[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 151 (Wednesday, October 21, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S12960-S12961]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       AFRICA: SEEDS OF HOPE ACT

  Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I would like now to turn the Senate's 
attention to a very important foreign policy, as well as humanitarian, 
measure, a measure that has also been passed by the Congress. I am 
referring to the Africa: Seeds of Hope Act.
  Back in July, Senator Sarbanes and I introduced legislation on the 
Senate floor to promote small-scale agricultural and rural development 
in Africa, a bill cosponsored in the House of Representatives by our 
colleagues, Doug Bereuter and Lee Hamilton, a bipartisan effort, a bill 
that will save lives, a bill that will help people help themselves.
  The Africa: Seeds of Hope Act represents a commitment to seek ways to 
help farmers in sub-Saharan Africa through sustainable agriculture, 
research, rural finance and extension projects. The bill will also 
recognize important benefits such overseas agricultural advances could 
hold for America's farmers. The Senate and House have both passed the 
bill. It is now on its way to the President.
  We need to sow seeds of hope in Africa. There are a vast number of 
people in Africa who go each day without the necessary nourishment that 
we in our country take for granted. In many parts of Africa, women and 
children struggle daily to find the food that will barely sustain them 
for another day.
  The problem in Africa has worsened over the last 30 years, and this 
is in spite of the fact that in many parts of the world the situation 
is getting better, and in Africa it is getting worse. The number of 
Africans who are unable to produce the food and provisions they need to 
lead healthy, productive lives is tragically rising. According to the 
Food and Agriculture Organization, around 215 million people are 
undernourished in sub-Saharan Africa, and

[[Page S12961]]

this number is expected to increase--increase dramatically--into the 
next century.
  Food is the basic necessity of life. It is an unfortunate reality 
that many of the African people lead lives of needless suffering 
because they don't have the skills and tools necessary to help 
themselves. As a result, many African countries are dependent on the 
outside world for humanitarian assistance and basic nutrition. These 
countries import a large percentage of the food they consume. Africa's 
food imports are projected to rise from less than 8 million metric tons 
in 1990, to more than 25 million metric tons by the year 2020. Mr. 
President, this is a very, very dangerous trend, and it must be 
changed, it must be reversed.
  The bill we just passed is based on the insight that the most 
effective way to improve conditions for Africa's poor is to increase 
the productivity of their agricultural sector. Whenever I travel to 
developing countries, I always like to spend time looking at that 
country's agricultural sector. I have seen firsthand in many countries 
that their rural areas can succeed through agricultural development and 
through the right kind of assistance, the assistance that uses the 
expertise that we have in this country at our universities, the 
expertise that we have among our farmers, to share that knowledge and 
that know-how.
  About 70 percent of Africa's poor live in rural areas. That is where 
the major problem is, and that is where this bill can make a 
difference, because not only do we want to see and help these 
individuals in rural areas feed themselves, we also understand that if 
they cannot feed themselves, what they do is move to the cities. When 
they move to the cities, many times the conditions are even worse than 
the conditions they left in the rural areas. It is a trend we see 
worldwide, and it is a trend that is very, very dangerous. It breeds 
instability, and it breeds other problems.
  Rural and agricultural markets play a critical role in the majority 
of the African workforce. It has been reported that 70 percent of 
African employment is in the agricultural market. If we are serious 
about opening up new trade relations with the continent--and we should 
be--then we need to be aggressive in helping to strengthen the 
foundation for their survival.
  Let me outline a few highlights of this bill.
  This legislation first encourages agencies and organizations to make 
rural development issues a priority by teaching effective farming 
methods to small-scale African farmers and entrepreneurs. This is 
people to people, farmer to farmer and not dealing with many of these 
governments.
  It provides African small farmers and entrepreneurs with improved 
access to credit and other resources necessary to stimulate production 
in microenterprise.
  It mobilizes new resources for investment in African agriculture and 
rural development through the U.S. Overseas Private Investment 
Corporation.
  It facilitates the coordination of national and international 
agricultural research and extension efforts aimed at developing the 
skills of African researchers, African extension agents, farmers and 
agribusiness people. In fact, the bill would allow American 
universities to play a pivotal role in this effort.
  Finally, this bill requires the U.S. Agency for International 
Development, when providing nonemergency assistance through the Public 
Law 480 title II programs, to include assistance programs for people 
who are otherwise unable to meet their basic food needs, including 
feeding programs for the disabled, for the orphaned, for the elderly, 
for the sick and for the dying.
  African farmers and the African people are in dire need of 
agricultural development. This bill can help them gain the knowledge 
they need for this important development. At the same time, the 
legislation will help our own agricultural producers by opening new 
export markets for American farmers, especially those who deal with 
value-added goods.
  Mr. President, as the economies in sub-Saharan Africa develop, their 
citizens' incomes will increase, thus raising their standard of living. 
In turn, they will be in a better position to purchase a new variety of 
goods, including American agricultural commodities and equipment. This 
is where our export markets can flourish. As a citizen of Ohio, I am 
excited at the export prospects for the hard-working farmers of my own 
State.
  Another significant point to consider is that food stability is a 
critical factor in preventing civil strife within nations. Our 
investment in international agriculture and rural development will help 
reduce demands for U.S. disaster and famine relief.
  International agricultural development assistance has depleted over 
time. In fact, over the past decade alone, money for this program has 
dropped by 70 percent. We should refocus our efforts in this important 
program, and this bill will do that.
  Under this bill, USAID will be called upon to use its resources for 
programs and improved food security and agricultural productivity for 
African farmers.
  This legislation has the ability to make a real difference in the 
lives of real people. As a compassionate Nation, we should want to aid 
those less fortunate to better help themselves. The bill will help 
these individuals make important progress in meeting human needs. In 
passing this bill, the U.S. Congress has done some very important work, 
and I congratulate my colleagues for the bill as we send it on its way 
to the President.

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