Global agro-picture: No complacency please

Where is the march towards feeding the world population at a reasonable cost? The overall situation on the food front has, in the recent past, remained far from being satisfactory with food prices ruling high all over the globe. Food prices are going up on a continuous basis with demonstrations as well as social unrest badly affecting a number of capital cities. Time is ripe for dealing firmly with the agricultural snafu.

It is of no use blaming other countries that the health-conscious citizens are eating more in India or China or Brazil. The crux of the problem is in the areas, not unknown to the developed world.

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

Underinvestment in areas related to food, nutrition/agriculture (research/ infrastructure/rural institutions) invite spillover effects/global impacts, among others. It is high time sincere collaborative programmes were launched among the countries in order to adequately address opportunities and challenges.

Are we not the victims of our own negligence? We are still counted to be the largest reservoir of poverty in the world! Neglecting agriculture results in heavy immediate and future losses. The huge upcoming population in the workable category, in turn,   is one of the rare assets that could give rich dividends exactly by the same route as China’s in the previous years.

The ongoing situation calls for giving a big push to farm investments, especially keeping in view the plight of the entire developing nations. Though 60 per cent of South Asian countries are still dependent on this sector, the growth rate in this sector leaves much to be desired. In the entire developing bloc, this is the reality emanating mainly from inadequate investment, rural infrastructure, research and development, and inadequate emphasis on high-value crops. Side by side, non-availability of quality and cost-effective inputs, low efficiency of inputs’ use and fast deteriorating soil health and water resources remain as the critical concerns. Agriculture requires a big push and so as to realise the much-coveted high growth rate vis-à-vis food security. We are really entering a difficult stage globally and nationally in agriculture. In Sri Lanka 32 per cent of the country’s food requirements is met simply by imports, for which the annual expenditure is around 100 billion Sri Lankan rupees. Dwindling food stocks and rising prices reflect the reality – the very concern, which, in turn, must be given top priority. Tackling the threat of climate change and reducing the yield gap is the crying need, among others.

Side by side, in many of the current analyses it is being pointed out that Thailand, for example, becomes one of the gainers out of these upward trends in food prices as this country produces surplus food grains. But no matter what the gain is that has emerged from this trend in so far as the  farmers are concerned, their plight remain more or less the same and it is the  middlemen’s chain which is getting most of the prices obtained.

In so far as the fast emerging economies, like that in India, are concerned the fact remains that the ongoing trend is steadily moving in terms of registering quicker growth in agricultural productivity. Good going – growth and modern farm practices and inclusive technology are being implemented   in order to expedite the rural growth process. It is also a fact that the cellular technology, wireless communication networks and GIS-based agro-software technology are reaching rural India in order to disseminate vital information and updates on weather, farming technology, fertilisers, livestock, commodity prices as well as ‘stock markets’.

Still, can we deny the stark realities? A huge number of villages do not still have access to advanced farming technology and interactive communication networks, not to speak of the unimpressive pace of rural electrification and  clean drinking water availability. Is it not the appropriate time to broaden the sight of and look at the vital aspects – re-identifying policy dimensions and initiatives; capacity building through public private partnership (PPP), individual initiatives and joint ventures; boosting agri-business and agri-marketing; GIS mapping  and harvesting trends; mitigating climate change hazards; precision farming – optimum utilisation of resources; leaning heavily on the most modern agro-practices; micro-finance and micro-credit and attaching top importance to food security?

The real challenge that comes in the way of making agriculture an instrument of development stays outside agriculture – managing the political risks (political economy of agricultural policies and simultaneously strengthening governance for implementation of these policies). The crucial need is to share the ideas, experience and expertise, setting up of a common seed bank, joint research centre, surveillance and early warning system among the nations. Investment and regional cooperation in research and development must be at the top of regional meets, be it North or South. Building up partnership with scientists’ and research bodies have now become more essential than ever before. Rapid technological innovation [innovation plus invention] ought to be in place.

The responsibilities are to be shouldered not only by the banks, but also the government departments; NGOs; commodity exchange, agro-marketing and state marketing bodies and, of course, the extension departments. Time is ripe for a more well-knit, coordinated actions to initiate inter-sector linkages; progressive decision-making, information sharing and performance improvement; capacity building; creating more opportunities for partnership building; development reorganisation and capacity enhancement for rural stakeholders.

More delays mean more damages. ‘No planning’ is better than wrong planning. Time is here when this tendency is done away with. A non-traditional approach will also be experienced, if the ongoing process is supplemented steadily. Fast creation of self-help groups does mean much if corrective / supportive measures are not taken to prevent it from breaking down. The failure rate is seldom looked into in so far as the root causes are concerned. It is better to remember that under a comprehensive environment, two and two not always make four. Expected losses call for making provisions along with keeping the wolf at bay (read unexpected loss). Potato cultivation is better financed when food-processing activities extend friendly hands.

FAO clearly observed: “The rate of growth in world demand for agricultural products has slowed, because population growth has declined and fairly high levels of food consumption have been reached in many countries. Growth in demand will slow still further in the future. The world as a whole has the production potential to cope with demand. However, developing countries will become more dependent on agricultural imports, and food security in many poor areas will not improve without substantial increases in local production.”

It is better not forgotten that the under-privileged section is bearing the brunt of climate impact as they are neither equipped enough to prefigure meteorological  changes nor do they have the capacity to mitigate the impact caused by climatic hazards and no specific early warning system to forecast natural disasters  (earthquakes in China, floods in Rajasthan, etc.).

Dr. B.K. Mukhopadhyay is a

management economist.

Financial Express