Famine Prevention

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Famine Prevention

Famine is a crisis where starvation from too little food results in

the sharp increase of distress and death one place. Developing

countries whose food production is dependent on rain fed agriculture

suffer greatly. Climate related problems such as low rainfall, drought

as well as insects and vermin do have a devastating affect on crops

and livelihood but there are many other factors at work. To enable the

prevention of famines, the causes must be addressed; whether famines

will be eradicated from the modern world will take the determination

of all people those directly affected and those who are not. Amartya

Sen takes the stand that famines are not the result of a country's

inability to grow food but from poverty, meaning famine is a product

of poverty. For Sen `People are deprived of the freedom to satisfy

their hunger, to obtain health care, to have a decent life. In a word,

they are robbed of their right to live as human beings`. The name

Ethiopia has become synonymous with misery having suffered terrible

famines due to governmental policies, climate conditions, pressures

from international debt and war, issues that contribute to support

Sens approach.

Prior to the war with Eritrea the Ethiopian government had made great

strides to improving the country with very limited recourses. In the

fight against famine they had stored thousands of tones of grain to

enable an immediate reaction to food shortages, however, stocks were

depleted due to them being redirected to the army. Projects to build

dams along some of its main rivers which would not only have helped in

times of low rains but with irrigation and drou...

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... world debt allegations of corruption, war and misuse of aid distorts

opinions. Early warning systems are essential and contribute to a

strategic plan to eradicate hunger. Peasants on the household level

who observe climate changes and assess information given by rural

travelers are also using `traditional` early warning systems. With the

effects of globalization developing countries have difficulty

competing on the open markets, exports to generate cash to fund and

improve industry and agricultural technology may prove slow. However,

food storage on a national level can go some way to alleviating hunger

in poor productive areas in order to avoid the onset of famine.

www.brad.ac.uk/research/ijas/ijas.htm

www.unitedethopia.org/commentaries/Sep_dec_2003/TheRootCauseofFamine

www.ogaden.com/Drough_war_April_15_03.htm

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