Italian Contributions to Food Security
Summary
Italy has increased food and emergency aid from 60.33 to 130.22 million euro in 2008 (98.22 of which has already been approved and awaits ratification in parliament). In addition to these funds, the DGCS subsidises agricultural and scientific research programmes totalling 56 million euro. At the FAO Summit of 3-4 June last Minister Frattini announced an additional 30 million, 20 of which to go to agricultural development programmes and 10 toWFP. A total of 216 million euro has been allotted and already partly distributed in 2008.
Added to these are the contributions by the Ministry of Economic and Financial Affairs (MEF) to multilateral organisations and funds (e.g. regional development banks) and their respective agricultural programmes. By way of example, major rural programmes funded through our contributions to the European Development Fund (EDF), which is administered by the European Commission for the programmes of the ACP States. Italy is to contribute 2.9 billion euro over six years to the 10th EDF (out of a total of 22.7 billion euro). The EC has announced that 1.5 billion euro of that will go to funding agricultural programmes. Therefore, on the basis of the Italian quota (13%) Italy will be contributing approximately 195 million euro to European agricultural development programmes.
Italy’s Commitment to World Food Security
For 2008 the Italian Development Cooperation has planned food security interventions in developing countries for a total of 186,220,000 euro, of which 154,220,000 has already been made available and 32,000,000 is subject to parliamentary ratification. These allotments, increased by 50% as compared with 2007, could be viewed as an extraordinary Italian contribution to the current world food crisis. Added to them are those that Italy funds through international financial institutions, for which the only data available are not specific, but which are traceable to the proportion of the quota underwritten by our country.
Italian initiatives in support of the food security of developing nations come in the form of the supply of food aid (in kind or funding) and agricultural development interventions. These latter are implemented directly by the Italian Cooperation in the framework of bilateral programmes or indirectly by international agencies (such as those of the UN in Rome, the World Bank, regional development banks and EU programmes). Agricultural development programmes include funding for agricultural research, infrastructures, programmes that facilitate financial market development (in order to help farmers gain access to credit) and programmes for strengthening the international capabilities of developing nations and farmer associations.
a)Humanitarian aid (mainly food aid): A total of 130.22 million euro was allotted in 2008 as humanitarian aid, principally in the form of food aid distributed through the multilateral agencies of the UN competent in food security (e.g. WFP) and through the AGEA. Of these funds 98.22 million euro are already available and in the distribution phase, and the remaining 32 million will be once parliamentary ratification at the London Convention makes them available to the AGEA
Table 1. Italian humanitarian aid (millionsof euro)
Channel / 2007 / 2008Multilateral – Emergencies / 18.83 / 31.67
Multilateral – Ordinary / 28.5 / 37.05
Bilateral – Emergencies / 10.5 / 29.5
25*
Multi/bilateral / 2.5 / 7*
Total distributed / 60.33 / 98.22
* to be ratified / 32
Total distributed + to ratify / 60.33 / 130.22
Source: MFA/DGCS.
b)The Italian Cooperation has donated a total 56 million euro in the agricultural sector, covering the financing of 1) projects indirectly associated with agriculture such as infrastructure, local institution building, farmer assistance, capacity building (21 million euro); 2) NGO projects (31 million euro); and agricultural research (particularly in support of World Bank/CGIAR research institutions for a total value of 4 million euro).
c)Italian contributions through multilateral programmes: Italy is one of the main donorsto UN food agencies such asFAO and IFAD. Between 1994 and 2006 Italy contributed nearly 330 million dollars to more than 200 projects, over half of which were concentrated in Africa and the Mediterranean/Middle East region. Added to this is a voluntary contribution of 10 million euro in 2007 to promote agricultural production and open upmarket outlets in 5 African countries (Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Mali, SenegalandSierra Leone). Italy contributed 51 million dollars to the seventh replenishment of IFAD—a bank that provides low-cost credit to anti-poverty programmes in rural areas—for the 2007-2009 period.
Italy also finances major rural programmes through contributions to the European Development Fund (EDF), which funds EU development programmes in the countries of the ACP (Africa, Pacific, Caribbean) region. The 10th EDF will have an Italian contribution of 2.9 billion euro over 6 years (out of a total of 22.7 billion euro), placing it in fourth place among contributors. The European Commission has announced that this fund will earmark at least 1.5 billion euro to agricultural development programmes (twice that of the previous EDF), therefore, on the basis of its participation in the fund (13%) Italy will therefore contribute approximately 195 million euro to European agricultural development programmes.
Italy also funds the agricultural development programmes of the World Bank and multilateral development banks. The table below lists the loans distributedin the agricultural sector in 2007by the IFI, of whichItalyis a participant.
Table 2. Agricultural sector loans distributed by IFI (millions of dollars or euro)
Institution / Total loans agriculture sector 2007African Development Bank and African Development Fund / $178.76 million
Asian Development Bank / $168 million
European Bank for Reconstruction and Development / €517 million
Inter-American Development Bank / $75 million
World Bank / $1.717 million
International Fund for Agricultural Development / $496 million
Source: MEF, from IFI annual report.
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