Feeding hunger and insecurity

6. What More is Needed?The global food price rises are not the resultof a single cause, nor do they affect allpeoples to the same degree. An effectiveresponse must be broad, cross-disciplined andfunction at all levels; it must address both causesand effects, past, present and future. The CFAdraws together some of the most recent debatessurrounding agriculture, economics, developmentstudies, food security and nutrition to provide aplatform for a multi-faceted, unified response. Ithas prompted a needed return of agriculture andhunger to the top of the international developmentagenda. Still, more than almost any other disease,severe acute malnutrition is incorrectly viewed asa symptom of crisis, and treated only in emergencyresponses; shedding this attitude is vital foralleviating hunger worldwide. Drawing on almosthalf a decade of experience in combating food insecurityand acute malnutrition on the ground, thissection outlines a number of recommendationswhich may form part of a global response to theimmediate crisis and a buffer to future crises. Thissection will briefly describe a number of proventools used to address acute malnutrition and foodinsecurity, discuss what is needed to create anenvironment where these interventions can be appliedmost effectively, and ask what can be doneto immediately scale-up the treatment of severeacute malnutrition.6.1 What Interventions can be usedto Fight Hunger?Alleviating hunger will not be easy and remainspossibly the greatest humanitarian challengefaced by the international development community.The CFA has made strides towards an integratedapproach to improving global food securityand eliminating hunger. Improving agriculturalproduction and supporting small-scale farmersare crucial to ensuring everyone has enough toeat, and may also provide opportunities for propoorgrowth. Action Against Hunger supports suchinitiatives, but insists that bolstering food productionwill not be sufficient to eradicate hunger, andparticularly malnutrition. A package of social protectionprogrammes and treatment of malnutritionis needed too. Essential proven interventions inthe fight against hunger are:Food reservesCommunity-based management of severeacute malnutritionGrowth promotion programmesEmployment guarantee schemesSocial pensionsFood aidIndex-linked cash and food transfersFood ReservesLow food reserves exacerbated the impact of cerealsupply shocks in late 2007. Global cereal reservesare at their lowest level for 30 years andmust be increased to buffer against future productionshortfalls. Food reserves can be physicalor virtual, and operate at the global, regional,national or local level. The Structural AdjustmentProgrammes of the IMF and World Bank frequentlyrequired countries, like Malawi, to abandonnational food reserves and rely on internationaltrade to protect domestic food security. Nationalagricultural boards frequently bought staple foodsduring the post-harvest season at a fixed price,selling the stock at the same price during the hungerseason, when prices are usually high. Thoughnational food reserves were often inefficient andtheir operators corrupt, these schemes did provideimproved food security. Action Against Hungersuggests that regional grain stocks, managedby regional bodies, should be considered both asa form of market regulation, and as a platform foremergency response.Community-Based Management of Severe AcuteMalnutritionThe treatment of severe acute malnutrition hasrecently been improved by moving from a facilitybasedto a community-based approach. Severelymalnourished children without complications canbe treated with ready-to-use therapeutic foods inthe community. Only children with complications(anorexia and extensive oedema) are treated as52ACF International NetworkFeeding Hunger and Insecurity