[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 55 (Tuesday, April 12, 2016)]
[House]
[Pages H1612-H1617]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
{time} 1715
GLOBAL FOOD SECURITY ACT OF 2016
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and
pass the bill (H.R. 1567) to authorize a comprehensive, strategic
approach for United States foreign assistance to developing countries
to reduce global poverty and hunger, achieve food security and improved
nutrition, promote inclusive, sustainable agricultural-led economic
growth, improve nutritional outcomes, especially for women and
children, build resilience among vulnerable populations, and for other
purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 1567
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Global Food Security Act of
2016''.
SEC. 2. STATEMENT OF POLICY OBJECTIVES; SENSE OF CONGRESS.
(a) Statement of Policy Objectives.--It is in the national
security interest of the United States to promote global food
security, resilience, and nutrition, consistent with national
food security investment plans, which is reinforced through
programs, activities, and initiatives that--
(1) accelerate inclusive, agricultural-led economic growth
that reduces global poverty, hunger, and malnutrition,
particularly among women and children;
(2) increase the productivity, incomes, and livelihoods of
small-scale producers, especially women, by working across
agricultural value chains, enhancing local capacity to manage
agricultural resources effectively, and expanding producer
access to local and international markets;
(3) build resilience to food shocks among vulnerable
populations and households while reducing reliance upon
emergency food assistance;
(4) create an enabling environment for agricultural growth
and investment, including through the promotion of secure and
transparent property rights;
(5) improve the nutritional status of women and children,
with a focus on reducing child stunting, including through
the promotion of highly nutritious foods, diet
diversification, and nutritional behaviors that improve
maternal and child health;
(6) align with and leverage broader United States
strategies and investments in trade, economic growth, science
and technology, agricultural research and extension, maternal
and child health, nutrition, and water, sanitation, and
hygiene;
(7) continue to strengthen partnerships between United
States-based universities, including land-grant colleges and
universities, and institutions in target countries and
communities that build agricultural capacity; and
(8) ensure the effective use of United States taxpayer
dollars to further these objectives.
(b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of the Congress
that the President, in providing assistance to implement the
Global Food Security Strategy, should--
(1) coordinate, through a whole-of-government approach, the
efforts of relevant Federal departments and agencies to
implement the Global Food Security Strategy;
(2) seek to fully utilize the unique capabilities of each
relevant Federal department and agency while collaborating
with and leveraging the contributions of other key
stakeholders; and
(3) utilize open and streamlined solicitations to allow for
the participation of a wide range of implementing partners
through the most appropriate procurement mechanisms, which
may include grants, contracts, cooperative agreements, and
other instruments as necessary and appropriate.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Agriculture.--The term ``agriculture'' means crops,
livestock, fisheries, and forestries.
(2) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(A) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate;
(B) the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry
of the Senate;
(C) the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate;
(D) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of
Representatives;
(E) the Committee on Agriculture of the House of
Representatives; and
(F) the Committee on Appropriations of the House of
Representatives.
(3) Feed the future innovation labs.--The term ``Feed the
Future Innovation Labs'' means research partnerships led by
United States universities that advance solutions to reduce
global hunger, poverty, and malnutrition.
(4) Food and nutrition security.--The term ``food and
nutrition security'' means access to, and availability,
utilization, and stability of, sufficient food to meet
caloric and nutritional needs for an active and healthy life.
(5) Global food security strategy.--The term ``Global Food
Security Strategy'' means the strategy developed and
implemented pursuant to section 4(a).
(6) Key stakeholders.--The term ``key stakeholders'' means
actors engaged in efforts to advance global food security
programs and objectives, including--
(A) relevant Federal departments and agencies;
(B) national and local governments in target countries;
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(C) other bilateral donors;
(D) international and regional organizations;
(E) international, regional, and local financial
institutions;
(F) international, regional, and local private voluntary,
nongovernmental, faith-based, and civil society
organizations;
(G) the private sector, including agribusinesses and
relevant commodities groups;
(H) agricultural producers, including farmer organizations,
cooperatives, small-scale producers, and women; and
(I) agricultural research and academic institutions,
including land-grant colleges and universities and extension
services.
(7) Land-grant colleges and universities.--The term ``land-
grant colleges and universities'' has the meaning given such
term in section 1404(13) of the National Agricultural
Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 (7
U.S.C. 3103(13)).
(8) Malnutrition.--The term ``malnutrition'' means poor
nutritional status caused by nutritional deficiency or
excess.
(9) Relevant federal departments and agencies.--The term
``relevant Federal departments and agencies'' means the
United States Agency for International Development, the
Department of Agriculture, the Department of Commerce, the
Department of State, the Department of the Treasury, the
Millennium Challenge Corporation, the Overseas Private
Investment Corporation, the Peace Corps, the Office of the
United States Trade Representative, the United States African
Development Foundation, the United States Geological Survey,
and any other department or agency specified by the President
for purposes of this section.
(10) Resilience.--The term ``resilience'' means the ability
of people, households, communities, countries, and systems to
mitigate, adapt to, and recover from shocks and stresses to
food security in a manner that reduces chronic vulnerability
and facilitates inclusive growth.
(11) Small-scale producer.--The term ``small-scale
producer'' means farmers, pastoralists, foresters, and
fishers that have a low-asset base and limited resources,
including land, capital, skills and labor, and, in the case
of farmers, typically farm on fewer than 5 hectares of land.
(12) Sustainable.--The term ``sustainable'' means the
ability of a target country, community, implementing partner,
or intended beneficiary to maintain, over time, the programs
authorized and outcomes achieved pursuant to this Act.
(13) Target country.--The term ``target country'' means a
developing country that is selected to participate in
agriculture and nutrition security programs under the Global
Food Security Strategy pursuant to the selection criteria
described in section 4(a)(2), including criteria such as the
potential for agriculture-led economic growth, government
commitment to agricultural investment and policy reform,
opportunities for partnerships and regional synergies, the
level of need, and resource availability.
SEC. 4. COMPREHENSIVE GLOBAL FOOD SECURITY STRATEGY.
(a) Strategy.--The President shall coordinate the
development and implementation of a United States whole-of-
government strategy to accomplish the policy objectives
described in section 2(a), which shall--
(1) set specific and measurable goals, benchmarks,
timetables, performance metrics, and monitoring and
evaluation plans that reflect international best practices
relating to transparency, accountability, food and nutrition
security, and agriculture-led economic growth, consistent
with the policy objectives described in section 2(a);
(2) establish clear and transparent selection criteria for
target countries and communities;
(3) support and be aligned with country-owned agriculture,
nutrition, and food security policy and investment plans
developed with input from key stakeholders, as appropriate;
(4) support inclusive agricultural value chain development,
with small-scale producers, especially women, gaining greater
access to the inputs, skills, resource management capacity,
networking, bargaining power, financing, and market linkages
needed to sustain their long-term economic prosperity;
(5) support improvement of the nutritional status of women
and children, particularly during the critical first 1,000-
day window until a child reaches 2 years of age and with a
focus on reducing child stunting, through nutrition-specific
and nutrition-sensitive programs, including related water,
sanitation, and hygiene programs;
(6) facilitate communication and collaboration, as
appropriate, among local stakeholders in support of a multi-
sectoral approach to food and nutrition security, to include
analysis of the multiple underlying causes of malnutrition,
including lack of access to safe drinking water, sanitation,
and hygiene;
(7) support the long-term success of programs by building
the capacity of local organizations and institutions in
target countries and communities;
(8) integrate resilience and nutrition strategies into food
security programs, such that chronically vulnerable
populations are better able to build safety nets, secure
livelihoods, access markets, and access opportunities for
longer-term economic growth;
(9) develop community and producer resilience to natural
disasters, emergencies, and natural occurrences that
adversely impact agricultural yield;
(10) harness science, technology, and innovation, including
the research and extension activities supported by relevant
Federal departments and agencies, including State partners,
and Feed the Future Innovation Labs;
(11) integrate agricultural development activities among
food insecure populations living in proximity to designated
national parks or wildlife areas into wildlife conservation
efforts, as necessary and appropriate;
(12) leverage resources and expertise through partnerships
with the private sector, farm organizations, cooperatives,
civil society, faith-based organizations, and agricultural
research and academic institutions;
(13) support collaboration, as appropriate, between United
States universities, including land-grant colleges and
universities, and public and private institutions in target
countries and communities to promote agricultural development
and innovation;
(14) seek to ensure that target countries and communities
respect and promote land tenure rights of local communities,
particularly those of women and small-scale producers; and
(15) include criteria and methodologies for graduating
target countries and communities from assistance provided to
implement the Global Food Security Strategy as such countries
and communities meet the progress benchmarks identified
pursuant to section 6(b)(4).
(b) Coordination.--The President shall coordinate, through
a whole-of-government approach, the efforts of relevant
Federal departments and agencies in the implementation of the
Global Food Security Strategy by--
(1) establishing monitoring and evaluation systems,
coherence, and coordination across relevant Federal
departments and agencies; and
(2) establishing platforms for regular consultation and
collaboration with key stakeholders and the appropriate
congressional committees.
(c) Strategy Submission.--
(1) In general.--Not later than October 1, 2016, the
President, in consultation with the head of each relevant
Federal department and agency, shall submit to the
appropriate congressional committees the Global Food Security
Strategy required under this section that provides a detailed
description of how the United States intends to advance the
objectives set forth in section 2(a) and the agency-specific
plans described in paragraph (2).
(2) Agency-specific plans.--The Global Food Security
Strategy shall include specific implementation plans from
each relevant Federal department and agency that describes--
(A) the anticipated contributions of the department or
agency, including technical, financial, and in-kind
contributions, to implement the Global Food Security
Strategy; and
(B) the efforts of the department or agency to ensure that
the activities and programs carried out pursuant to the
strategy are designed to achieve maximum impact and long-term
sustainability.
SEC. 5. ASSISTANCE TO IMPLEMENT THE GLOBAL FOOD SECURITY
STRATEGY.
(a) Food Shortages.--The President is authorized to carry
out activities pursuant to section 103, section 103A, title
XII of chapter 2 of part I, and chapter 4 of part II of the
Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151a, 2151a-1,
2220a et seq., and 2346 et seq.) to prevent or address food
shortages notwithstanding any other provision of law.
(b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized
to be appropriated to the Secretary of State and the
Administrator of the United States Agency for International
Development $1,000,600,000 for fiscal year 2017 to carry out
those portions of the Global Food Security Strategy that
relate to the Department of State and the United States
Agency for International Development, respectively.
(c) Monitoring and Evaluation.--The President shall seek to
ensure that assistance to implement the Global Food Security
Strategy is provided under established parameters for a
rigorous accountability system to monitor and evaluate
progress and impact of the strategy, including by reporting
to the appropriate congressional committees and the public on
an annual basis.
SEC. 6. REPORT.
(a) In General.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
the submission of the Global Food Security Strategy, the
President shall submit to the appropriate congressional
committees a report that describes the status of the
implementation of the Global Food Security Strategy.
(b) Content.--The report required under subsection (a)
shall--
(1) contain a summary of the Global Food Security Strategy
as an appendix;
(2) identify any substantial changes made in the Global
Food Security Strategy during the preceding calendar year;
(3) describe the progress made in implementing the Global
Food Security Strategy;
(4) identify the indicators used to establish benchmarks
and measure results over time, as well as the mechanisms for
reporting such results in an open and transparent manner;
(5) describe related strategies and benchmarks for
graduating target countries and
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communities from assistance provided under the Global Food
Security Strategy over time, including by building
resilience, reducing risk, and enhancing the sustainability
of outcomes from United States investments in agriculture and
nutrition security;
(6) contain a transparent, open, and detailed accounting of
expenditures by relevant Federal departments and agencies to
implement the Global Food Security Strategy, including, for
each Federal department and agency, the statutory source of
expenditures, amounts expended, implementing partners,
targeted beneficiaries, and activities supported;
(7) describe how the Global Food Security Strategy
leverages other United States food security and development
assistance programs on the continuum from emergency food aid
through sustainable, agriculture-led economic growth;
(8) describe the contributions of the Global Food Security
Strategy to, and assess the impact of, broader international
food and nutrition security assistance programs, including
progress in the promotion of land tenure rights, creating
economic opportunities for women and small-scale producers,
and stimulating agriculture-led economic growth in target
countries and communities;
(9) assess efforts to coordinate United States
international food security and nutrition programs,
activities, and initiatives with key stakeholders;
(10) identify any United States legal or regulatory
impediments that could obstruct the effective implementation
of the programming referred to in paragraphs (7) and (8);
(11) assess United States Government-facilitated private
investment in related sectors and the impact of private
sector investment in target countries and communities;
(12) contain a clear gender analysis of programming, to
inform project-level activities, that includes established
disaggregated gender indicators to better analyze outcomes
for food productivity, income growth, control of assets,
equity in access to inputs, jobs and markets, and nutrition;
and
(13) incorporate a plan for regularly reviewing and
updating strategies, partnerships, and programs and sharing
lessons learned with a wide range of stakeholders, including
key stakeholders, in an open, transparent manner.
(c) Public Availability of Information.--The information
referred to in subsection (b) shall be made available on the
public website of the United States Agency for International
Development in an open, machine readable format, in a timely
manner.
SEC. 7. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION REGARDING EFFECT OF GLOBAL FOOD
SECURITY STRATEGY ON FOOD AND NUTRITION
SECURITY AND EMERGENCY AND NONEMERGENCY FOOD
ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS.
(a) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in the Global Food
Security Strategy or this Act shall be construed to supersede
or otherwise affect the authority of the relevant Federal
departments and agencies to carry out the programs specified
in subsection (b) in the manner provided in, and subject to
the terms and conditions of, those programs.
(b) Covered Programs.--The programs referred to in
subsection (a) are the following:
(1) The Food for Peace Act (7 U.S.C. 1691 et seq.).
(2) The Food for Progress Act of 1985 (7 U.S.C. 1736o).
(3) Section 416(b) of the Agricultural Act of 1949 (7
U.S.C. 1431(b)).
(4) Section 3206 of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act
of 2008 (Local and Regional Food Aid Procurement Program; 7
U.S.C. 1726c).
(5) The Bill Emerson Humanitarian Trust Act (7 U.S.C.
1736f-1).
(6) Section 3107 of the Farm Security and Rural Investment
Act of 2002 (McGovern-Dole International Food for Education
and Child Nutrition Program; 7 U.S.C. 1736o-1).
(7) Any other food and nutrition security and emergency and
nonemergency food assistance programs administered by the
Department of Agriculture.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New
Jersey (Mr. Smith) and the gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New Jersey.
General Leave
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that
all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their
remarks and to include extraneous material on this measure.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from New Jersey?
There was no objection.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
Mr. Speaker, the Global Food Security Act, H.R. 1567, authorizes a
comprehensive, strategic approach for U.S. foreign assistance to
developing countries to reduce poverty and hunger, achieve food
security and improved nutrition, promote inclusive, sustainable,
agricultural-led economic growth, improve nutritional outcomes,
especially for women and children, and build resilience among
vulnerable populations.
At its core, H.R. 1567 establishes a comprehensive global food
security strategy that includes eight mutually reinforcing policy
objectives and 15 specific goals and actions designed to develop and
implement a whole-of-government strategy.
Essential elements of the strategy include: benchmarks, timetables,
performance metrics, and monitoring and evaluation plans; clear and
transparent selection criteria for target countries; support of
inclusive value-chain development with small-scale producers,
especially women; leverage of resources and expertise through
partnerships with the private sector, farm organizations, cooperatives,
civil society, faith-based organizations, and agricultural research and
academic institutions; harnessing science, technology, and innovation
from a myriad of sources, including the 24 Feed the Future innovation
labs; and support for improved nutrition for women and children,
particularly during the critical first thousand-day window until a
child reaches 2 years of age, and with a focus on reducing child
stunting through nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive programs,
including related water, sanitation, and hygiene programs.
Indeed, Mr. Speaker, there is perhaps no wiser and radically
transformative investment that we could make in the human person than
to concentrate on ensuring that sufficient nutrition and health
assistance is given during the first thousand days of life, a thousand
days that begins with conception, continues throughout pregnancy,
includes that milestone event called birth, and then finishes at
roughly the second birthday of the child.
Children who do not receive adequate nutrition in utero are far more
likely to experience immune system deficiencies, making opportunistic
infections more debilitating, even fatal, and a large number of
lifelong cognitive and physical deficiencies, such as stunting. UNICEF
estimates that one in four children worldwide is stunted due to lack of
adequate nutrition. By maximizing nutrition during the first thousand
days of life, we help ensure that the next 25,000 days or more in a
person's life are far more likely to be healthier and disease free.
One objective of H.R. 1567 is to graduate individuals and families
and communities and nations from food aid dependency to self-
sufficiency, leading to a likely reduction in emergency food assistance
over time. That is both humane and a responsible stewardship of
taxpayer funds.
By statutorily authorizing this program, which had its roots in the
Bush administration and was formalized by the Obama administration, we
are also statutorily enhancing congressional oversight by requiring the
administration to report to Congress. Thus, the bill requires rigorous
monitoring, evaluation, and congressional oversight of the global food
security strategy, and it mandates a comprehensive report to ensure
accountability and effectiveness.
The approach we have taken in the Global Food Security Act is
fiscally disciplined. There is no additional cost to the U.S. taxpayer.
This would authorize a straight-lining from 2015 and 2016. USAID will
be authorized, however, to do more by more effectively leveraging our
aid with that of other countries, the private sector, NGOs, and faith-
based organizations, whose great work on the ground in so many
different countries impacts so many lives.
As the prime sponsor of H.R. 1567, let me convey my very special
thanks to the gentlewoman from Minnesota (Ms. McCollum), the prime
Democratic cosponsor, for her leadership, for her friendship, and for
her support.
I am deeply grateful to the majority leader, Kevin McCarthy, and his
extraordinary floor director, Kelly Dixon, for their pivotal support in
the last Congress and this one for the Global Food Security Act.
I would note parenthetically, if it passes today, this will be the
second time in 2 years. The clock ran out on the bill in the Senate
during the last Congress.
I am grateful as well for the strong and abiding support of the
chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Ed Royce, and ranking
member, Eliot Engel. They have been tremendous.
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The Committee on Agriculture chairman, Mike Conaway, made several
important policy revisions and has been personally involved in the
drafting of this bill, so I want to thank the gentleman from Texas (Mr.
Conaway), my good friend and very distinguished colleague, for his work
on this bill and his work on Agriculture in general. I thank him for
that leadership. And, of course, a heartfelt thanks to all the other
original cosponsors: Mr. Fortenberry, Ms. Bass, Mr. Crenshaw, Ms.
DeLauro, Mr. Reichert, Mr. Cicilline, Mr. Smith of Washington, and Mr.
Paulsen.
Finally, a great big thanks to our professional staff members, who
worked hard to bring this bill to the floor: Joan Condon and Doug
Anderson at the Committee on Foreign Affairs; Scott Graves, Bart
Fischer, and Jackie Barber at the Committee on Agriculture; legislative
counsel Mark Synnes; Jenn Holcomb in Betty McCollum's office; Piero
Tozzi from my subcommittee; and my chief of staff, Mary Noonan. This is
truly a team effort. This will save lives and enhance everyone's life
around the world who benefits from the program.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this measure, and I
yield myself such time as I may consume.
First, Mr. Speaker, let me thank our chairman, Ed Royce, and his
staff for their hard work on the bill and for bringing it forward. I am
a big supporter of this bill, and I think this again shows our
committee bipartisanship at its best.
I also want to thank Congressman Chris Smith and Congresswoman Betty
McCollum for authorizing this legislation, the Global Food Security
Act, H.R. 1567.
Mr. Speaker, nearly 800 million people around the world go to bed
hungry on a day-to-day basis. Malnutrition is responsible for nearly
half of all deaths of children under 5 years old. This is just
unconscionable. We cannot allow it to continue. Plain and simple, we
need to do more to help people feed themselves.
Beyond that, we need to get to the root causes that perpetuate cycles
of poverty, hunger, and instability. This bill lays out clear
priorities for American foreign assistance programs that reduce global
poverty and hunger. We want to prioritize efforts that accelerate
agriculture-led economic growth, enhance food and nutrition security,
build resilience, create an environment for robust investment and
trade, and advance the range of economic, diplomatic, global health,
and national security interests that are tied to food security.
This bill also authorizes funding for State Department and USAID
initiatives, including the administration's signature effort of Feed
the Future. This program has already delivered real results in fighting
world hunger, poverty, and malnutrition. Since 2010, Feed the Future
has worked with smallholder farmers in 19 countries to increase incomes
and reduce hunger, poverty, and undernutrition.
Feed the Future has helped rural Cambodians start profitable fish
farming businesses, taught Guatemalan sharecroppers to grow more
profitable crops, and provided educational and national support to
Tanzanian mothers. There has been real progress in places like Ghana,
which has reduced childhood stunting by 33 percent in just 6 years
between 2008 and 2014. Incomes in Honduras increased 55 percent between
2012 and 2014.
This isn't a pie-in-the-sky notion, Mr. Speaker. This is an
initiative that we are a part of that is getting real results for real
people. So let's continue to support it.
This bill is a real step toward our vision of a world without global
hunger and malnutrition, and it supports critical U.S. foreign policy
and national security interests. I urge all of my colleagues to support
this bill.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may
consume to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Conaway), the chairman of the
Committee on Agriculture, who worked very closely with our committee
and with me and with my staff on the bill and helped to ensure that it
did not have any unintended negative consequences for the domestic
programs within his committee's jurisdiction. I want to thank him again
for his great leadership.
Mr. CONAWAY. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Mr. Smith for yielding and
the other colleagues for the work they have done on this issue.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1567, the Global Food
Security Act of 2016. With the world population rapidly increasing,
particularly in some of the most impoverished and food-insecure
regions, it is of critical importance that the United States maintain
its position as the world leader in the effort to alleviate global
hunger and enhance food security.
The agricultural community is proud to have long played a crucial
role in this effort. We are eager to continue doing our part. As
chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture, I vow to ensure that
the expertise of the agriculture community is fully leveraged in the
global food security efforts that are moving forward.
To fulfill that promise, I have worked closely with the Committee on
Foreign Affairs to ensure that the bill before us today capitalizes on
the wealth of knowledge and expertise within the U.S. Department of
Agriculture and amongst agricultural businesses, commodity groups,
agricultural producers, agricultural research institutions, land grant
colleges and universities, and the agricultural extension system.
Beyond requiring collaboration with key agricultural stakeholders,
the bill will also improve the monitoring and reporting of the various
programs and funds counted toward the success of the current Feed the
Future initiative. USAID has been very vocal in its efforts to reduce
and/or eliminate in-kind food assistance, yet it lauds the use of these
very programs in selling the success of Feed the Future. It is my hope
that the enhanced reporting accountability within the global food
security strategy will ensure that all food aid programs and means of
delivery are appropriately recognized for the role that they play in
the strategy's success.
Further, to ensure that this legislation does not provide USAID with
unintended opportunity to overhaul time-tested food aid programs, the
bill contains carefully crafted language protecting the funds and the
authorities of these existing programs. As I have pointed out time and
again, any changes should be explored in the context of future farm
bill discussions.
I greatly appreciate Congressman Smith's open-minded approach to
achieving common ground on this legislation as well as the cooperation
and support from the various agricultural organizations, commodity
groups, and nongovernmental organizations, such as the ONE Campaign,
who have been engaged in this process. I look forward to maintaining
and building upon these positive relations as we move forward and
carefully monitor the implementation of this strategy. I urge my
colleagues to support this bill.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, it is now my pleasure to yield 5 minutes to
the gentlewoman from Minnesota (Ms. McCollum), one of the authors of
this bill and someone who has worked so long on issues like these for
so many, many years. A lot of this is really a result of her hard work
through the years.
{time} 1730
Ms. McCOLLUM. Mr. Speaker, today I rise in strong support for the
Global Food Security Act, H.R. 1567. I want to especially thank
Congressman Chris Smith for being a real, true partner on this bill and
for his work to advance global food security, which we both care about
so very deeply.
This bill is an important bill with a goal everyone should support:
helping hardworking farmers grow the food they need to feed and support
their families. As we have already heard, in the world's poorest
countries, nearly 800 million people are chronically hungry or
malnourished, and more than 150 million children under the age of 5 are
stunted.
No parent should have to watch their child suffer or even die because
they don't have access to the nutritious food they need to survive. For
children who somehow do survive, the lasting damage of not having
access to healthy food means that a child will not grow physically and
mentally the way that they should, especially during the first
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thousand days, and any damage that is done is permanent.
According to the World Bank, stunting ``means a child has failed to
develop in full, and it is essentially irreversible, which means that
the child will have little hope of achieving [their] full potential.''
As a global community, we know that chronic malnutrition severely
limits a child's ability to grow, to learn, and to thrive. But it is
not just harmful for that child or the family, it undermines the
development of an entire community and perpetuates the cycle of
poverty. And all of this is completely preventable.
Working with small holder farmers, especially women, Feed the Future
is helping to provide the tools, resources, education, and training
these farmers need to grow their way out of poverty and to improve
nutrition and create new economic opportunities.
I have been fortunate enough to see the work USAID is doing around
the globe and to hear directly from women farmers about the difference
it has made for themselves and their families. A mother can now feed
her family better food, pay her children's school fees, invest in her
community, and become an entrepreneur herself.
These are success stories that happen when the United States makes
smart investments in global food security. These are the successes that
we must continue if we want to strengthen families, communities, and,
yes, even our own national security.
Feed the Future does not work alone. It is partnering with private
sector businesses, civil society, and universities. Bringing these
sectors together with their specialized knowledge and expertise is not
only good for that farmer or local processor, but it builds new, stable
markets in these communities.
Minnesota-based businesses Land O'Lakes, General Mills, and Cargill
are already working with Feed the Future. General Mills CEO Ken Powell
said, ``And we are hungry to help the farmer in Malawi who, by selling
her crop, will generate the money needed to support her family and pay
for her children to go to school.''
Well, that truly sums it up. This is what this legislation is all
about: empowering women farmers to support and care for their families.
Once again, I want to thank Congressman Chris Smith for being a great
partner on this journey. I would like to thank Chairman Royce and
Ranking Member Engel for helping to move this legislation forward,
along with Congresswoman Bass.
I also want to thank the staff--Piero, Jenn, Janice, and Joan--for
all the work that they did to help get this bill to the floor today.
In December 2014, this House passed a similar version of this bill by
a voice vote, but the Senate failed to act. So today, once again, I
urge my colleagues to support the Global Food Security Act.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may
consume to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Yoho), a member of the
Foreign Affairs Committee.
Mr. YOHO. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, Mr. Smith of New Jersey,
for bringing this bill up today.
I rise in support of the Global Food Security Act, H.R. 1567. This
bill reflects almost 2 years of work between the Agriculture Committee
and the Foreign Affairs Committee, both of which I serve on.
This legislation is an important step in getting back to regular
order and properly authorizing a program--which has essentially been on
autopilot for the last 7 years--before funds are appropriated.
An important program such as this needs to be reexamined by Congress
and duly authorized so that changes that need to be made can be made
and to stop the terrible pattern of just appropriating money for
programs because the reauthorization is too difficult to work out.
The legislation demonstrates that this body is doing what we were
sent up here to do: make the tough decisions and stop the cycle of
throwing good money after bad.
H.R. 1567 authorizes previously unauthorized money that is no higher
than what has been appropriated in the last 2 fiscal years.
Furthermore, through the hard work of both the Agriculture and
Foreign Affairs Committees, we have been able to eliminate duplicative
spending and waste, strengthen congressional oversight while
instituting no new spending, and most importantly, begin weaning these
nations off of U.S. foreign aid by including the private sector,
promoting economic growth, and opening markets for U.S. trade and
investment instead of just aid.
I think it is time to change our paradigm of giving aid to foreign
governments and move from aid to trade. That way, we wean off the
structure we have done in the past.
I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 1567 and show the rest of the
world that Congress is doing what it was meant to: making the hard
choices through negotiating and crafting legislation and programs that
will not irresponsibly waste taxpayer money and will encourage the best
results that will wean countries off of U.S. aid and onto U.S. trade.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, as you have heard from all our colleagues on both sides
of the aisle, this is a good bill that deserves to be supported by
everyone in the House.
Ending global hunger and malnutrition is an enormous challenge. There
are nearly 800 million people facing chronic hunger and 3.1 million
child malnutrition deaths each year. Let me just say that again because
it is shocking. There are 3.1 million child malnutrition deaths each
year. These are deaths of innocent children that we can save. They are
dying if we do nothing.
So we must do more to achieve food and nutrition security. This bill
is a step in the right direction, and I urge all my colleagues to
support it.
I once again thank Chairman Royce, Mr. Smith, and Ms. McCollum for
their hard work on this issue, and I urge, again, my colleagues to
support this legislation.
I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
I want to thank Mr. Engel for his very kind remarks and for his
strong support for this legislation. This has been a great partnership
with Betty McCollum, and I know it will continue. Both of us--and
others, of course--are totally committed to ending chronic hunger and
providing self-sufficiency in countries where it is a matter of just
conveying best practices and increasing the capabilities of people and
their roads and bridges. It's all very much integrated. So I want to
thank her for her leadership on this very important piece of
legislation.
Again, it bears saying over and over again that half of all deaths in
children under 5 are attributable to undernutrition. Of course, for the
others who die, very often, malnutrition is a complicating factor and
it allows, as I said earlier, opportunistic diseases to take hold and
to cause havoc, if not death, to that child.
There are 161 million children stunted worldwide. I was actually in
the Central American country of Guatemala when they signed up for the
First Thousand Days of Life. The new President has indicated when he
was here that it is a very, very important part of his program.
We see it all over Africa and Asia. If nutrition is provided, it does
mitigate disease. It does, for many, mean that they have a chance at
life and that their immune systems are bolstered to the point where
they can resist multiple attacks of various diseases and then get into
adolescence and, of course, into adulthood.
This is transformative. It is bipartisan. I also think it bears
repeating for my colleagues that this bill has been a long time in the
making. As Betty McCollum said earlier, we passed it last Congress. And
I guess, as I said earlier, the clock did run out. We did not get it up
for a vote in the Senate. God willing, this time it will be different.
We have had a dozen committee hearings. I have held many of them
myself in my Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, and Global Human
Rights. It has been a multi-year effort and a great deal of due
diligence and vetting has gone into the language. We worked, as I said
earlier, very closely with Chairman Mike Conaway, and he had very, very
important contributions to make. So this has been a great collaborative
effort of our staff and members
[[Page H1617]]
of the Foreign Affairs, Appropriations, and the Agriculture Committees.
I urge Members to support this bill, and I yield back the balance of
my time.
Mrs. LAWRENCE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1567, the
Global Food Security Act of 2015. As the world's population has
increased the demand for food has grown with it. Amidst a volatile oil
market and impacts from extreme weather on major food-exporting
industries due to climate change, food prices have risen with the
burden falling heavily on underdeveloped nations and their citizens.
The pressure is on our chamber to ensure that we live in a world where
food availability, regardless of droughts and transportation costs, is
not an option but a right.
Feed the Future, a U.S. Government Initiative, works hand-in-hand
with partner countries to develop agriculture sectors that help
domestic economies as well as the individuals in these places suffering
from food shortages. The advanced approach by Feed the Future works to
solve the issue by addressing many of the concerns that face these
countries. Empowering women, embracing innovation between private
sector and civil society, supporting food security, and creating cost-
effective results that lead to sustainability for these partner
countries are just some of the goals of the Feed the Future program.
The Global Food Security Act of 2015 builds off this initiative by
making it permanent and committing the United States to a solution
regarding the growing food shortage epidemic. The Act improves upon
existing practices to ensure that U.S. taxpayer dollars are effectively
apportioned while not adding to the debt. It also requires the
Administration to develop a comprehensive strategy to combat food
insecurity, malnutrition, and hunger and report it to Congress on a
yearly basis.
I would like to close by saying that I am proud of our chamber for
coming together to ensure that the United States plays a key role in
combatting one of the largest developmental issues in the 21st century.
I also want to thank my colleagues for understanding the importance of
a comprehensive approach that recognizes and promotes the involvement
of women in agriculture while also promoting a sustainable future for
our partner countries.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, H.R. 1567, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. MASSIE. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.
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