"The Silent Tsunam"

Before the food crisis that now rocks the world, it was fashionable to say that most Africans lived on less that US$1 a day. With what is happening now, many more would be living on less that one US cent a day before long! Suddenly, there is a food shortage resulting in soaring prices. As usual, the worst hit places are the Third World countries as evident in the riots in Cameroon, Haiti and Indonesia. It is so bad that the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has described the unfolding situation as the "silent tsunami". This imagery is at once appropriate and frightening because the tsunami conjures up images of death, destruction and desolation.

The US President George W. Bush was spot on when he said: "In some of the world's poorest nations, rising prices can mean the difference between getting a daily meal and going without food." And when this is taken together with the statistics provided by the WFP, then there is need for urgent action. According to the WFP, 100 million people are currently going short of food. This is the issue in hand: what can be done to avoid widespread hunger and malnutrition and social unrest?

We are glad to see that the United States government has risen to the challenge, with President Bush offering us $770m in international food aid "to help ease the effects of surging food prices". Whether or not the money will only be available in October, we appreciate the gesture nonetheless. Since the "new aid comprises US$ 620m in direct food aid, mainly to needy African countries, and US$ 150m in long-term projects to help farmers in developing countries", it will eventually come in useful for the people it is meant.

It is also heartening that UN is not folding its arms. According to reports, the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has already set up a task force to deal with the ongoing food crisis. The task force hopes to among other things offer US$ 200m financial support to farmers in the worst affected countries to boost food production and to set up a US $1.7bn programme to help countries with a food deficit to buy seeds.

The current food crisis is a major challenge that humanity must face up to and surmount, as it had overcome other seemingly insurmountable crises in the past. In this regard, we all have a collective responsibility to treat the environment with even greater care. In dealing with this problem, we should put structures in place to ensure that what we are experiencing now does not happen again.

Before the food crisis that now rocks the world, it was fashionable to say that most Africans lived on less that US$1 a day. With what is happening now, many more would be living on less that one US cent a day before long! Suddenly, there is a food shortage resulting in soaring prices. As usual, the worst hit places are the Third World countries as evident in the riots in Cameroon, Haiti and Indonesia. It is so bad that the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has described the unfolding situation as the "silent tsunami". This imagery is at once appropriate and frightening because the tsunami conjures up images of death, destruction and desolation.

The US President George W. Bush was spot on when he said: "In some of the world's poorest nations, rising prices can mean the difference between getting a daily meal and going without food." And when this is taken together with the statistics provided by the WFP, then there is need for urgent action. According to the WFP, 100 million people are currently going short of food. This is the issue in hand: what can be done to avoid widespread hunger and malnutrition and social unrest?

We are glad to see that the United States government has risen to the challenge, with President Bush offering us $770m in international food aid "to help ease the effects of surging food prices". Whether or not the money will only be available in October, we appreciate the gesture nonetheless. Since the "new aid comprises US$ 620m in direct food aid, mainly to needy African countries, and US$ 150m in long-term projects to help farmers in developing countries", it will eventually come in useful for the people it is meant.

It is also heartening that UN is not folding its arms. According to reports, the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has already set up a task force to deal with the ongoing food crisis. The task force hopes to among other things offer US$ 200m financial support to farmers in the worst affected countries to boost food production and to set up a US $1.7bn programme to help countries with a food deficit to buy seeds.

The current food crisis is a major challenge that humanity must face up to and surmount, as it had overcome other seemingly insurmountable crises in the past. In this regard, we all have a collective responsibility to treat the environment with even greater care. In dealing with this problem, we should put structures in place to ensure that what we are experiencing now does not happen again.