African Famine and the world
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African Famine and the world
Food problem is one of the most dangerous of all the problems that are known to occur in the world. Particularly, the African countries have been noted to be suffering from this problem, and this is not because the weather patterns are always unfavorable, but because the leaderships in this continent are not willing to salvage themselves. In this paper, this concept has been discussed as well as ways in which the African nations can solve this problem for themselves. As well, strategies have been looked in which western world can force the African nations to act on their problems.
Introduction
The state of affairs for African countries is worse, especially in terms of preparedness to combat hunger strikes. Whenever there is a hunger outbreak in any African country, the quickest resolve is to turn to the developed world for mercy and to come to the aid to save millions of starving persons. To make it worse, the persons who suffer most whenever a hunger situation comes knocking the door are extremely poor, and mostly the children and the women. The continuous occurrence of these problems have made a tag for African countries that they will never learn from one problem, and it is also good to spell that famine in Africa is no act of God. The problems that combat these countries are something that can be solved, and the only problem is that the leaderships in the countries are not willing to salvage them, or at least take the steps, which other countries have managed.
African famine problem
As Zerbe (December, 2004) notes, the problem that made it possible for American Aids to focus on genetically modified organisms so as to solve the perennial problems of food shortages. The debate may fall in the favor of the American aids because the country wants to salvage and arrest the problem that has been occurring in the Southern part of Africa. On argument, the US food aid was because of the crisis that occurred in the year 2002 and therefore, the strategy to salvage Africa by the use of technology. This way of coming in aid for Africa did not just come because the American government hates Africa, but it is because it has the feeling for the continent to come to save itself. The debate may have negative effects, but the point is that it is necessary given the circumstances.
The overview of food problem in the African countries is massive and to some extent, it stems from lack of good and visionary leadership. This happens despite the developed worlds wasting their food, while the African countries are crying for lack of enough food. Since the year 1970, Africa has never learnt from the problems, and seems that there is no end to this unless there is a strong change of strategies that are put for solving these problems. The main argument for the causes of these problems in Africa has been noted to be the civil wars, where, there have been intra regional conflicts as well as country-to-country conflicts. The donor countries will continue to be the aiders for the African countries if at all there is no end to the current statements where, leaderships are more focused on acquiring massive power instead of taking care of the people who have set them in the leadership they so much command.
Coping with the food problem in African countries
As analyzed above, the food problem is scratching much, and unless the African countries leadership learns how to cope with this problem, then, Africa may at large be not able to shake off the influence of the western worlds in the interference with the internal affairs. One way of doing this is what is known as the community based strategies, especially with the perennial problem of scarcity of food and death of innocent persons. Noting of this, Campbell (1990) notes that there are always the early warnings systems for famine (EWS), and if this is noted, then, people could combine to move out of the problems already to strike. These early warnings are not to be taken for granted, but should be used by the communities to warn themselves and take precautionary measures for the famine.
More than half of the Uganda’s 31 million people were recorded to be suffering from starvation as early as February 2011, and this facing is just an early sign that more is coming. Therefore, if people take their own measures to combat this problem, then, it is possible that they can solve this problem to turn their way. The problem would come when they already had enough in their stores and kept enough to last for a long time. This would mean that the next rain season would get them ready and having not starved as the signs suggested or indicated. This problem is in not only the Uganda country, but most of the countries in the African content are caught having not put enough strategic measures to combat and reverted the situation. It is a lesson to most people in these nations, and the only problem is that once the problem stabilizes, they then forget where they were and come back to the reeling problems. It is actually a sorry state for most of the communities, that, they do not learn and give themselves the energy to fight for themselves.
As per the year 2009, Ethiopia was on the focus, and the headlines were screaming that the famine problem has hit again the horn of Africa. This happens gradually, and it has come to be known that at a particular time, and to some specific communities, the problem is to come, and therefore, the leadership of the countries and the communities must come up with strategies that could combat this problem once and for long. The underlying factor is that leadership and the countries as well as the communities can help themselves in coping with the problems, and this way, the western worlds would keep off from interfering with the internal affairs, as most leadership would claim. If they could make their own measures, then, there would be no outside country to make or force things to happen.
African famine problem and the world
Even though the problems are purely African, it is wrong to imagine that the other countries do not get concerned with what is happening. If the whole of Southern, Northern, Western and East Africa faces starvation, then, the western nations cannot just keep quite and wait for the people to die. There is the international responsibility to come to aid and save humanity as a form of sociological aspects. This is always the way to go in all kinds of problems that combat the African countries and the country is always strategic for businesses and other forms of development. If the African countries are developed, then, it means that there would be less kind of human torture and sympathetic concerns would cease. This is because it is hard to just wait and see others suffer, while food is being wasted or thrown away to the animals because there is more than enough, and that is how the world comes in the problems of African.
African countries can learn from the great republic of china, which had suffered from severe draught for long. Forty years ago, the country was also on the verge of collapse especially during those times of the middle ages (Smil, December 1999). This country was one of the greatest countries recognized to have faced extreme poverty resulting from the food problem, but just 40 years later as we speak, the country is a donor. This means that the measures that were taken then could also be applied in other instances like in African continent. Therefore, when trying to contend and cope with the problem of the African countries, the continent could learn from this. The nation has changed its situation from worse to utmost best and right now, it can give these African countries donations.
The current state of hunger in the world is that a number of the countries are not prepared to combat their own problems. The citizens are put in dangerous situations and no matter how much they cry to their governments, they are forced to live to limits they have never been made. The facts that are known are that there is enough food in the world and if it is well utilized, it can make the world never to go hungry. However, across the world, and mostly in African states, this situation is mismanaged, and this means that the people in these countries are faced by the problems year in year out. The best way to solve this kind of menace is always to be alert for any kind of emerging strategy that can harness salvage from the problems. Notably, malnutrition and hunger are common and still afflict millions of people across the world, and this could just be attributed to poor leadership in the countries. This can end if only the nations take the measures that are proposed in major strategic paper including this one.
War forward for fighting food problem in African and the world
In our discussion, we have put major strategies that can be used in solving the problems that have been hitting nations about food problem. Such have been identified as community based strategies where, using the weather patterns and any kind of signs that emerge, and the communities should integrate their minds to solve the problems. Using technology is in no way the solution to the problem as in the end there are associated problems that come with it. The way forward is to make the best use of what is available and learning from what china did, then, African countries can also do it because nothing is impossible and everything has been noted to be possible.
Marek (1999) notes, that there is a feasible a way or option for the affected African countries and others in the world to salvage themselves from the jaws of hunger. One of the ways is for the government to tap the potentials that it has, and the strongest of it being the labor to drive its agenda home. Notably, when there is a strong human resource in the country, it means that the country has the energy to feed itself, and it does not have to rely from the technology of outside forces coming to aid. There should be rigorous assessments in coming up with most possible ways and those that are cost effective so as to come out strong and never to come back in. However, there is need for high motivation and monitoring from the western powers so that when the problem is solved, the nations may not retract and come back to poor leadership. Instead of these nations using technological revolutions as the way out, they should make it known that they are there to help and not to put the problem at a difficult problem that it was before.
Conclusion
There are so many problems in the world, but the most dangerous is hunger when there is food shortage. Mostly, the African countries are seen to be the ones which are most affected with all corners of the continent being faced by these problems. However, as we have noted, it is possible for the nations to help themselves out and help solve the problems finally instead of always relying on foreign aids. For instance, because there have been always some signs of such occurrences, the communities should integrate their minds and solve the problems for themselves. One way is to have grain reserve for the communities to use when the problem persists or when the food reserved start dwindling.
References
Campbell, D. (1990). Community-based strategies for coping with food scarcity: A role in African early warning systems. GeoJournal, Vol. 20(3), 231-241
Marek, T. (1999). Successful contracting of prevention services: Fighting malnutrition in Senegal and Madagascar. Oxford Journals, Vol. 14(4), 382-389.
Smil, V. (December, 1999). China’s Great famine: 40 years later. Journal of BMJ, Vol. 319(7225), 1619.
Zerbe, N. (December, 2004). Feeding the famine? American food aid and the GMO debate in Southern Africa. Journal of food policy/Elsevier ltd, Vol. 29 (6), 593-608.