Ambassador Richard S. Williamson wrote a guest column for the Des Moines Register recently exploring the humanitarian crisis in Darfur and how agricultural underdevelopment contributes to conflict.

We recently wrote about the World Food Prize awarded in Des Moines, Iowa and the Bourlag Symposium of which Ambassador Williamson was a part. The symposium as you know was named after the late Norman Bourlag, who made tremendous contributions towards addressing global food insecurity.

Excerpts from Ambassador Williamson’s piece below, full text here:

A World Bank report, “Economic Causes of Civil War and Their Implications for Policy,” points out that while grievances such as “inequality, political repression, and ethnic and religious divisions” contribute to social unrest and political conflict, they are not reliable in predicting civil war. It is economic characteristics that are “significant and powerful predicators of civil war.”

In many areas of conflict, economic deprivation, hunger, agricultural underdevelopment and desperation are critical factors that enable violence to begin and which sustain it. Following conflict, without agricultural development there can be no successful return and reintegration of those displaced. Post-conflict areas cannot become self-sustaining with no productive work available and there will be little productive work without agricultural development. As a result, peace accords often cannot be fully implemented and warfare will reignite.

In many conflict areas agricultural development is critical to sustainable peace. And in fragile states vulnerable to violence, agricultural development will create the required economic opportunity, help alleviate hunger, improve health and contribute to infrastructure development.