Stanlake Samkange
15 October 2008
opinion
Kampala — Shirtless Karimojong men pant and pace at the World Food Programme (WFP) warehouses. They are on a frantic mission to load a truck with maize, split peas, corn, soya blend and cooking oil donations from western countries.
It does not take long to fill the truck with an estimated 30 metric tons of cargo. Soon, as it pulls away from the sun-beaten warehouse, the men pull up the massive back shutter and knock in the metal bolts. They then quickly gather and tighten the tarpaulin over the load with ropes to ensure the food is safely tucked in.
In the meantime, WFP truck drivers and a few programmers mill about in the United Nations compound. One man talks on a radio, anxiously checking if the Government soldiers are ready to assemble into a convoy to escort the food.
This is nothing new in Karamoja. Nearly every morning in Moroto, Kotido, Nabilatuk and Ka'abong towns, local casual labourers load food destined for far-off places including drought-hit villages; hospitals and health centres; primary, secondary, even teacher-training schools; and communities involved in building assets.
Today three trucks contain relief food destined for Lokopo sub-county, 55km north-west of Moroto town. For the third year in a row, like countless other villages, Lokopo is experiencing a failed harvest. WFP needs to move in fast to save lives, especially of young children.
And there is another thing that WFP needs to do: do things differently in the world, Uganda and, in particular, Karamoja, a region dogged by insecurity, severe environmental depletion, a fast-growing population, poor infrastructure, animal and crop diseases, drought and dry spells.
WFP has been operating in the Karamoja region since 1963, the year the agency was founded. Back then, Karamoja experienced drought every 10 years. In the 1980s, the drought cycles shortened to five years. In 2000, it became every two years. Recently, there has been trouble every year.
This means that the environment in which WFP operates in Karamoja and beyond, is rapidly changing. Climate change and high food and fuel prices, and other factors, have new implications for the challenge of fighting hunger.
This year, WFP adopted a new global strategy, a fundamental shift from a food aid organisation to a food assistance organisation.
Previously, WFP mostly focused on how it could effectively use and deliver food to fight global hunger. Now, the focus is hunger and which tools to apply for best addressing it in the new environment.
Food, cash and vouchers are in the toolbox and one or the other will be used where they are the best response or they may both be used in combination if needed.
The agency's goal is to support government and global efforts to ensure long-term solutions to hunger.
In line with the new global strategy, WFP recently launched Purchase for Progress, or P4P, an initiative that will open up market opportunities for small-holder farmers and medium-scale traders in 20 countries.
In Uganda, P4P will be positioned to support the Poverty Eradication Action Plan and the new National Development Plan, with WFP aiming at buying food worth more than $100m (shs167b) annually.
Already the single largest buyer of food in Uganda, WFP will diversify what it purchases to include not only maize, beans, oil and blended foods, but millet, sorghum, cassava flour and fish as well.
In addition to competitive bidding, WFP will make some direct purchases from small-holder farmers through the warehouse receipt system and market collection points.
WFP will support community milling, enriching food with micronutrients; quality bagging plus drying, salting and smoking fish in a bid to add value to food varieties.
P4P has four objectives that will build on strong partnerships with agriculture-oriented agencies. These are to help strengthen food supply, delivery and market infrastructures; help increase production through local purchase; enhance post-harvest handling, processing, storage and marketing of quality foods; and help expand opportunities and improve incomes and the quality of life of smallholder farmers through local purchase.
In Karamoja, P4P will be a novelty. Probably the first time ever, WFP will be able to provide to the Karimojong people food bought from their green areas such as Iriiri in Moroto district, Namalu in Nakapiripirit district and most of Abim district. Providing markets for their produce will empower Karimojong communities.
Meanwhile, with donor support, relief, recovery and safety net programmes will continue, coupled with new disaster management programmes and innovative measures against chronic hunger, especially targeting children.
But back in Moroto town as the sun sets, empty WFP trucks rattle back to base.
The drivers hang-up their keys before heading home, sub-consciously already bracing themselves for another day's routine. Routine for now, but WFP is changing.
The writer is the Representative and Country Director of the United Nations World Food Programme in Uganda.
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