Food Security

ACDI/VOCA recognizes that in order to succeed in its mission of promoting economic opportunities, we must first ensure that beneficiaries can meet their basic household needs and that vulnerability to future crises is reduced. Through the development of open markets and income-generating activities aimed at the rural poor, ACDI/VOCA increases availability of food in local markets as well as consumer access to food. Furthermore, as needed, ACDI/VOCA and its partners directly provide food rations to vulnerable populations.

ACDI/VOCA addresses the key elements of food security including the availability, access and utilization of food, through several mechanisms:

1. monetization of donated commodities in low-income, food-deficit countries with sales proceeds being used for development activities
2. direct distribution of rations to vulnerable populations
3. use of direct funding to address food security issues among target populations.

One major vehicle to promote food security is food aid-based programs. Since 1989, ACDI/VOCA has been a global leader in the innovative and effective management of food aid-based development projects. The food granted to ACDI/VOCA is American-grown and -harvested, bought by the United States government from American farmers and sent overseas to improve the lives of the poor in low-income, food-deficit countries.

As appropriate, ACDI/VOCA monetizes donated commodities through negotiated sales, tender/bid operations or sealed-bid auctions. Effective sales often involve training local entrepreneurs in auction procedures, recordkeeping and open-market principles and practices so that they can better participate in commercial transactions. The monetization process can also be used to promote agricultural production. For example, in Rwanda ACDI/VOCA sold hard red winter wheat to local mills and then helped the mills develop contracts with local producers for the locally grown soft variety for blending. Proceeds derived from monetization are used to fund development projects that further stimulate local economies and increase food security, including agricultural production, processing and marketing, cooperative development and rural finance.

ACDI/VOCA and its partners also directly distribute food rations to people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) or supplemental nutritional support to mothers and children depending on the needs of the target population. These programs also promote complementary health and livelihood strategies.

Lastly, ACDI/VOCA promotes food security under cash-based awards which support such activities as the promotion of household gardens and improved access to water.

To read ACDI/VOCA's Global Food Crisis Team recently issued food crisis position paper that presents our thinking on how we can be most effective, click here.

For more information, contact Suzanne Berkey at sberkey@acdivoca.org.