Capri Cuba Conference 2008 Indira Rampersad Presentation On Food Security

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Microsoft PowerPoint - FOOD SECURITY - Indira Rampersad

A HUNGRY MAN IS AN ANGRY MAN: FOOD

SECURITY AND CUBA-CARIBBEAN INITAITIVES

OVERVIEWReorient the agenda from state security to human securityAssess the food security dilemma in the CaribbeanExamine Cubas initiative to alleviate it over time Review the new measures proposed by Raul Castro in the agricultural sector as a means to combating the Cuban food crisis Explore recent Anglo-Caribbean initiatives in soliciting Cuban assistance toward resolving the food security dilemmaEvaluate the imperative for solutions in the context of traditional state security threats in the face of violent food riots across the globeExplore the potential for new avenues of methodological and theoretical pluralism emerge as traditional and non-security threats converge

FOOD SECURITYFood security exists when all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life. (World Food Summit 1996)Food security refers to a situation where food production and distribution systems ensure a sustained food supply in sufficient quantities and quality at the national level, and is accessible to all members of the population (CARDI

RE-DEFINIG SECURITYThe focus now is on an emerging post-positivist paradigm which underscores the notion of human security - a people-centered perspective of security which has become an imperative in recent times in order to achieve the universal objectives of national, regional and global stability. This entails a deviation from the traditional realist approach and the emergence of post-positivist perspectives focusing on military threats and the security of the state to an emphasis on the individual as the more appropriate referent for security in what is being defined as the New Global Disorder

THE CARIBBEANS FOOD SECURITY PROBLEMATIQUE

Limited land-holdings: In the Caribbean the amount of land people own tends to run extremely small

Farmers that have less that 1 acre of land make up fifty percent of the farming population and ninety percent of farmers own less than five acres

Monoculture: Many of the farmers that farm more than 200 hectors grow their crops in monoculturesSoil depletion: In smaller farms several crops are grown on the same piece of land Farmers harvest all year long, making production rates to be smaller due to soil depletion

THE CARIBBEANS FOOD SECURITY PROBLEMATIQUE (TRADITIONAL SOURCES)

Agricultural pollution: Raise the costs of agricultural production through soil contamination, toxicity and pest resistanceNatural disasters: Destruction of food crops by hurricanes and storms. After hurricanes and tropical storms fishing industry affected by sedimentationNeglect of the agricultural sectorbecause food was cheap. Countries focused on other sectors

GLOBAL DYNAMICS

Fundamental shift in food producing land usage Emerging bio- fuels market Emergence of China and India and changing patterns of consumptionGlobal warming/Climate change

THE CUBAN EXPERIMENTBackground to Cubas Food CrisisUrban agricultureParmacultureGoing green: organic/ semi-organic farmsBio-pesticidesBio-fertilizersState-controlled corporations/Modern Megafarms

RAULS NEW INITIATIVESVigorously pursing a major expansion of the program to distribute underused and fallow farmland to private farmers and cooperatives in larger quantitiesFarmer-friendly policies

Authorized state stores to sell supplies directly to farmersThe state now providing free fertilizer and feedLocal farming associations are being empowered to oversee the land reallocation

CARIBBEAN INITIATIVES TO COMBAT FOOD CRISIS

CaricomEmbarked on a two-year suspension of duties on a range of food and other items from milk to meats, and drastic reduction of tariffs in most of the trade bloc states for six monthsHeld a Regional Agriculture Investment Forum on Jun. 6 aimed at bringing together venture capitalists, commercial bankers, farmers, agriculture experts, lobbyists, Caribbean policy makers, including prime ministers and presidents, and other experts in a single space to talk solely about agriculture

PetroCaribe Seek to convert Petrocaribe into a type of anti-hunger shield

CUBA TO THE RESCUE

BILATERAL TRINIDAD & TOBAGO:

Mega farmsJAMAICA: Technical assistance for organic farming

Protected agriculture Greenhouse Semi-protected technologies.

GUYANA: Technical assistanceTraining on impact of climate change on the agricultural sector)Help make Guyanas sugar industry more competitive

A HUNGRY MAN IS AN ANGRY MAN: CONVERGENCE OF TRADITIONAL AND

NON TRADITIONAL SECURITY THREATS

Wave of violent food riots across the globeConvergence of traditional and non-traditional security threats to both the individual and the stateImplications for complementary realist and post-positivist pluralistic theoretical perspectives in International Relations

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=tAtyjrehu94