Reply to the 2nd report on the activities of the World Food Programme

Recommendation 515 (1968)

Author(s):

Parliamentary Assembly

Origin

Assembly Debate on 1st February 1968 (19th Sitting) (see Doc. 2336, report of the Committee on Agriculture). Text adopted by the Assembly on 1st February 1968 (19th Sitting).

The Assembly,

1. Having taken note of the 2nd report to the Council of Europe on the activities of the World Food Programme ;

2. Noting that the World Food Programme, besides providing emergency relief, is making efficient use of food aid as capital for economic development in general and agricultural improvement in particular, and considering that it therefore constitutes an important factor in the efforts to bridge the period before a new balance between food production and population growth is established ;

3. Noting that the target for voluntary contributions of $275 millions for the current three-year period (1966-1968) has not been attained, and that the target for the two years 1969 and 1970 has been set at $200 millions ;

4. Recalling that under the new Food Aid Convention, 4.5 million tons of grain annually will be made available to the developing countries during the next three years, and believing that the World Food Programme constitutes the appropriate agency for channelling such part of this aid as may be made available multilaterally by donor countries ;

5. Trusting that the World Food Programme in handling these additional resources will implement all the necessary safeguards to prevent such aid from having adverse effects on commercial trade ;

6. Believing that the World Food Programme, having regard to its projects aimed at stimulating agricultural development, should be enabled to include among its resources any possible future contributions of food production requisites, especially fertilisers, which may be made available multilaterally, in particular by countries in which output of these products is below capacity ;

7. Stressing the need for close co-operation between the World Food Programme and other multilateral and bilateral aid programmes to ensure the closest possible integration of food aid with other forms of assistance,

8. Invites its members to make representations to their Governments and take steps in their Parliaments to ensure that the World Food Programme receives the support needed to achieve its aims under the regular programme, and is enabled to channel efficiently such contributions as may be made available multilaterally under the Food Aid Convention as well as future contributions in the form of food production resources ;

9. Recommends that the Committee of Ministers invite member Governments :

a to ensure that the modest target for voluntary contributions to the regular programme is attained and that pledges are made in time to permit the World Food Programme to plan ahead ;

b to consider the possibility of channelling efficiently and without harmful effects on commercial trade all or part of the contributions under the Food Aid Convention through the World Food Programme ;

c to envisage the possibility of usefully expanding the activities of the World Food Programme by supplementing its resources with food production requisites, in particular fertilisers ;

d to see to it that the closest cooperation is maintained between the World Food Programme and other multilateral and bilateral aid programmes.