Monday, September 14, 2020 – marked the start of Feed the Future Week, a weeklong event highlighting progress made in addressing the root causes of poverty, hunger and malnutrition in the global effort to end hunger. This year, The U.S. Government’s Feed the Future initiative commemorates its 10-year anniversary and a decade of impact with the launch of its 2020 annual report. Although this Feed the Future Week coincides with the COVID-19 global pandemic, it demonstrates that progress is still possible and the initiative’s work is more urgent than ever.
In 2010, following one of the most devastating food crises in the world, Feed the Future was launched to help partner countries create sustainable, long-term change to end the vicious cycle of chronic hunger and poverty. The U.S. Government modeled the initiative on the principles of country ownership, private sector partnership, research and innovation, and accountability for results.
This year’s report includes global data on 10 years of impact in addition to stories from individuals reached by Feed the Future who have forged a better future for themselves and their communities. Over the past decade, Feed the Future has unlocked over $3.5 billion in agricultural financing, helped farmers generate more than $13.7 billion in agricultural sales, and helped develop and deploy over 1,000 innovations for agriculture and nutrition. In Bangladesh, poverty dropped by 37 percent and hunger by 68 percent; In Ethiopia, poverty dropped by 19 percent, stunting by 23 percent and hunger by 33 percent; In Zambia, poverty dropped by 14 percent, stunting by 22 percent and hunger by 6 percent.
In the decade ahead, strengthening resilience will be core to Feed the Future’s work, as it is the key to long-term, sustainable growth in the face of crises like COVID-19. Feed the Future will build upon the lessons learned since its inception and will continue in its mission to end global hunger.
The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is one of the U.S. Government agencies contributing to Feed the Future. As the U.S. Government’s initiative to combat global hunger, poverty and malnutrition, Feed the Future draws on the resources and expertise of various U.S. federal departments and agencies, private companies, U.S. universities and non-governmental organizations to solve some of the most intractable challenges of global hunger. By investing in long-term food security, Feed the Future also helps U.S. businesses compete and expand into new markets while building a more stable, secure world.
USAID’s Sustainable Agriculture for Economic Resiliency project, implemented by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, is in the second phase of pilot testing Fawligen, a bio-pesticide manufactured by U.S company AgBiTech to combat Fall Armyworm, which appeared in Africa in 2016 and destroys maize and sorghum crops, posing a threat to smallholder farmer livelihoods. The first phase of the Fawligen application saw a 50 percent increase in maize yield. The second phase is extending the trial to farmers in Aweil, Yambio, Wau, and Juba. One farmer, Zarifa, told an FAO project officer that after using Fawligen on their maize crops, it only takes a day to kill Fall Armyworm. “We are confident to fight this worm and it will change our lives and make us better cereal producers,” she said.
Visit www.feedthefuture.gov to learn more.
