrated the first World Food Day, to rally world public opinion, to be aware among nations, to help overcome the seemingly elusive problem facing the world today, particularly those in the developing countries. But what does this World Food Day mean to the very people whose tomorrow of food supply is not certain, and whose life is shrouded by hunger and sickness? The objective of World Food Day might still give some hope and promise for a better future.
The Malaysian delegation agrees completely with the often quoted statement that the ultimate solution to the world food problem lies in the increasing food production of the developing countries, and that each country should have the necessary political will to strive for self-reliance.
However, we would like to add that political will alone would not and could not bring about the desired changes, unless and until the policies and programmes that could be translated into action programmes that could benefit the small farmers, who contributed directly to the production process.
Programmes for development which involved the small farmers must be supported with appropriate packages of services and incentives. This is important because, in the long run,the only hope to sustain the development process was through the maximum development of these farmers capacity to understand, to accept and to participate in the development process.
The development of farmers through training and extension services, coupled with the provision of other essential services, assistance and incentives were means of ensuring the farmers participation in the programmes. A development programme ensuring benefit to the farmers would necessarily obtain their support.
The development of human resources base through training and extension services should further be developed and the experience of each country's programme should be shared. This was consistent with the concept of Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries.
The remarkable progress experienced by some developing countries in food production clearly indicates that the long term potential for development in most of the developing countries is great. However, it would require a great deal of determination and sacrifice by all those concerned, besides making available both material and financial input. The international community and the national governments alike would have this heavy responsibility to shoulder, to see that whatever groundwork that has been made for the future growth would be implemented fast and as efficiently as possible.
For the moment, more than in the past, intensified efforts are urgently needed to improve the growth rate of food and agricultural production, to increase the stability of food supplies and to facilitate agricultural trade. Perhaps the most important of all is for us now to fulfil our undertakings which have been agreed upon, to protect the disadvantaged groups in the country, and the disadvantaged countries of the world from lack of food and nutritional deficiencies.
The Director-General, Dr. Edouard Saouma, has made repeated pleas to developing countries to make all possible efforts to increase domestic food production. Since food and agricultural development in most of these countries are affected by a number of factors, it is not likely that the current slow growth rate in their food and agricultural development could be greatly accelerated within this short period of time. Coupled with a high rate of population growth, food production is likely to continue to lag behind consumption demand.
As indicated in Table 4 on page 15 of document C 81/2, this disparity between supply and demand for food due to population growth is very alarming. Two years ago, out of 94 developing countries only 19 could keep pace with both population growth and cereal demand. We were further told that the situation had recently deteriorated. If this trend prevails, the world will continue to experience further instability in the supply of food, rising prices of food, and food deficit developing countries will have to depend more on imports. The unfavourable terms of trade, the slow growth in the agricultural exports from developing countries and the decline in the purchasing power of their agricultural export earnings will bring about increasing poverty and a decline in the nutritional status of the majority of the people in these countries. Developing countries will increasingly continue to depend on food imports, which will tend to increase in price. With the declining value of export earnings, increasing imports of food to meet the needs of the population will become more difficult and perhaps impossible in the future. The plight of the food-deficit developing countries only serves to reinforce the need for intensified efforts for increasing food production to ensure overall world food security.
LE PRESIDENT: Avec le délégué de la Malaysie nous mettons un terme à nos interventions de cette deuxiéme seance. Demain matin nous aurons à poursuivre ce point de l'ordre du jour, c'est-à-dire la situation de l' alimentation et de l'agriculture.
Je voudrais vous rappeler que les coordinateurs des groupes devraient me communiquer les noms des membres du comite de redaction.
The meeting rose at 17. 40 hours
La séance est levée à 17 h 40
Se levanta la sesion a las 17. 40 horas
