Improving Food Security in Arab Countries

This joint working paper lays out a
rationale and strategic framework for improving food
security and managing food-price shocks in the Arab
countries. The paper does not provide country specific
policy and project recommendations. Such recommendations
will follow from the country by country application of the
framework, taking into account each country's political
and cultural preferences, resource endowments, and risk
tolerance. In 2007 and the first half of 2008, a sharp rise
in agricultural commodity and food prices triggered grave
concerns about food security, malnutrition and increased
poverty throughout the world. While the threat of a
prolonged food-price shock receded with falling energy and
commodity prices and a weakening global economy in the
second half of 2008, many factors underlying the volatility
in food prices appear here to stay and will require careful
management if the world is to avoid future food-price
shocks. This paper suggests three critical strategies that,
together, can serve as pillars to help offset future
vulnerability to price shocks: a) strengthen safety nets,
provide people with better access to family planning
services, and promote education; b) enhance the food supply
provided by domestic agriculture and improve rural
livelihoods by addressing lagging productivity growth
through increased investment in research and development;
and c) reduce exposure to market volatility by improving
supply chain efficiency and by more effectively using
financial instruments to hedge risk.