Policy Analysis

On June 8th, just days before the 2013 G8 Summit, UK Prime Minister David Cameron will convene world leaders in London for a high-level “golden moment” focused on the issue of undernutrition. Particular attention will be paid to meeting the nutritional needs of mothers and children during the critical “1,000 day” period from pregnancy to two years of age, which has lifelong consequences for growth, health and intellectual capacity.

At ONE, our focus on agriculture in Africa is its poverty reducing potential. We believe that engagement with large agribusinesses within the context of global development must include concrete benefits for smallholder farmers and rural communities. These benefits could include increased (and more consistent) incomes, better health and nutrition, and economic empowerment of women.

In this paper, we confront head on the concerns about the New Alliance and ask: are investments in the New Alliance designed to deliver these benefits to farmers? Do New Alliance investments treat smallholder farmers as simply buyers of multinational companies’ products, or as entrepreneurs and sellers of their own agricultural products? How are women farmers being included? And finally, what does the New Alliance plan to do about improving interrelated issues like nutrition and postharvest storage that affect the welfare and livelihoods of farmers and their families?

On April 5, 2013, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) deadline will be just 1,000 days away. Where do we stand on these ambitious goals? Have we collectively done enough to convert them into reality? And what needs to happen during the last 1,000 days to ensure that the world not only sprints to the finish line – but blows right through it?

Teeing up for this critical year, this report holds governments accountable to their past commitments on agriculture and food security and looks ahead to future opportunities for growth. Read the executive summary here.