Securing the Future of Humanity

7/31/2019 Securing the Future of Humanity

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1Prepared by: Hanizah Hamzah

Date Prepared: 16 March 2012

SECURING THE FUTURE OF HUMANITY

This year, three major international events World Water Forum, World

Water Day and World Water Week will carry the theme of Water and

Food Security to highlight the importance of water and its relationships

with sufficient food production.

As mankind achieve breakthroughs and advancements in many fields,

many other complications crop up including issues relating to our basic

needs for survival. One such concern is food security, which affect the

majority of the global population.

Although food security is more strongly felt in the third world nations,with the increased ease of mobility and acceptance of globalisation, it is

also becoming an important issue in developed countries.

The challenges now is how to ensure the food security at all times in

term of physical, social and economic access to sufficient food, i.e. to

ensure that all people at all times have access to sufficient, safe,

nutritious food to maintain a healthy and active life. As water and food

are inter-related, the challenges also involved in sustaining water services

and ensuring reliable supplies, in both rural and urban contexts,

including unique threats posed by climate change.


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The concern pertaining to food security and food adequacy is not

something new. In 1798, Thomas Robert Malthus, theorised that

population increases would outpace increases in terms of sustenance as

population increases in a geometrical ratio whereas food supply

increases in an arithmetic ratio. Malthus predicted that the disharmony

would eventually lead to starvation as there will not be enough food for

everyone.

Although Malthus was later discredited by some intellectuals who took

into consideration other factors such as technological advancements that

influence food production and population growth, the theory

highlighted the importance of food availability and food security to the

survival of mankind.

Apart from rapid population growths, the concerns on food insecurity

include:

shortfall in domestic production climate change and environmental degradation water deficits changing food habits, and urban growth


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The United Nations World Water Development Report, warned that the

worlds farmers will need 19 per cent more water by 2050 to meet

increasing demands for food and that concerns about food insecurity

are growing across the globe and more water will be needed.

Sustainability and reliability of urban and rural water services are equally

important to determine the extent to which improved drinking water

sources provide sustainable access to safe water. It is estimated that in

2008, there were still 884 million people that did not used improved

drinking water sources. At the current rate of progress, 672 million

people will not use improved drinking water sources in 2015. It is likely

that many hundreds of millions more will still lack sustainable access to

safe drinking water.

In addition to rapid population growth, the process of rapid urbanization

presents challenges to increasing access to safe water, in which, climate

change is also likely to increased water stress, such as increasing demand

from agriculture and industry.

Call For Collective Action

Without a doubt, food insecurity has become one of the major problems

plaguing humanity the world over. The complex dynamics of food

security accentuate the need to consider a range of strategies and


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governance approaches to address it at both the national and

international level.

All the relevant parties governmental, international and non-

governmental organisations (NGO) must forge alliances and develop

collaborative arrangements to address the issue before it threatens the

survival of mankind.

Substantial efforts have also been made to raise awareness on food

security challenges and issues among members of the public. For

example, in May 2011, the World Food Programme (WFP) collaborated

with the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) to launch the global

Food Security Cluster which acts as the United Nations global

mechanism in coordinating food security responses in emergencies.

On Local Shores

In Malaysia the issue of food security and the peoples ability to access

or acquire food is not as crucial as in other parts of the world, in

particular African countries. Nevertheless, the Malaysian government has

taken proactive steps to avoid the occurrence of food insecurity or

similar complications.


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At the height of the global food crisis in 2008, the Malaysian government

introduced the National Food Security Policy, which laid out the long-

term strategic directions for agricultural and forestry development in the

country.

This policy set in place the facilitative and supportive measures as well as

a conducive environment to promote growth in the agricultural sector,

which in turn played a strategic role in national development and

enhancement of global competitiveness.

The policy saw the implementation of market interventions in the form

of input and output subsidies, paddy price support, guaranteed

minimum price for agricultural commodities, production programmes

and other production-based incentives.

In January 2012, Datuk Sri Najib Razak launched the National Agro-food

Policy (NAP) 2011-2020, which is the first national policy to focus

especially on Malaysias agro-food industry.

Among others, the main objectives of this latest policy are to ensure that

the national food stocks were in sufficient supply and safe for

consumption, enhance the competitiveness and sustainability of the

agro-food industry and boosting the income levels of agriculture

entrepreneurs. In this regards,


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specific strategies have been planned to spur developments in the paddy

and rice industry, vegetables and fruits, livestock, fisheries, agro-tourism

and agro-based industry.

The policy also encourages the private investors to make reverse

investments in the production of main food commodities whereby when

the needs arise, products grown in other countries will be brought back

to Malaysia for local consumption.

Another initiative that should be noted is the government plans to turn

Federal Land Development Authority (FELDA) settlements throughout

Malaysia into a National Food Warehouse within a period of 10 years

beginning in 2010. In this case, the settler communities are encouraged

to cultivate edible gardens by planting vegetables and fruits around their

houses and idle lands that are available in their settlements; or raise

livestock or tilapia fish.

Apart from increasing Malaysias food self-sufficiency thus reducing the

nations reliance on imports, this project would also help the settlers to

generate additional incomes and enable greater utilisation of the

nations land resources.


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On the international front, Malaysia is involved in regional food security

pacts including the ASEAN Food Security Information System and the

ASEAN Plus Three Emergency Rice Reserve.

Even with all the detailed programmes, Malaysia have yet to thoroughly

address some food insecurity issues, in which, The nation is still mainly

relied on imported food. As highlighted in the latest Malaysia Economic

Monitor (Smart Cities) report, Malaysia spent a staggering RM92 million

on food imports every day compared to RM82 million a day in 2010.

Even though several factors are responsible for the increasing reliance on

imported food, such as lifestyle changes, better standards of living and

higher number of expatriates, the fact is that Malaysia needs to intensify

its efforts and programmes to tackle food security.

Besides the formulation of policies and strategies at all levels, in both

national and global programmes, the least everyone can do is

considerable reduction of food waste and loss in the supply chain,

behavioural changes, especially in diets and consumptions patterns can

also influence water demand in agriculture.

In essence, food security is everyones concern because the future of

humanity depends on it. Every individual, government and corporate


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citizens should do everything in their capabilities to ensure that our

children or any children for that matter, do not have to live in hunger.

-END-

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Securing the Future of Humanity