Japan's Official Development Assistance White Paper 2007
Next PageMain Text > Part II ODA DISBURSEMENTS IN FISCAL YEAR 2005 > Chapter 2 Details about Japan's ODA > Section 2. Measures for Each of the Priority Issues > 3. Addressing Global Issues > (4) Food
(4) Food
<Record for FY2006>
In FY2006, Japan's record for food aid amounted to approximately ¥12.1 billion (to 17 countries), approximately ¥4.8 billion in Grant Assistance for Underprivileged Farmers (to 16 countries) and approximately ¥4.6 billion in Grant Aid for Fisheries (to six countries).
<Current Status>
Approximately 850 million people in the world are suffering from hunger,52 and approximately 300 million of them are children. Every five seconds a child dies of causes related to hunger. The Rome Declaration adopted at the World Food Summit and the MDGs set a target of reducing by half the proportion of people who suffer from hunger by 2015. Meanwhile, the need for food aid has been growing due to conflicts, natural disasters, economic crises, and other problems.
Of the children in the world suffering from malnutrition, approximately 170 million cannot get meals at school and about 130 million are not going to school at all. School feeding fills their stomachs and improves the nutritional condition of children, allowing them to fully concentrate on their studies, thus improving their understanding of lessons and their attendance rate. By supplying children at school with take-home rations, such programs can also assist their families and promote their understanding of the value of education. In particular, the provision of school meals and the distribution of rations to girls lead to an improvement in female school attendance rate.
<Japan's Efforts>
Japan has provided food aid to developing countries faced with food shortages and has supported efforts to improve the food productivity of the developing countries as a mid- to long-term effort. Food aid is implemented from a humanitarian viewpoint to help those who suffer from hunger. In FY2006, Japan disbursed a total of ¥12,075 million in Food Aid (KR) to countries faced with food shortages, such as those in Africa. Of this amount, ¥4.955 billion was provided in the form of bilateral assistance to Mali, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Angola, Nepal, Haiti, and other countries, and ¥7,120 million was provided to Sudan, Somalia, Kenya, Uganda, Afghanistan, Timor-Leste, the Philippines (Mindanao), and Palestine, as well as Palestine refugees in occupied Palestinian Territory, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan, through the WFP and the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA). Japan has been making an active contribution to the WFP in particular, by extending US$72.30 million in 2006, including Food Aid through WFP, making Japan the seventh biggest donor.
General food distribution is essential for people whose survival is at stake in an emergency situation. At the same time, food assistance through education and vocational training projects is important for assisting self-sustainability efforts of beneficiaries. The school feeding project improves the nutritional status of school children and helps the children concentrate on their study, resulting in improvement of their school attendance and understanding. In addition, distributing take-home food to children who attend school helps the living condition of their families and promoting their families' understanding of the benefits of education. In particular, school feeding and food distribution to girls contribute to the increase of girls' attendance rates. Japan supports WFP's school feeding projects for improving access to education. For example in Afghanistan, in addition to school feeding aimed at promoting primary education, Japan supports WFP's project to distribute a take-home ration of oil to girls, whose attendance rate tends to be lower than that of boys. Furthermore, the WFP utilizes Japan's contribution to provide health education in tandem with food distribution, as well as to build infrastructure that combines job training, in which food is distributed for the price of labor.
Afghani girls learning through the WFP's school lunch program (Photo: WFP/Alejandro Chicheri)
Efforts Towards Food Security
Japan has provided food aid consistently since FY1968, as short-term efforts toward ensuring food security. In addition, as a mid- to long-term effort, since FY1977 Japan has implemented Grant Aid for Underprivileged Farmers (2KR),53 out of the belief that it is important to support self-help efforts in developing countries toward the expansion of food production. Furthermore, in order to increase agricultural output, it is also important to improve irrigation facilities and food production technology through technical cooperation and other assistance. For that reason, Japan provides various forms of assistance such as loan aid, grant assistance, and technical cooperation. Recent efforts by Japan include assistance to the ASEAN Food Security Information System (AFSIS), which is intended to develop human resources and maintain information infrastructures related to food and agricultural statistics that are indispensable for ensuring food security. Also, pilot projects related to emergency rice reserves are being conducted, aimed at strengthening food security and mitigating poverty in the East Asian region.
Japan has provided food aid consistently since FY1968, as short-term efforts toward ensuring food security. In addition, as a mid- to long-term effort, since FY1977 Japan has implemented Grant Aid for Underprivileged Farmers (2KR),53 out of the belief that it is important to support self-help efforts in developing countries toward the expansion of food production. Furthermore, in order to increase agricultural output, it is also important to improve irrigation facilities and food production technology through technical cooperation and other assistance. For that reason, Japan provides various forms of assistance such as loan aid, grant assistance, and technical cooperation. Recent efforts by Japan include assistance to the ASEAN Food Security Information System (AFSIS), which is intended to develop human resources and maintain information infrastructures related to food and agricultural statistics that are indispensable for ensuring food security. Also, pilot projects related to emergency rice reserves are being conducted, aimed at strengthening food security and mitigating poverty in the East Asian region.