Lessons Learnt and New Opportunities

Message from Dr. John J. Otim, Senior Advisor to President Museveni of Uganda
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A global conference on “ Taking Action for the World’s Poor and Hungry People” organized jointly by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and the Government of China has just ended in Beijing with a call on new types of action that must be taken to reduce poverty fast and end hunger soon. Poverty was defined as deficiencies of wealth, physical well-being and social inclusion. Hunger was understood as deficiencies in access to food and healthy nutrition.

The conference brought together more than 400 leading international and Chinese policy-makers and thinkers, 25 ministerial, / vice ministerial participants, globally renowned researchers, practitioners from NGOs, international agencies and the private sector from 40 countries. Over 100 scientific and policy presentations were made and over 60 policy briefs and research papers were made available. These presentations and policy briefs highlighted what it will take to move out of poverty and eliminate hunger. But they also noted with great concern that progress was slowest in Africa and South Asia in addressing the plight of the poorest of the poor and that ultra-poor are mostly left behind. Regarding poverty reduction, it was noted that the world has made considerable progress but regional progress is uneven with poverty reduction minimal or stagnating in Sub-Sahara Africa.

Research by IFPRI has shown that 160 million people live in ultra-poverty (i.e. on less than US 50 cents a day) globally. Sadly more than three quarters of those living on less than half a dollar a day live in Sub-Saharan Africa, where majority are presently found in rural areas. However, as rural – urban migration of the young intensifies; increasing number of poor people will be urban dwellers if nothing is done to reduce the trend. These findings led many participants to ask why is Africa being left behind despite its huge natural resources? What can be done to lift Africa out of ultra-poverty using available technologies successful and experience from developing countries like China, India, Brazil e.t.c?

Why Africa is Being left Behind
Africa especially Sub-Saharan countries are visibly being left behind due to a combination of complex factors, both internally and externally driven. To understand the causes of the present deepening poverty and hunger among the majority on the continent, we need a scientific approach to look into the past before and since independence in order to know the present. This way our conclusions and course of action for poverty reduction and elimination of hunger will not be marred by subjective distortions being perpetuated by both internal and external masters of illusion. It also helps us appreciate the negative impact of divide and rule way of administration and the blame game method where none of the key players in the debacle admits to being guilty of the deepening poverty and hunger in Africa.

One of the most valuable outcomes of the Beijing Conference as far as Africa is concerned was the exposure to why Asian countries like China and India as well as Latin America country like Brazil have made tremendous progress to reduce poverty and hunger while Africa is lagging behind and in some cases slipping backward. The fundamental differences stem from socio-political and economic development pathways that the leaders of these countries adopted. Secondly on the commitment political leaders and their people have shown in the implementation of programmes. These are summarized in the box below:

Asia (China & India)		Africa (especially Sub-Saharan Countries)
1.	The leaders developed national value system accepted and protected by citizen regardless of their political affiliation as a foundation for coherent socio-economic development.	1.	Many leaders after the attainment of Independence did not bother to establish a national value system that would be respected and protected by the citizen of their country regardless of political affiliation to lay a solid foundation for socio-economic development.
2.	They forged national unity of purpose that promoted community spirit and national patriotism which in turn spurred the culture of hard work, creativity and innovations. It helped in the establishment of conducive investment climate and the growth of home grown entrepreneurs.	2.	National unity of purpose was not given priority. Instead narrow interests driven by party ideology, religions affiliation. Ethnic/tribal and even clan sentiments took centre stage leading to undermining patriotism, and community spirit. The net result has been lack of commitment to hard-work, opportunism, corruption, confusion, intrigues, hatred, armed conflicts, environmental and infrastructures destruction and loss of manpower.
3.	Pursued politics of dialogue and consensus since 60s which promoted tolerance, amicable settlement of internal disputes and increased participation by citizen in national affairs. Cooperation with external interests was and is based a win-win situation. Not exploitative.	3.	As a result of the politics of parochial interests, divide and rule and the resultant disunity and lack of patriotism, the politics of violence became the pathway for coming into power at the expense of the majority. Wealth creation through looting of the spoils of war, corruption and plundering of national resources became the order of the day. It ushered in the politics of exclusion, single party rule, life presidency and military rule as survival game plan.
4.	Cautiously adopted market economy under liberalization and privatization paradigm shift by adopting policies that safe guarded national interest especially by avoiding the excesses of capitalism and socialism which widen the gaps between the haves and have-nots.	4.	As a result of 1, 2 and 3 many African governments and regimes became weak and vulnerable to manipulation by external masters of illusion to the extent that policies, programmes and projects designs and implementation have been externally driven by people who do not know the conditions on the ground. Thus they have been taken for a ride on deregulated market economy at the expense of the majority poor in their countries. Their emphasis is on access to international export markets without parallel development of efficient domestic markets to lay solid foundation for accessing both regional and international markets. They are not exploiting the potential of domestic and regional markets effectively.
5.	They were and are focused on establishing harmonious society by reducing the gaps between the rich and poor rural and urban people. They have established working institutions that do not perish with every regime or government that leave or is kicked out of power.	5.	By neglecting domestic markets the smallholder farmers and rural agribusiness people, African leaders and technocrats have been part of the problems of deepening poverty, hunger and weak institutions on the continent.

Lessons Learnt from China Experience
Since the founding of New China in 1949 profound changes have taken place in the socio-economic development especially in the last 30 years when China embraced reforms and cautiously adopted market economy with Chinese characteristic. China wise departure from the West wholesale faith in Adam Smith’s invisible hand to serve all was captured by Ben Johnson in his article in the China Daily of October 20-21, 2007. He stated that after great social upheaval in the 1960s caused by Civil Rights activists, US government shirked the provision of comprehensive state-funded social programmes needed to improve the plight of its poor (largely the once enslaved African-Americans). By portraying the poor as “welfare leeches”, the Republicans hoodwinked the have-nots into voting for low tax and small government by promising that the “crumbs” of prosperity would fall off the table of the rich for all to enjoy.

So in the wake of the promised post second World War golden age, especially over the past 30years, a less compassionate neo-liberal orthodoxy has prevailed among economists in US. The earlier social justice traditions of the United States’ New Deal and Great Society Governments were scuttled by former US President Ronald Reagan’s low taxes, small government and deregulation – privatization of the economy formula. With American CEOs earning about 431 times more than their employees and the top 10 percent of income earners own 70 percent of the national wealth, the growing divide between the haves and have nots in the West became evident and made even more egregious by the fact that CEOs of big companies are lauded and rewarded by shareholders for effecting workforce efficiencies by lay offs, outsourcing and denying employees benefits etc leading to untold social disharmonies. The lessons learnt is that deregulated market economy like deregulated freedom while it can create bubbles of success in the short term, in the long run it does not only bring social disharmonies but when the bubbles burst it becomes a recipe for financial crisis, conflict and decay.

China (also India and Brazil) realized these pitfalls of the profit-first orthodoxy and the social backlash of the excesses of pro-market policies and avoided wholesale adoption of the West economic model. Hu Jintao, General Secretary of the Communist party of China (CPC) made this clear in his report to the 17th National Congress meeting on Monday 15, October 2007 when he re-committed himself and the party to pursue market-led socio-economic development with scientific look, but with Chinese character. This he said will involve intensifying the regulation of incomes through taxation, breaking business monopolies, creating equal opportunities, overhauling income distribution practices with a view to gradually reversing the growing income disparity by putting in place policies promoting fairer income distribution, easing tax burdens on the rural poor, improving welfare and access to education e.t.c. In short the Chinese government has shifted to human-centered and scientific development outlook with the objective of building China into harmonious socialist society. This policy focus and sound implementation of programmes has led to China applauded programmes of poverty reduction and has set up China as an example for successful poverty reduction. India and Brazil have adopted similar socio-economic development pathways to their credit.

What Africa Should Do
African countries, especially those in Sub-Sahara, Uganda inclusive, should learn from China, India, Brazil e.t.c experience and design socio-economic development pathways that will move them away from unchecked markets led economic development. They should emulate China, India, Brazil, Pakistan pathways to growth, poverty reduction and elimination of hunger. Each African country must develop its pathway in accordance with local conditions drawing on useful success stories around the world especially from developing countries like China, India, Brazil, Pakistan etc. The outcomes of Beijing 2007 and Kampala 2004 conferences should be a catalyst for cooperation, collaboration and networking among countries, institutions and individuals in developed and developing world.

The socio-economic development pathways must truly be home-grown and home owned so that development partners just come to lend a helping hand. The hitherto copy cat mentality where policies, strategic plan of action, work plan and implementation schedules are conceived, designed and controlled from outside must be avoided. Such relationship has been responsible for top-down approach, exclusion of the poor and minorities, decline in staff morale, rampant corruption, marginalization of smallholder farmers and failures of markets in rural areas.

Secondly, African leaders and their supporters should stop the political culture of using violence as a way of coming to power and amassing wealth in partnership with local and global merchants of death and masters of illusion. It is now common knowledge that by opting for the politics of violence and exclusions of minorities, African leaders have been part and parcel of deepening poverty and hunger on the continent. Conflicts have tied up productive lands from being used, have caused loss of productive manpower through lose of lives, maiming, flight into foreign countries, rampant diseases, environmental degradation, infrastructures destruction, education failure e.t.c all of which are factors that have caused and deepen poverty and hunger. Political will and commitment by African leaders are critical to success. The politics of dialogue and consensus play crucial role in accelerating poverty reduction and elimination of hunger. African leaders should ensure that multinational companies that do business in Africa by promoting bribes and conflict through sale of arms by merchants of death are persuaded to abandon that pathway. On the in part international community should be consistent in their development assistance and policies as they have done in Asia in the areas of manpower and technology development. They should also discourage externally conceived, designed and controlled programmes and projects. Instead they should promote Africa home grown programmes and projects.

The New Opportunities
The launching simultaneously in Washington and at the Beijing Conference of the World Development Report under the theme: Agriculture for Development by the World Bank on October 19, 2007 was like good music to the ears. It brought excitement to many people across the globe especially to those from developing countries who all along knew agriculture is a vital development tool not only for achieving the Millennium Development Goals but also for stimulating growth in other parts of the economy as well as for preserving the environment and promoting political stability. This is particularly true of Sub-Saharan Africa. In this context Robert B. Zoellick, President of the World Bank Group must be congratulated for taking a bold decision to bring back agriculture to the centre of socio-economic development.

It is a well known fact that since 1980s the international community, World Bank inclusive had moved away from supporting agriculture and as a result many national governments in Africa especially those that embraced the deregulated market economy also withdrew critical interventions in agriculture needed for poverty reduction and elimination of hunger. The self-serving and ideological aspect that relegated responsibilities for poverty reduction entirely to the poor countries without external assistance coupled with compliance by African leaders at various levels was most unfortunate as it led to market failures in rural areas and deepening of poverty, increase in diseases and severe hunger.

For some of us who stood firm since 1980s and persistently pointed out to African governments and international community that it was a mistake to withdraw support from agriculture, we feel a big relief with the launching of the World Development Report of 2007 by the World Bank which has brought agriculture back into development focus.

With regards to the positive turn around by the World Bank, sincere tribute should be paid to IFPRI and its partners around the globe for demonstrating through numerous policy research in Africa, Asia, Latin America e.t.c, many consultative meetings and by organizing four most successful conferences (i.e. the Bonn Conference, September 2000, the Kampala Conference, April 2004, the Manila Conference August, 2007, and the Beijing Conference October, 2007) which not only provided platforms for sharing experience, knowledge and establishing contact but also contributed to creating awareness within the World Bank, international community, regional economic communities and national governments on the importance of agriculture in poverty reduction and elimination of hunger, especially for the developing countries. I am proud to have been associated with the IFPRI efforts since 2000.

Seizing The New Opportunities
The time is now for Africa. The launching of the World Development Report on October 19, 2007 by the World Bank which recognized agriculture as a vital development tool for poverty reduction and elimination of hunger has ushered in new opportunities for intensifying the development of agriculture particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa. A country like Uganda with high agricultural potential must seize the new opportunities by tackling poverty and hunger at household level to lay the foundation for prosperity.

Already, policy research by IFPRI and other international institutions in partnership with national researchers, have defined pathways that should be adopted in accordance with unique conditions prevailing in each locality, nation and region. Techniques, technologies and services that can increase agricultural productivity on a sustainable level and assure environmental protection have been demonstrated. The kind of incentives and investments needed to spur agricultural growth have been highlighted. Lessons learnt from success stories from China, India, Brazil e.t.c are available for initiating cooperation between individual African country and these countries that can help fine-tune agricultural development pathways that will benefit people. The inclusion that will promote effective participation by all stakeholders in agricultural development programmes have been identified. The stakeholders include;

Central & Local Governments, Private Sector, Cultural Institutions, Religious Institutions, People with Disabilities, Farmers’ Organisations, Members of Community, Youth Organisations, Women Organisations, Civil Society Organisations, Media, Legislators, Development Partners, Academia / Researchers.

The World Development Report just launched by the World Bank, the Beijing Conference and the Kampala Conference have synthesized the pathways in clear manner and importantly, the World Bank with its massive influence on international community and on government policies around the world has now declared its unwavering support to agriculture by recognizing it as a vital development tool for achieving MDG and spurring economic growth.
Having said that, it must be clear from the start that without a peaceful environment, adequate governance which among others ensure effective community participation and sound macro-economic fundamentals, little progress can be made. Thus the core political issues facing Africa identified at the Beijing Conference include the following:

1. Overcoming conflicts and instability which are at the root why post independent Africa is being left behind.
2. Improving education quality and infrastructures especially rural community and feeder roads, schools, health facilities and information technology centers.
3. Strengthening governance, accountability and rights.
4. Sound macro-economic policy and trade regime
5. Improve fiscal and tax policies
6. Better target social expenditure
7. Enhance local capacity
8. Coordinate, monitor and evaluate development aid with commitments.

Taking Appropriate Actions
What must be done to accelerate agricultural growth that will bring sustainable benefits to the poor and the hungry as well as spur growth in other sectors of the economy of the developing world especially in Africa are known. Taking appropriate action to achieve MDG and bring prosperity to all has been the real problem due largely to lack of political will unfavorable policy environment, institutional weakness, skewed political interests and lack of commitments. Key actions that need to be straightened by African governments immediately include:

1. Promotion of the politics of dialogue, tolerance and inclusion to ensure peace and stability.
2. Promotion of inclusive growth with emphasis on rural growth
3. Enhancing access to assets, infrastructures and markets
4. Strengthening social protection
5. Accelerating investments in healthcare, nutrition, education, particularly for children, women and people with disabilities
6. Promotion of partnerships and participation by all stakeholders.

In the case of Uganda, political leadership must demonstrate greater political will, commitment and cohesiveness by doing the following urgently:

1. Honour the Maputo Declaration by increasing budget support to agriculture to 10% of the national budgets. Currently agriculture and fisheries sectors are badly under funded.
2. While Uganda government has developed good strategies for raising the incomes of the poor, there are serious confusion on coordination. Lack of harmonization of Plan for the Modernization of Agriculture (PMA), Rural Development Strategy (RDS) in relation to Prosperity for all (PFA) is leading to confusion among implementers at central and local governments levels. There is therefore, urgent need to review PMA, RDS and PFA and establish a common vision and common strategies since all are similar in strategies, goals and mandate. Linkage between NARO and NAADS equally need to be sorted out without further delay. Accountability for funds meant to benefit smallholder farmers need to be evaluated.
3. Review government support to Farmers’ Organizations with the aim of accelerating increased productivity of the smallholder farmers on a stainable basis.
4. Establish Complimentary Coordination Mechanisms ( CCM) that will improve public sector partnerships with the private sector, civil society organizations, cultural institutions, women organizations, Religious Institutions, youth organizations, people with disability organizations, legislators, Micro Finance Institutions, Insurance companies, Training Institutions and Consultancy Institutions, etc.
5. Assess the capacity and competency of the above partners to carry out their mission and objectives in a professional and cost effective manner.
6. Ensure that decisions affecting the lives of the poor are taken by the communities themselves rather than by distant bureaucrats / consultants unfamiliar and perhaps even unconcerned about the problems of the people.
7. Put emphasis on developing domestic markets to strengthen access to regional and international markets.
8. Government should introduce smart subsidies to support farmers especially smallholder farmers to enable them develop into business clusters that can effectively engage in contract / out growers farming and agribusiness. In this context, Contract and Leasing Laws must be enacted urgently to protect all concerned. The current tendency of labeling farmers groups as belonging to so and so in effort to identify them with a particular company or semi-autonomous government body is counter productive. It gives connotation of ownership, dependency and exploitation leading to disputes, mistrust and confusion instead of promoting a win-win partnership arrangement.
9. Government should move quickly and establish a Single Competent Authority to handle food safety issues in order to accelerate access to regional and international food markets as well as ensuring safe food in domestic market. The current shared food safety responsibilities by MAAIF, MoH and MTTI is a source of delay, and inefficiency in export of food products from Uganda.
10. Government should meaningfully mainstream women, youth and people with disabilities into agricultural and agri-business development programmes using smart subsidies.
    (k) Government should avoid the temptation of promoting food crop production for biofuel as this move is likely to increase hunger due to lack of food stuff / increase in food prices beyond the reach of the majority of our people.
11. In order to effectively tackled poverty and hunger at household level under the prosperity for all agenda, government and service providers must clearly know the existence of ultra-poor, median poor, economically active low-income smallholder farmers and non-farmers. The needs and strategies for improving household incomes and food security of each category are different. Lumping them together has been a costly mistake and a source of failures of many initiatives.

The driving force for the above actions should be a strong belief that true democracy means participation by all and harnessing the creativity of the people to create a harmonious, prosperous and stable society. That call for moving leaders’ power to people power and avoiding the excesses of capitalism and socialism.

The new scramble for Africa is gaining momentum and soon Africa a continent with a huge untapped potential, will be the next investment hotspot. If we don’t get the majority of our people out of poverty and hunger the law of survival of the fittest shall weed many Africans out. The wake-up call is loud and clear. The choice is ours. We are all a part of the monster that moves us around the chessboard.