G8 Pledge $20 Billion to Feed the Hungry

Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime. Last week, the Group of Eight seems to have adopted this proverb as its modus operandi for fighting the world’s hunger epidemic.

Announced at the end of this year’s G8 summit in the Italian village of  L’Aquila, Canada, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Russia, Japan, and the United States approved the document to reduce world hunger by spending a combined $20 billion in supplies for small farmers over the next three years. The promised seeds, fertilizers, tools, and other aid is targeted at poor nations, so they may feed themselves now and in future straits.

Many leaders have finally expressed concern over the UN’s estimate that a sixth of the world’s population is starving. And since this may be one of the most important, yet overlooked, dilemmas in the world today, the G8 included emerging economies and African countries and institutions in the discussions. Last year, rising food prices and increasingly difficult access to food caused many riots in Haiti, Egypt, Burkina Faso, and other parts of sub-Saharan Africa.

While the U.S., France, and the European Union have pledged a total of $10 billion, it is unclear where the remaining amount will be obtained, as no other nations have made commitments. President Barack Obama, who still has familial ties to hunger-stricken villages in Kenya, has declared this initiative as a way for people to become self-sufficient, when the usual reactive method of aid will hopefully no longer be needed.

Farmers will supposedly not only benefit from the farm materials and aid, but also from a proposed infrastructure plan for roads between markets and fields, well drilling, and pipelines construction, allowing for easier access to clean water and trade.

However, emergency aid will still be included in any attempt to thwart hunger, which is comprised of drought, flood, and conflict relief.

What’s left to be seen is whether or not the G8 will take action on their promises, especially in these economically-burdensome times, as many countries have already fallen behind in their aid pledges from four years ago.