What the food crisis means for Latin America

While countries such as Brazil and Argentina may be known as the breadbaskets of South America, the Latin America and Caribbean, or LAC, region is far from immune to the effects of the food crisis and desperately needs donor assistance, according to the World Food Programme. “Every day I hear that LAC is not being prioritized by the donors, but we are already nearly at 10 million people who are food insecure in the region. More are joining the ranks of the hungry every day,” WFP’s LAC Regional Director Lola Castro told Devex. Castro said she is facing a $300 million budget deficit this year, leaving her team struggling to help countries combat soaring food and fuel prices, which have triggered huge spikes in migration, gang violence, and falling school attendance, alongside increased hunger and malnutrition. “High food and energy prices are leading to a huge influx of migration — the whole continent seems to be on the move.” --— Lola Castro, LAC regional director, World Food Programme Devex spoke to Castro about what the food crisis means for development work in the region, as part of a Devex Pro series on how organizations are responding. This conversation has been edited for length and clarity. How is the food crisis affecting your work? I am fighting a steep battle on this. The world is saying LAC will solve the world’s problems on the global food crisis, but we are seeing the basic food basket prices increasing enormously in this region, with some countries at 25% food inflation. When people cannot access that food … we see people going to the streets to protest because they cannot survive on their actual income. There are also medium- and long-term issues. This region imports 75% of its fertilizers. … And shipping 1 [metric] ton has become seven times more expensive than in 2019. That is critical because while everyone thinks LAC will produce enough food in the future, [that won’t happen] without fertilizer. Smallholder farmers, who are usually women and are the base of food security in the region, will not be able to produce enough or access the markets. So, how is that affecting WFP’s programs? It is very simple: Before we bought a [metric] ton of food for $200 — now it costs $700 or $800. So if we were supposed to provide food to people with the governments in a social protection system, it is now costing us four times more. That means we have to either reduce the amount of people we support with governments, or we have to reduce what we give these people. But [at the same time] they need more … so the whole thing doesn’t add up. Secondly, we do a lot of cash transfers with governments. Before, with $40, you could buy a food basket but now you need [more], so there is a shortfall. … The situation is critical: We are going to see more malnourished children and women, which will then reduce the capacity of countries to really continue their development. That is a problem not only for today, but also for the future. Where are you seeing the biggest impact? The islands in the Caribbean are extremely affected because they have to ship most things and so are paying the cost of transport and very high-priced foods. In addition, many are highly indebted. Then we have countries that depend a lot on Russian support; Russia is a donor to WFP, and their food and support is coming much more slowly. We are also seeing violent groups and gangs that are using this crisis as an opportunity to exacerbate violence. For example, in Haiti, WFP has barges, helicopters, and planes to move the cargo to the most vulnerable populations, but we are having serious humanitarian access problems due to these gangs. We try to negotiate and open the humanitarian and development space, but it’s very problematic. “The solutions are there, but we need to reinforce our work ... with the people who have the knowledge, who we have neglected for years.” --— Have you seen any additional secondary impacts from this crisis? High food and energy prices are leading to a huge influx of migration — the whole continent seems to be on the move. Countries that were recipients of migrants for many years are now sending migrants out as well. … But you also have countries that have received migrants and then those migrants, due to the food insecurity and lack of services, are now on their second move, normally toward the United States. In addition, there are families not sending children back to school since COVID-19. We see a solution: A [free] school meal can solve the problem because if the parents know that their kids will be supported at school with a meal … it will attract them back by alleviating this burden from the household. How is WFP responding? We are trying to work with governments to identify the most vulnerable and target them with transfers — cash or in kind — to ensure that they don’t fall into hunger. Secondly, we are trying to incorporate much more information on where the hot spots are, so as to inform … everybody that these are the areas we need to focus on. We are also working much more on the root causes of migration — not to stop the people leaving, but to give them other options than these dangerous journeys. What needs to happen in the long term to prevent this from happening again? It’s about sorting out food systems to make them more sustainable. This region has high potential — countries have the ability to not only produce much more, but also more diverse [produce]. In Bolivia, for example, they have 640 local, indigenous cereals, and we are [mostly] consuming three cereals in the world: wheat, maize, and rice. What about bringing some of these [other] cereals to global markets? The solutions are there, but we need to reinforce our work for diversity, our work for long-term solutions, our work with the people who have the knowledge, who we have neglected for years. We also need to make sure the borders don’t close and that food continues flowing around the world to avoid these high food prices, and to support governments with the fiscal space to be able to provide additional safety nets in times of need.