To: - Mr. Minh H. Pham - Mr. David Gleen Morrison U.N.D.P. – Transition Team UNDP – N.Y. From: M.N.EL Ferjani Programme Manager / U.N.O.P.S. UNIRDP – Baalbeck El Hermel LEB/96/100 & AD/LEB/96/B99 & LEB/96/103 Fax: 00-961-8-372070 cc: - Mme Louise Fréchette, Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations– UN – N.Y. - Mr. Mark Mallock Brown - UNDP Administrator - UNDP – N.Y. - Mr. Fawaz Fokeladeh, Regional Director for the Arab States – UNDP – N.Y. - Mr. Yves De San, UNDP – R.R. – Lebanon. Subject: UNDP Transition Team, and the Reorientation / Improvement of the UNDP’s Development Policy / Approach. Date: 14.09.1999 Ref: 2355/GK Dear Sirs, I refer to your visit to our Integrated Rural Development Programme of Baalbeck – El Hermel Area, on 25th July 1999; and to our discussions about the reorientation and the improvement of the UNDP’s Development Policy / Approach; please find attached two diagnosis and analysis charts explaining / representing the causal relationships between: 1. The Under-Development, the Cyclic Food Gaps, (The FAMINES) and the socio-political destabilization – The Vicious Circle – from one side. 2. The Engagement of a sustainable Development process and the Participatory Approach (Popular Democracy), the Direct Physical Investments and the Adequacy of the International Food Aids as: the Vicious Circle Breaking Attempt – from the other side. I preferred to use the above mentioned charts in order to expose, shortly and concisely, my views, fruit of more than thirty eight years practical and field experience in the rural/socio-economic Development, and twenty two years in the U.N. Specialized Organizations, working in the Least Developed Countries of AFRICA (East/West, North/South) and the Middle East. I hope that these charts will help you, as well as the Policy decision makers at the UN/UNDP level, to reorient their interventions in the developing countries and to remedy for the negative impacts, effects and repercussions of the on-going approach. The current situation in the developing countries and the LDCs is characterized by the following aspects: Regional Isolation and Lack/High Cost of Transport Facilities. Poor/Absent Mobilization, Rational Allocation and Optimal use of Natural & Human Resources (Soils, Waters, Range, human labor, skills…) Absence or inadequate credit facilities. Which are causing low/absent private national / international interest for investment opportunities / initiatives? This situation is causing limited cultivated area/productivity per family, which is the main reason behind the irregular food gaps/famines; while the UN/UNDP are concentrating their efforts on providing social services. According to my field experience in the Sudano – Sahelien region, and in South Darfur – Sudan; a socio-economic survey conducted by the F.A.O. – A.D.S. during Nov. 91-Feb. 92, had indicated that the average cultivated area per family was around 2-3 ha, and in general less than 10% of the available arable lands were cultivated/exploited. The production / farming systems were very rudimentary, based on rain fed crops and livestock without any mechanization / animal traction or other improved techniques / inputs. Even the cultivation in rows* is not used nor heard about it. The farmers continue to prepare some “pockets” in un-plowed fields, drop and cover the seeds, with some late manual weeding, executed later during the growing period, which is labor consuming and limits the possible cultivated area per active person and thus by family. Therefore only the sandy/light soils with inherently low fertility were cultivated, since the fertile heavy soils required mechanization or motorization and thus investments, in order to be plowed. As we said the cultivated area by family doesn’t exceed 2-3 ha and an average production of 6 bags Millet/year and 7 bags sorghum/year for 8-9 persons / family. The average consumption by family is around 0.8 “Meloua” (around 2,7kg) per day. The total consumption per year is estimated to be: 2.7kg x 365 = 985.5kg which means 10-11 bags out of a total production of 13bags/family. Therefore, the marketed surplus in average year can’t exceed 1-2 bags/year, taking into consideration 1bag for seeds. This situation explains partially the food-gap in Darfur region in general and the shortage of food even in the humid Southern province during the dry-years. This situation is worsened by three main factors: Rainfall irregularities. Only sandy to light soils with inherently low fertility are cultivated in the absence of animal/mechanical traction. Security problems. In order to break this vicious circle, it is recommended to improve the production and farming systems by strengthening the farmer’s investment capacity through the credit/development systems, and the extension of the adequate improved seeds/technologic packages. Thus, it is primordial in the future to emphasize on the components of the Main Path of Chart (2), i.e. Dis-enclavement and Enhancement of the communication Services, the Basic Social Infrastructures and of the inputs provision services. Physical investments for Mobilization, Rational Allocation and Optimal use of the Natural & Human Resources. Adequate credit / Rural Credit Facilities. The components of the supportive and connex path of (Chart 2), which are currently, considered as of high priority and consequently receiving the gross of the available funds; should be of a secondary importance in the future, and to be coming chronologically after execution / achievement of the main path components. These secondary components are: The strengthening of the basic social services: health, education, vocational training. The strengthening of the local governance and popular participation. The main objective should be to help the local communities through Income and Employment opportunities generation, via the comprehensive mobilization, the rational allocation and the optimum use of the natural / human resources. This is the only way to engage a sustainable socio-economic development process. As the Chinese proverb said “don’t give me a fish, but teach (train/educate and equip) me how to fish”. In the developing countries in general and the LDCs in particular, the Development of the Agricultural Sector and the Rural Areas, should be the most important issue. There are many; even a plethora of technologic packages and genetic materials produced by ICARDA/ICRISAT, and the other adaptive research institutes, which can be extended in order to generate income and employment. The generated income, is supposed to have driving / multiplier effects on the market and the industrial / services sectors; through the increase of the families purchase power; which in turn will induce employment generation and strength the families’ investment / saving capacities etc… It is obvious, that income generation is the condition sine qua non for a family to face its obligations towards its members/children, in terms of education and health, and towards its community, in terms of Popular Participation, Responsibilization and Democracy. It is utopia to hurry behind the “mirage” of expending democracy, if the people are hungry or un-employed; otherwise it will be a “sauvage” and corrupted democratic appearance only. The U.N. assisted projects/interventions, since the fifties /early sixties till to date, have demonstrated that, despite the huge amounts disbursed by the U.N. Agencies; the situation is deteriorating year after year, due to the inadequate / inappropriate approach adopted by the U.N./International Development Aids. The result of concentrating the efforts on health/human resources (social services) and relief-emergency, especially in the absence of physical Investments dealing with natural resources and basic Infrastructures; the result has been an armada of unemployed intellectuals / technicians, highly educated, with high economic/financial and social cost; but unable to give what it is expected from them. Consequently, not only the migration of intellectuals towards the northern countries is growing, but also the socio-economic malaise is becoming more acute and dangerous. It is more difficult to govern unemployed educated people with high expectations / aspirations, than to govern illiterate farmers / villagers, who are able to adapt themselves with the realities, to survive with the poverty and to be able to do hard works in Agriculture, mining and Infrastructures building. Thus, the results of the previous approach were that famines / Food gaps are extending, agricultural sector productivity decreasing or stagnant, un-employment and rural exodus increasing and socio-economic malaise and civil wars are reaching even the middle of the equatorial bushes/forests. (Great Lakes, Somalia, Sudan, Sierra Leone etc…) As it is explained in the chart (1), the intervention of imported food aids, distributed gratis, leaded to a dumping of food & agricultural prices, narrowing markets, including changes of culinary habits, and thus to cyclic crisis of Agricultural prices and deterioration of farmer’s income, which in turn lead to a limited cultivated area per family and to a low/absent private national/international interest for investment opportunities/initiatives. I.e.: The vicious circle. The major elements / issues in need to be tackled in order to break the vicious circle are those of the Main Path of the Chart (2). According to my field experience, in some countries or sub-regions, the sole tackling of the communication services (Roads, telephone), is sometimes, enough to engage a development dynamic, to attract private investments, and thus to increase the cultivated area per family, by facilitating surplus transport and their marketing in the neighboring countries/ regions. Therefore, It is primordial, in the future, that the UN/UNDP concentrate their efforts on those factors, through the strengthening of UNCDF and the cooperation with the International or Regional Development Banks. I hope that my “exposé” was clear and that my modest experience and point of views will be useful for the exercise of the UNDP – transition team, and for the reorientation of the UN/UNDP interventions; despite the huge pressures of the big players and donors interests, who are searching wider markets for their surplus of Agricultural products. The clear/apparent proof of the existence of these pressures; is that the Agricultural surplus file has been always the most difficult one, during the intra/inter-regional conferences on trade / exchanges. As UN/UNDP, we should avoid to take back by the left hand, what we provide by the right hand, through technical assistance, consultancies, distribution of northern agricultural surplus (the hypocrite charity), and particularly by keeping people living on hand outs, creating laziness and dependency. Certainly we can’t feed the poor people with papers/reports. Thanks and best regards. M. N. El Ferjani Programme Manager / U.N.O.P.S. THE VICIOUS CIRCLE FROM UNDER-DEVELOPMENT TO CYCLIC FOOD GAPS, FAMINES AND SOCIO-POLITICAL DESTABILIZATION DIAGNOSIS / ANALYSIS N.B.: (1) EXAMPLE OF THE CYCLIC FAMINES IN THE SUB-SAHARIAN AFRICA AND THE EXTENDING FOOD GAP IN THE MIDDLE EAST (2) ACCORDING TO MY EXPERIENCE, IN MANY OCCASIONS THE FARMERS OF OTHER REGIONS OF THE SINISTRED COUNTRY/THE NEIGHBOURING COUNTRIES WERE SUFFERING FROM THE PRICES CRISIS AND THE UN-MARKETED CEREALS, PULSES, AND CATTLE/DAIRY PRODUCTS, AND IN THE SAME TIME THE W.F.P / HUMANITARIAN NGOs WERE IMPORTING FOODS WITH A TRANSPORT COST HIGHER THAN THE PRICES OF THE SAME OR THE SUBSTITUTION PRODUCTS IN THE NEIGHBOURING REGIONS (3) IT IS WELL KNOWN THAT SOPHISTICATED AND HEAVY ARMS WERE/ARE TRANSPORTED AND DELIVERED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE BUSHES, IN NO WHERE. IT IS UTOPIC TO BELIEVE FOR A MOMENT, THAT THE FIGHTING FORCES ARE ABLE TO PROCURE THEM, OR TO BE ABLE TO PAY THEIR VALUE IN CASH, OR EVEN TO HIRE THE APPROPRIATE MEAN OF TRANSPORT FOR THESE HEAVY MACHINES. * THE ABSENCE OF MECHANIZATION AND MOTORIZATION LIMITS THE POSSIBLE CULTIVATED AREA BY HUMAN UNIT AND BY THE SAME WAY ITS PRODUCTIVITY, THE LABOR ADDED VALUE AND THE AGRICULTURAL ACREAGE. THE RED ARROW MEANS STRONG CASUAL RELATIONSHIP OR INTERACTION. THE THIKNESS OF THE SHADOW INDICATES THE RELATIVE IMPORTANCE OF EACH CASUAL FACTOR.
Posted on: Sun, 24 Nov 2013 19:12:18 +0000
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