World food crisis

US ups aid pledge

Article published on the 2008-04-15 Latest update 2008-04-17 21:15 TU

A wheatfield near Paris
Photo: Tony Cross

The United States pledged 200 million dollars to aid in the global food crisis Tuesday as Philippine President Gloria Arroyo vowed to jail anyone who steals state-subsidized rice in a move to avoid the food shortage riots that have erupted across the globe. The Philippines has also asked the US to help boost stocks.

"This additional food aid will address the impact of rising commodity prices on US emergency food aid programmes, and be used to meet unanticipated food aid needs in Africa and elsewhere," White House spokesperson Dana Perino said.

In Bangladesh, 15,000 garment-workers went on strike Tuesday, demanding higher wages in order to cover basic food expenses. The price of the country's staple food, rice, has doubled over the past year. Floods and a major cyclone severely damaged crops.

At the left-wing Third World Network in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, economist Lim Lee-ching says that countries who followed the IMF prescription for the agricultural sector have become reliant on free markets, which leads to soaring cereal prices.

"It actually undermines the ability of the small farming sector to support themselves and to produce enough food to support their own population," said Lim.

A report by the UN-sponsored  International Assessment of Agricultural Science and Technology for Development out Tuesday says a radical reform of the agriculture sector is necessary to better serve the poor and hungry and avoid an even bigger crisis.