TableofContents

TitlePageDedicationPREFACEPARTI-TheUnfinishedRevolution

CHAPTER1-SeedsofChangeCHAPTER2-FlowandEbbCHAPTER3-IntoAfricaCHAPTER4-GoodfortheGoose,BadfortheGanderCHAPTER5-GlutandPunishmentCHAPTER6-Who’sAidingWhom?CHAPTER7-Water,WaterEverywhereCHAPTER8-ADietofWormsPARTII-EnoughIsEnough

CHAPTER9-ResortingtoOutrageCHAPTER10-“WeCanDoSomethingAboutThis”CHAPTER11-TakewithFoodCHAPTER12-TwoStepsForward,TwoStepsBackCHAPTER13-TheMissingLinksCHAPTER14-TheOpeningBellCHAPTER15-GettingDowntoBusinessCHAPTER16-SmallActs,BigImpactsCHAPTER17-“WeMustNotFailThem”

KeepPromisestoExpandDevelopmentAidCreateaGlobalFundtoAidSmallFarmersinAfricaInvestinInfrastructureAfricaTakesResponsibilityPlantNewSeedTechnologyFindanAlternativetoTurningFoodintoFuelConsideranInternationalGrainReserveLevelthePlowingFieldsGiveU.S.FoodAidtheFlexibilityforLocalPurchaseGetInvolved

EPILOGUEAcknowledgementsNOTESINDEXCopyrightPage

HungerinAfricaBased on the 2008 Global Hunger Index for Africa. Compiled by theInternational Food Policy Research Institute, Concern Worldwide, and WeltHungerHilfe,theindexcombinestheseindicators:thepercentageofpeoplewhoareundernourished(estimated);thepercentageofchildrenundertheageoffivewhoareunderweight; and themortality rateof childrenunder the ageof five.Theindexranksthecountriesona100-pointscale,with0beingthebestscore(nohunger).

FromRoger:ForAnne,Brian,andAishling,

whonourishthevisionandthespirit

FromScott:ForTrish,Helen,andRosemary,

whoshowhowindividualscanmakeadifferenceintheworld

PARTI

TheUnfinishedRevolution

CHAPTER4

GoodfortheGoose,BadfortheGanderFANA,MALI,2002

The dawn of a newmillenniumdid little to lift the chances of an agriculturalbreakthrough inAfrica.TheUnitedNationsorchestrateda flurryofpledges toputabigdentinglobalhungerandpovertyby2015.AndthentheSeptember11,2001, terrorist attacks inNewYorkCity andWashington,D.C., prompted anoutpouring of determination to relieve the misery, and disaffection, in thepoorest precincts of the world. But those intentions were undermined by thepolicyactionsofWesterngovernments,whichcontinuedtoelevatetheinterestsof their own farmers above all others. Preventing state support to Africa’sfarmersinfavorofpromotingfree-marketvirtuesandprivate-sectorinvestmentthat nevermaterialized had been devastating enough. The twenty-first centuryopenedwithanescalationinthesubsidiesAmericanandEuropeangovernmentspaidtheirfarmers.ThesewereactsofsupremehypocrisythatknockedbackanyadvancesBorlaughadengineeredintheAfricanfields,andtheysetthetableforahungerseasonlikenoother.

ThenewsthatallAfricadreadedtohearwaspluckedoutoftheaironamuggyMaydayin2002byacrudetelevisionantennaperchedprecariouslyonatinroofofaricketyshackinMali’scottonfields:TheUnitedStatesCongresshadpasseda new Farm Bill, increasing the subsidies paid to American farmers. DiambaCoulibalystaredathisblack-and-whiteTV,whichwaspoweredbyacarbattery.

Anxiously, he cocked his ear for the next headline: American cotton farmerswouldbegettingthebiggestboostofall.ThecommentarysuggestedthatthesesubsidizedU.S. farmerswouldproducemorecotton,whichwould increase theglobalglutof the“whitegold”andputmorepressureon theworldprice.Thebottomline:TheunsubsidizedMalianfarmers,whosellalmostalloftheircottonontheworldmarket,wouldendupwithless.

“That’snotright,”Coulibalysaid.“Forus,allfarmersinAmericaandinMaliaremembersof thesamefamily.Weshouldn’t letonegroupofbrothersmakealltheprofitswhiletheothersgetnothing.”

Thewhite-whiskeredfarmersufferedfromagrotesquemaladythathadlongago vanished from farms in the developedworld: a large goiter, the size of abaseball, bulged from his neck. “Iodine deficiency,”Coulibaly saidmatter-of-factly.

Hewasfifty-nineyearsold,whichmadehimancientinacountrywherethelife expectancywas just forty-eight years.A flockof children hovered aroundhimoutsideaclusterofone-andtwo-roommud-brickhuts.Theywerehisniecesandnephewsandgrandchildren.Manyof themhaddistendedbellies,asignofchronicmalnourishmentcommontoruralWestAfrica.

“Whatdoyoudoifyoucan’tpayexpenses?”theoldmanshrugged.

Coulibalywasoneoftheeldersofanextendedfamilyofeighty-sixpeopleinMali,oneofthepoorestcountriesintheworld.Theunevenplowingfieldsoftheglobal agricultural systemhadyieldedabitterparadox.Farmingwasmeant tofeedandnourish,butatthebeginningofthetwenty-firstcenturytheinequitiesintheworldtradeofagriculturalgoodshadspreadmalnutritionandhungeracrossAfrica.InWestAfrica,Mali’scottongrowersfacedthesameplightasGhana’scornand rice farmers,whowereundercutby the importofcheapersubsidizedcornand rice from theUnitedStates, andSenegal’s tomatogrowers,who sawtheirlivelihoodsvanishascheapersubsidizedtomatoesrolledinfromEurope.

The year before, in 2001, the Coulibalys had harvested about forty tons ofcotton,oneof theirbestyieldsever,andbarelybrokeeven.Theircurrentcropwaslookinggood,butthewizenedDiambaexpectedthefamilytolosemoney,as cotton prices were dropping and the costs of everything from fertilizer toginning were rising. Once again, he said, he would have to put off doingsomethingaboutthatgoiterandthekids’malnutrition.

Certain that theU.S. FarmBill wouldwiden theirmisery, Coulibaly had anewsflashofhisownthathewantedtosendbacktoAmerica:“Weareallourbrothers’keepers,”hesaid.“Ifwearenotinpeacehere,youwon’tbeinpeacethere.”

NinedaysaftertheSeptember11,2001,terroristattacksonNewYorkCityandWashington,D.C.,PresidentGeorgeW.BushspokeintheU.S.Capitolbeforeajoint session ofCongress and uttered a question he believedmanyAmericanswereasking:“Whydotheyhateus?”Heprovidedsomereadyanswers.“Theyhate what we see right here in this chamber—a democratically electedgovernment,” the president said. “They hate our freedoms—our freedom ofreligion,ourfreedomofspeech,ourfreedomtovoteandassembleanddisagreewitheachother.”

Thefarmersofthedevelopingworld,particularlythecottongrowersofWestAfrica, would say that President Bush provided a different answer to hisquestioneightmonthslaterwhenhesignedtheFarmBill.Withaflourishofhispen,attachinghissignatureonthebottomofthebill,thepresidentincreasedthesubsidiestheU.S.governmentpaystoAmericanfarmers,and,inturn,increasedthepovertyofmillionsofother farmers in thedevelopingworld, especially inAfrica,whosegovernmentscan’taffordtopaysimilarsubsidies.

“Youhavetoknowwhereyourfreedomendsandanother’sbegins,”scoffedModyDiallo,acottonfarmers’unionofficialinMali.Hedidn’thateAmerica’sfreedoms; in fact, he greatly admired them. He wanted those freedoms forhimself and his countrymen and all people of the world. But, he said, “Youshouldenjoyyourfreedomuptothepointofhurtingsomeone.IfIhavemoney,I can enjoy it anyway I want, but Imust be concerned that I don’t hurtmyneighbor.TheAmericansknowthatwiththeirsubsidiestheyarekillingsomanyeconomies in the developingworld,” he continued. “This iswhereAmerica isheading:Itwantstodominatetheworld,economicallyandmilitarily.”

Diallo’sdarkinterpretationreflectedanotherirony:HisviewofAmericawasexactly the opposite ofwhatU.S. politicianswere trying to project. After theshock of September 11, Americans better understood that fear and misery inpoor countries could create a rich environment for resentment and terrorism.Americaneededtoemphasizeitsgenerosityandgoodwillthroughouttheworld.ReducingpovertyinthedevelopingworldbecameaprimepillarofU.S.foreign

policy. InNovember2001, theUnitedStates took the lead in launchinganewroundofworldtradetalksinDoha,Qatar,designedtobringthepoorestnationsmore fully into the global trading system. These negotiations on a new set ofinternational trading rules, intended to stretch over several years of meetings,weredubbedthe“developmentround.”

Afewmonthslater,inMarch2002,theUnitedStatesandEuropewereatthefront of the line at a conference inMonterrey,Mexico, called the Summit onFinancing for Development. The world’s richest countries pledged billions ofdollarsinfreshaidtospureconomicdevelopmentinthepoorestcountries.TheDoha-Monterreystrategywastodeliveraone-twopunchtopoverty:opentrade,increaseaid.

President Bush arrived at Monterrey pledging a 50 percent increase inAmerican foreign aid over three years and talking about linking greatercontributions to developing nations with better democratic performance andeconomic freedom. “We fight against poverty because hope is an answer toterror,”hetoldhisfellowleaders.“Wefightagainstpovertybecauseopportunityisafundamentalrighttohumandignity.Wefightagainstpovertybecausefaithrequires it and conscience demands it.” He also said in Monterrey, “To beseriousaboutfightingpoverty,wemustbeseriousaboutexpandingtrade.”

Then,twomonthslatercametheFarmBill,whichputnonsubsidizedAfricanfarmers at a distinct disadvantage in international trade. “Such hypocrisy!”shoutedMadaniToureintheMaliancapital,Bamako,afewweeksafterthebillwassigned.Tourewastheprimeminister’sadviseroneconomicmatters,andassuchhewasn’tshyaboutsharinghisopinionsontheimpactofsubsidies.Inthemiddleof the interview,aviolent thunderstormshookhisoffice.Hailand rainpounded the corrugated tin roof. Water seeped in through tiny cracks in thewalls. The lights flickered on and off and then died. All around Bamako, asToureranted,theelectricitywentdown—asiftoreinforcewhathewassaying.“Thewholeworldseemstoagreethatpovertyneedstobereducedincountrieslikeours,”hefumed.“Yet thecottonsubsidies, if theycontinue,will lead toacrashinoureconomy.”

A cry of hypocrisy also reverberated throughout Ghana. “America startedsubsidizingitsfarmerstohelpthemassuretheirownfoodsecurity,butwe’renotallowed to do the same!” bellowedFranklinDomkoh, the director ofGhana’sextensionservices.“Withthemerementionbyusofsubsidies,ourdevelopment

partnersstarthowling.Theywanttocatchusandchewusup!”

On the other side of the world, Norman Borlaug brought his fist crashingdown on his desk at Texas A&M University when he considered theimplicationsoftheFarmBill.AboostinAmericansubsidieswouldimpoverishthe same farmers in Mali, Ghana, and elsewhere in Africa that he had beennurturingwith theSasakawaprogram. “I’ma biologist, not an economist,” heroared,“butevenIcanseethosepoliciesaren’tworking.”

At the Farm Bill signing ceremony inside the Dwight D. EisenhowerExecutiveOfficeBuilding, PresidentBush praised the legislation for assistingAmerican growers. “The bill is generous, and will provide a safety net forfarmers,”hesaidtoalargecrowdofsmilingagriculturalleaders,theirlobbyists,andfarmfolklisteningbyradio.

As he left the podium, President Bush turned to the chorus of farmersapplaudingbehindhim.Thefirstfarmerheshookhandswith,andcongratulated,was Kenneth Hood. Hood was the courtly chairman of the National CottonCouncil, the influential trade association of the cotton industry andone of themostpowerfullobbyingforcesinWashington,aswellasapartnerinasprawlingcottonandgrainfarmnearGunnison,Mississippi.Hehadsuccessfullyfoughttoweakenproposalstoblocksubsidycheckstotherichestfarmers.

America’s25,000cottongrowers,whowerealreadypocketingmorethan$3billioninsubsidychecks,wereonaveragethewealthiestfarmersinthecountry.Theaveragenetworthof a full-timecotton-farminghousehold, including landandnonfarmassets,was about$800,000, according to theU.S.DepartmentofAgriculture. Now, they were receiving the biggest subsidy boost of all, awhopping16percent.

InMali,wheremillionsofpeopleweredependentoncotton,thefarmershadjustbeentoldbytheirgovernmentthat theywouldbegettingabout10percentless from the state cotton company. A global cotton glut, driven in part bysurplusproduction in theworld’sbiggestcottonexporter—theUnitedStates—hadbeatendowncottonpricesby66percentsince1995.ThesubsidiesprotectedAmerican farmers from this price drop—the “safety net” President Bushmentioned—and encouraged them to grow even more, adding to the globalsurplus. TheMalian government, hard-pressed to provide even themost basichealthcareandeducation to itscitizens,couldn’tafford topaysubsidies to itsfarmers. This was their reality:When the world price drops, the farmers lose

money.And so does the entire country,which leaned on cotton to provide itsmajorexportearnings.

Mody Diallo, the farm union organizer in the southern regional center ofBougouni,waseagertotalkabouttheimpact.Helefthisowncottonfieldandspedtoaninterviewonabatteredmotorscooter.HeworegreenpantswithholesinbothkneesandaraggedpurpleT-shirt.Asacottonfarmerhimself,hedidn’tbegrudge the American farmers their subsidies; he wished the Mali farmerscould receive equal amounts. What he resented, he said, was that America’sdomesticpoliticscouldsoblithelyreachallthewaytoMaliandsmitehimandhisneighbors.Withfarmingbeingtheworld’sbiggestoccupation,theU.S.FarmBill,whichsetnewsubsidylevelseveryfiveyears,impactedmorepeopleacrosstheworldthanmosteconomicactsoftheAmericangovernment.Butdespiteitsglobal consequences, the Farm Bill was shaped for the most part by narrowdomesticpoliticalconsiderations:whichcongressmencouldgetthemostmoneyforthefarmersoftheirdistricts.“What’stoobadissubsidizingsomuchthatithurts the poor elsewhere,” Diallo fumed. “The Americans can have theirsubsidies, but theymust be at a levelwhere others can survive.The subsidiesshould be regulated, so the farmers can keep producing and the ThirdWorldcountriescankeepproducingandsurvive.”

Diallo, forty-two, sat on a metal chair on the veranda of the CyranoRestaurant. Itwas early in the afternoon of a sweltering day.Two big yellowsoccer ball balloons—a promotion to attract customers during that summer’sWorldCup tournament—hung from the restaurant’sawning,whichprovidedawelcomesliceofshade.

Awiry,determinedman,Diallohadhelpedorganizeacotton-plantingboycottamong local farmers a few years earlier to protest falling prices. Productionplummeted, and the shock staggered the entire economy, cutting the grossdomestic product by 3 percent. Midway through the growing season, thegovernment, fearing social instability, raised the price back to the previousyear’slevel,butitwastoolateforthosewhodidn’tplant.Itwasahugesacrificeforsomeofthepoorestfarmersonearth,whomainlytilledtheirfieldswalkingbehindaplowpulledbyoxen.Ofthe37,236cottonfarmersinhisregion,Diallosaid,only5hadtractors.AsingleAmericancottonfarmer,workingvastfields,mighthaveseveralhimself.

SincecottonisthemaincashcropformostMalianfarmers,whenthecotton

crop fails, or thepricedrops, schoolsdon’t get built, clinicsdon’t get stockedwith medicine, food doesn’t get bought. In Mali, nearly half of the childrenunderagefivewereunderweight.

“ThepointIwanttomakeisthis,”Diallosaid,hoppingbackonhisscootertoreturn to his ten-acre farm. “The U.S. talks about reducing poverty in thedevelopedworld,butinitsownpoliciesitaddstopoverty.”

U.S.agriculturalsubsidiesgiveAmericanfarmersahugecompetitiveadvantageintheglobalmarketplace.Whencommoditypricesfall,theirgovernmentchecksswellsothattheycancontinuetooperateatfullspeedwhilefarmerselsewheremustretreat.ThiswasabigreasonU.S.cottonfarmers,forexample,hadbeenabletoexportasmuchas74percentoftheircropandcontrolabout40percentof world trade in 2002, an astounding record given the decline of the cottonfarmers’traditionalcustomer—theU.S.textileindustry—andthefactthatothercountries could grow cottonmore cheaply. For unsubsidizedAfrican farmers,going up against subsidized American farmers was like a clean athletecompetingagainstoneonsteroids.

While the subsidies protected the incomes and livelihoods of Americanfarmers,theyalsonegatedsomuchofAmerica’sbig-heartedcapacityfordoinggoodabroad.AsModyDiallocouldseefromhalfaworldawaywhentheFarmBillwas enacted, petty domestic political considerations festering in a year ofcongressionalelectionstrumpedinternationalpolicy.

The boost in U.S. farm subsidies—along with the egregious subsidiesEuropean governments paid to their farmers—would eventually torpedo theworld trade negotiations that began in Doha, Qatar, in November 2001. TheWest African cotton countries refused to go alongwith any trade deal unlessAmericancottonsubsidiesweregreatlyreduced.TheAmericanswouldn’tbudgeontheirsubsidyregimeaslongastheEuropeansheldtighttotheirs.TheWestAfricanpositionwassimple:Iftheso-calleddevelopmentroundofnegotiationscouldn’t deliver the one change that would benefit millions of people in theworld’sleast-developedcorner,whatgoodwasit?Bystickingtotheirguns,theWest Africans shot down any new global trade deal, for underWorld TradeOrganizationrules,anyagreementmustbeaconsensusofallmembernations.“What interestdowehave in joining inan international agreement if theonlycommoditywe have to participate in international trade—cotton—isn’t treated

justly?” Mali’s minister of industry and commerce, Choguel Kokalla Maiga,laterasked.

Thelackofprogressonthetradefront,inturn,underminedmuchoftherichworld’sdevelopmentaid.Forinstance, in2001,U.S.assistancetoMali totaledabout$40million.Thecountry’slossonthecottoncropthatyearwasabout$30million.SotheUnitedStatesgavewithonehandandtookwiththeother.

America wasn’t alone in this give-and-take. Overall that year, the thirtymembers of the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development(OECD), a club of theworld’smost developed countries, gave a total of $52billionindevelopmentaidtotheworld’spoorestcountries.Buttheyaidedtheirownfarmersnearlysixtimesasmuchwithoverallagriculturalsupporttotaling$311 billion. The impact of those rich-world subsidies on global trade, theUnitedNations noted in a report, cost the poorest countries an estimated $50billioninexportrevenues.Thebottomline:Thelossontradenegatedtheaid.

The front line inanypost-9/11waronpovertywould run throughMaliandWestAfrica.IfyoulaidamaphighlightingthepoorestnationsintheworldoveramaphighlightingpredominantlyMuslimcountries,WestAfricastoodoutlikenootherplaceonearth.ThepovertydrovemanycitizensofWestandCentralAfrica into the crowded cities of Europe, increasing social tensions as theycompetedforhousingandjobsandforculturalandreligiousrecognition.Atthesame time,Westerndiplomats nervouslywatched reports of anothermigrationwave: the movement of people northward through the Sahara, across theAlgerianborder,forreligioustrainingabroad.AlthoughtheseculargovernmentsofWestAfricavowedtheywouldn’tallowtheircountriestobecomerecruitmentcamps for terroristorganizations seeking toenlist theworld’sdisaffected, theywarnedthatfrustrationswererisingalongwiththepoverty.

AttheofficeoftheU.S.AgencyforInternationalDevelopmentinBamako,anofficialsaidthatAmerica’saidtoMali,intendedtocounterthepovertyandthedisaffection,wasmainlyspentonhealthandeducationalprojectsandprogramsto spread the word about democracy. But, he was asked, if America reallywantedtoreducepovertyinMali,wouldn’t itconcentrate itsaidonimprovingthe efficiency and profitability of the cotton industry, the region’s biggestemployerandlargestexportearner?

“Can’t,”saidtheUSAIDofficial.

Whynot?

“Bumpers,”hesaid.

DaleBumperswasasenator fromArkansaswhoauthoredanamendment tolegislationin1986stipulatingthatnoforeignassistancefundsbeusedfor“anytesting or breeding, feasibility study, variety improvement or introduction,consultancy,publication,ortraininginconnectionwiththegrowthorproductioninaforeigncountryforexport ifsuchexportwouldcompete inworldmarketswith a similar commodity grown or produced in the United States.” In otherwords, theU.S.governmentcouldn’thelp foreigncountriesdevelopcrops thatcouldcompetewiththoseofAmericanfarmers.TheBumpersamendmentwasaresponse to a protest by the American Soybean Association over a USAIDresearch project that developed soybean varieties for cultivation in countriessuch as Brazil and Argentina. Both those countries became huge soybeanexportersandstiffcompetitionforAmericansoybeangrowers.

Bumpers,whoretiredfromtheSenatein1999,saidina2007interviewthathehadonlyavaguerecollectionoftheissueandmainlyrememberedtheraging“brouhaha”oversubsidiesbetween theAmericansandEuropeans.Speaking inhis office at aWashington law firm, he said, “TheEuropeanswere ticked offthinkingweweresubsidizingourfarmersmuchhigher thanweshouldbe,andour farmers thought theywere subsidized toomuch. Itwas a catfightbetweenthetwoblocs.”TheAfricanshaveasayingforthis:“Whenelephantsfight,thegrassgetstrampled.”Intheprotectionistwarsofthe1980sbetweentheUnitedStates and Europe, Africa got trampled. Bumpers said it must have been amisstep.“WewantedtohelptheAfricans,”hesaid,notingthatheandothersinthe Senate eagerly supported the efforts of SenatorGeorgeMcGovern to feedhungry children. “Isn’t it amazing howman can screw up things so badly forreasonstheycan’tevenexplain?”hemused.

At the same time that theUnited Stateswas restricting official governmentassistance to foreign farmers, the World Bank, International Monetary Fund(IMF), andother development agencieswere orderingAfricangovernments tostop aiding their own farmers.Subsidies, derided aswasteful and anathema tofreetrade,wereaprimetargetofstructuraladjustment.Ofcourse,allalongtheway, the United States and Europe—the powers behind theWorld Bank andIMF—couldn’t stop themselves from bingeing on subsidies, generouslyfattening their own farmers, be theyAlpine dairy herders, Scandinavian sugarbeet growers, Rhineland vintners, or Great Plains wheat harvesters. Thisduplicity—what’sgood forus in the richworld isn’tgood foryou in thepoor

world—created one of themost glaring and enduring injustices in geopoliticsandworld trade. Ina2002studyof theEuropeanUnion’ssubsidy regime, theCatholic Agency for Overseas Development of the Catholic communities ofEnglandandWalescalculated thatunder theEU’sdairysubsidies, theaverageEuropeancowreceivedsupportamountingto$2.20aday,or$800ayear,whichwasmorethantheincomeofhalftheworld’spopulation.

Irony piled on insult. The West African countries, after all, had beenencouragedbytheWorldBankandotherdevelopmentorganizationstoembracecotton as the engine that would lift the region out of poverty. West Africancotton,virtuallyallofithandpicked,wasconsideredtobeofthehighestquality,andthelowerproductioncostswouldgivetheAfricansaleguponinternationalcompetitors. But the $5 billion in subsidies reaped by cotton farmers in theUnitedStates,Europe,and,toalesserextent,China,torpedoedthatdevelopmentstrategy. A joint report by the World Bank and the IMF estimated that theremoval ofU.S. subsidieswould produce a drop inAmerican production thatwouldleadtoashort-termriseintheworldpriceofcotton.Inturn,thatwouldincrease revenue to the African countries by about $250 million annually—aprincely sum in a regionwherevast numbers of people liveon less than$1 aday.

“Howmuch?”DiambaCoulibaly, theoldMalifarmerwiththegoiter,askedwhenheheardthosenumbers.Overtheyears,aparadeofexpertshadcomeandgone,experimentingwithhissoil,seeds,andfarmingtechniques toboostfarmproductivity and rural incomes. Still, his goiter grew, as did the misshapenbelliesof thechildren.Why, theoldmanwondered,hadnooneexperimentedwithtakingawaysubsidies?

ButAmericansandEuropeans—farmersandpoliticiansalike—wereaddictedtotheirfarmsubsidies.Afterthe2002U.S.FarmBillwasenacted,RonnieShows,a Mississippi Democrat on the House Agriculture Committee, scoffed atsuggestionsthatU.S.cottonsubsidiesshouldbereducedtohelpAfrica.“Whatgooddoesitdotomakeourownpeoplepoor?”heasked.

While the subsidy schemes on both sides of theAtlantic had been initiatedwith good intentions during times of much poverty and desperation, over theyears theybecameentrenched.Thepoliticalwill toscale thembackgreweverdimmerasfarmersbecamewealthierrelativetotherestofsocietyandbetterable

to finance powerful lobbies in Washington. In fact, although America andEuropewere tightallies in thearmsracewith theSovietUnion, theyfuriouslybattled each other in an escalating farms race by subsidizing the prices thatforeigncustomerspaidforcommoditiessuchaswheat.

The U.S. government created its subsidies during the Great Depression tofight ruralpoverty.During theDustBowlof the1930s,dirt blowing from thePlainswasdepositedontheroofoftheWhiteHouse.Atthetime,25percentofthe U.S. population lived on farms, and, in general, they were the poorestsegment of America. Washington decided then that it was too risky for theeconomyandthecountry’sfoodsupplyforthemtogoitalone.Underthenewplan, farmers could get federal money for producing commodities—includingcorn, cotton, and wheat—when market prices fell below certain levels.Productioncouldstayhighevenwhencommoditypriceswerelow.

Policymakers intervenedonbehalfoffarmers inways theyhadn’t forotheroccupations.Washington had long viewed farmers as central to the country’seconomicandpoliticaldevelopment.FromtheearlyyearsofAmerica’s lifeasan independent nation, farming had been the necessary engine for settling theU.S. frontier and replacing the indigenous culture. Fostering a class of familyfarmers was also more democratic than letting the wealthy get control of theland.ThatphilosophydrovetheHomesteadActof1862,whichmadeitpossiblefor aU.S. citizen to own 160 acres of public land for free, excluding a smallfiling fee.About270millionacres,or10percentofU.S. land,waseventuallygiventohomesteadersthisway.

Washington’sinvolvementinagriculturedeepenedafterWorldWarIwhenitcame to believe that the nature of agriculture made farmers uniquely weakplayers in the economy. In addition to living at themercy ofMother Nature,farmersworkedintheshadowofboom-and-bustcommoditycyclesoverwhichthey had little control. Perversely, farming success often led to hard timesbecause big crops tended to depress prices. And when gluts did materialize,farmershadahardtimegettingoutoftheway.Mostfarmersplantedjustonceayear,andtheirequipment,experience,andtheclimatelimitedtheiralternatives.

In Western Europe, lying in ruins after World War II, governments weredetermined that their citizens should never again suffer the hunger and foodrationing endured during the war. The CommonAgricultural Policy, or CAP,hastenedtherecoveryinthecountrysidebyencouragingfarmerstogrowalmost

everythingEuropeneeded.Thegoalwasself-sufficiencyinbasicfoodstuffs,andthe way to achieve that would be a rigid, production-oriented subsidy policy.CAPwouldbecomeoneofthecornerstonesoftheEuropeanUnion.

WhenWestGermanyandFrancemovedtocreatetheCommonMarketinthe1960s, France insisted on protection for its heartland farmers in exchange forallowing inGermanmanufacturedgoods.By theendof thatdecade,Europeanfarmerswerelockedintoapolicyofguaranteedhighpricesforcropsbuttressedby massive production subsidies to encourage higher output and lofty tariffbarrierstoholdbackcompetitionfromfoodgrownoutsideEurope.CAPworkedasWestern Europemoved toward food self-sufficiency. But it did its job toowell;bythe1980s,theEUwascontendingwithalmostpermanentsurplusesofmajorfarmcommodities,someofwhichwereexportedwiththehelpofanewsetof subsidies,which in turnwreakedhavoconworldcommoditypricesanddepressed farm-based economies in the developing world. The surpluses thatweren’t exported had to be storedwithin the EU, leading to the fabled “winelakes” and “cereal mountains,” as the European press described them. CAPspendingateuptwo-thirdsofthetotalEUbudget.Taxpayerobjectionsledtoaceiling on CAP, but the essential subsidy payments to farmers wereundiminished. By the turn of the twenty-first century, this support was stillhoveringaround$100billionayear.

Someof thatmoneywasgoing to support sugar farmerswearingboots andrain slickers in Ireland andBritain and parkas and long johns in Sweden andFinland.Growing sugar hadmainly been an economic pillar of countrieswithhot,sunnyclimatesneartheequator.Sugarcane,whichthrivedinmanyoftheworld’s poorest countries, was a classic crop of developing economies. Onceplanted, it grew like grass, requiring little investment or sophisticatedmaintenance.

Up to the 1970s, the EU was a net importer of sugar, supporting theeconomiesofmanyof its formercolonies inAfricaand theCaribbeanwith itspurchases.ThenCAPsubsidiestosugarbeetgrowersinEuropekickedin,andasugar industry flourished in themost unlikely places—much nearer theArcticCircle than the equator—even though the cost of producing sugarwas two tothreetimeshigherinEuropethaninsomedevelopingcountries.Bythedawnofthe newmillennium, theEUhad become theworld’s second-biggest exporter,afterBrazil,ofallformsofsugarandthebiggestexporterofrefinedwhitesugar.

ThesweetdealforEuropeansugarbeetgrowersresultedinsurplusproductionof up to 6 million tons annually, which was dumped on the world market.Farmerssoldtheirsurpluscheaplyjusttogetridofit,havingalreadypocketedaprofitfromthesubsidies.TheEU’sexcesssugar,whichatonepointrepresentedabout20percentofannualexportsfromallcountries,thusdrovedowntheworldprice. (TheUnitedStatesalsoprotected itssugargrowerswith tariffandquotabarriers,butitexportedverylittle.)Initsdefense,theEUpointedtoaByzantinesystemofpreferentialaccessthatmemberstatesextendedtoimportsfromsomeformer colonies, such asMauritius andFiji.ButEUsugarproducerswouldn’tsimplyallow that sugar into theirmarketbecause itmightundermine thehighlocalprice.Instead,theEUimportedtherawsugaratthehighprice,refinedit,and shippedan equivalent amountofwhite sugarback toworldmarkets.ThiscostEUtaxpayers$800millionayearinextrasubsidiesandexpandedtheworldglut.

Thedevelopingworld’sresentmentoftheEU’ssugarsubsidiescrystallizedattheWorldSummitonSustainableDevelopmentinJohannesburg,SouthAfrica,in2002.EuropeanleaderstooktothepodiumtothumptheirchestsaboutallthegoodworktheEUwasdoingtoreducepovertyaroundtheworld,particularlybycoming to the aidof downtrodden farmers.Butwhen it came to the summit’scontentiousnegotiationsonreducingtheagriculturalsubsidiesofrichcountries,theEUralliedtothedefenseofitsownfarmers.

When negotiators from the developing world wanted a summit declarationcalling for the rapid eliminationof farmsubsidies,EUdelegates twicewalkedoutoftheclosed-doormeetings.Thedevelopingworldwasoutraged.Inprotest,the international aid organization Oxfam dumped heaps of European sugar,packagedinlittlesachets,nearthecaféswherethedelegatesdined.“Lesssweetthan it tastes! 100% Pure EU Sugar,” advertised the sugar sachets. “Made inEurope,Dumped inAfrica.Contains:Hidden subsidies (70%), artificial prices(30%).BroughttoyoubyEUconsumersandtaxpayersfor$1.6billionayear.WARNING:DevastatingtoAfricanfarmers.”

Severalhours’drivetothesoutheastfromthesummitinJohannesburg,inthesugar cane fields north ofDurban, the impact onAfrican farmerswas on fulldisplay.Monica Shandu, freshly crowned national Cane Grower of the Year,wasonherwayhomefromchurch,walking the threemilesupanddownhillsbecauseshecouldn’taffordacaror tractor.Sheandherextendedfamilylivedwithout electricity or indoor plumbing in a cluster of severalmud huts and a

small,half-finishedcinder-blockhouse.Themotheroffourandgrandmotheroftwoharvestedheraward-winningcropspreadoverfouracresbyhand,swingingamachetedayandnight.Afterexpenses,shepocketedjust$200ayear.“Pricesarereallyso low,”Shandusaid,clutchingherBibleandkeepinguphersteadypace.

UnliketheEuropeansugarbeetfarmers,ShanduandtherestofSouthAfrica’scanegrowerswereatthemercyoftheworldprice.Ofthecountry’s2.6milliontonsofsugarproductionin2002,morethanhalfwasexported,whereitcollidedwiththesugarbeingdumpedbyEurope.AgriculturaleconomistscalculatedthatiftheEUcutitsproductionandstoppedsellingontheworldmarket,thesugarpricewould improveby about 20percent, andSouthAfricawould reap about$40 million more from its exports. It also would make expansion of canefarmingmoreeconomicallyviableandgenerateafurther$60million.Thislossof $100 million in potential earnings nearly erased the $120 million indevelopmentaidtheEUextendedtoSouthAfrica.

MonicaShandu’slosswasDominiqueFievez’sgain.FievezwasaprominentsugarbeetgrowerinthefertileSommeregionofFrance,aboutahundredmilesnorthofParis.Helivedinagabledchateausetamidaparkofoaks,lilacs,andmanicured lawns. Like his father before him, he cultivated 60 acres of sugarbeets under a lucrative EU production quota that brought in a government-guaranteedpricenearlytripletheworldpricethatShandureceived.TheOECDestimated that a French farmer with an average sugar beet plot of 33 acresreceivedsubsidiesofabout$23,000.Fievez’splot—andtake—wasdoublethat.Hesaidhewouldliketoturnthewhole420-acrefarmovertosugarbeets,sinceitwasonaverageabout50percentmoreprofitablethanhisothercropsofwheatand corn. But anything over his quota hewould have to sell at the depressedworldprice,likeShandudid.Sohestuckwithcornandwheat.

FievezwasthepresidentoftheregionalbranchoftheGeneralConfederationof Sugar Beet Growers, a powerful farm lobby. Just before the EuropeanCommission was due tomake a new set of proposals for CAP reform in themonthsbefore theJohannesburgdevelopmentsummit,he joined10,000fellowfarmers in a protest outside the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France.Whenthereformproposalswerereleasedamonthafterthefarmers’protest,thesugarregimewasn’ttouched.“Wemusthavepricesguaranteedinlinewithourcostofliving,”FieveztoldourWallStreetJournalcolleagueGeoffWinestock.ThefarmerworriedthatkillingsubsidiescoulddevastatetheFrenchcountryside

and stir turmoil in France. “I must have something to hand down to mychildren,”hesaid.

Thecontrastbetweenrichandpoorintheworld’scottonfieldswasnevermoreapparent thanoneday inearlyJune2002when the inkwasstilldryingon theFarmBill.RainhadjustfalleninKorokoro,Mali,aflyspeckofavillageintheNigerRiverbasin,andtheSangarefamilyrushedtoprepareitsfifteenacresforcotton planting to catch as much of the early rains as possible. One of thebrothershitchedaone-bladeplowtotwolankyoxen.Hewalkedbarefootbehindtheplowwhileayoungnephewwalkedinfrontoftheoxen,guidingtheminareasonablystraightlineoverweedsandrocksandhardlumpsofsoil.

Drenchedinsweat,theywonderedwhetheritwasallwastedeffort.Afterthepreviousharvest,oncethefarmingcostswerepaid,theSangarefamilywasleftwith less than $2,000 for the year to support two dozen familymembers andrelatives.Now,withworld cotton prices at their lowest in three decades, theyweretoldbythegovernmenttheywouldbegettingafewcentslessperpoundofcottonwhilefertilizerandpesticidecostswererising.Wouldtheyearnenoughtoreplenishtheircattlestock?Tosendtheyoungerchildrentoschool?Tofeedeveryonefortheentireyear?

“We’llhavetoreducewhatwecanbuy,”saidoneoftheSangaresasseveralfamily members sat under a tree and pondered the future. “These prices arereallygoingtoruinus.”

OnthesameJunedaythattheraincametoKorokoro,cottonseedlingspushedup through the thick black soil of Perthshire Farms, a 10,000-acre cottonplantationhalfaworldawayinAmerica’sMississippiDelta.KennethHood,theeldest of four brothers running the farm and chairman of theNational CottonCouncil—themanfirstinlinetoshakethepresident’shandafterthesigningofthe 2002FarmBill—climbed into the air-conditioned cab of a $125,000Casetractorandpreparedtogivetheseedlingsadousingoffertilizer.Theenormoustractor, one of twelve on the farm, was equipped with digital displays, four-wheeldrive,andanair-cushionedseat.Thesixty-one-year-oldHood,wearingabutton-downOxfordshirt,fiddledwithaglobalpositioningsatellitesystemthatindicatedhowmuchfertilizertosquirtontotheplants.

TherewasnoobvioussigninGunnison,Mississippi,thatworldcottonprices

were at rockbottom.TheHood familywas continuing tobuyparcels of land.ThenextdayHoodwouldbetravelingtoNewOrleanstochairameetingoftheNationalCottonCouncilattheRitz-CarltonHotel.“Therearelotsofreasonstobeoptimistic,”hedeclared.

TheHoodshadcollectedroughly$750,000insubsidies theyearbefore,andnow the new Farm Bill offered them the prospect of even more. AcrossMississippi,the1,700orsocottonfarmerscouldcountonreceivinghundredsofmillionsof federaldollars,whichwerecherishedasvital tokeeping thecottonindustry alive. As in rural Mali, cotton was the single biggest part ofMississippi’sDeltaeconomy.Cottonand thevariousbusinesses thatdependedon it generatedmore than$3billion in revenue for the region.About half thejobs insomeDeltacountieswere tied tosupplyinggoodsorservices tocottonfarmersorworkingforthem.

TheMississippiDelta farmerswere sodependenton subsidiesbecause theywereamongthehighest-costcottonproducersintheworld:Itcouldtake$600toproduce an acre of Delta cotton. One mechanical cotton picker, capable ofreapingenoughcottoninadaytomake150bales,eachweighing480pounds,could cost $300,000. Much of the cotton land was irrigated. The seed waspremium priced because itwas geneticallymodified to resist bugs. Expensivefertilizers spurred growth in the spring, and defoliants exposed the boll forharvestinthefall.

Delta cotton farmers could grow corn, soybeans, and wheat much morecheaply,butswitchingcropswouldrendermuchof their investmentworthless.“Icanonlyruncottonthroughmycottonpicker,”saidEdHesterwhileleaningon thehoodofhisChevypickupas a cropduster circledon thehorizon.Andwhy should he change? His 4,200-acre farm in Benoit, Mississippi, a stretchdowntheroadfromtheHoodfarm,receivedabout$400,000insubsidiesevenbeforethenewFarmBillincrease.“Cottonisstillkinginmybook,”Hestersaid.

“The Delta needs cotton farmers, and they can’t exist without subsidies,”Hood insisted. As for the ragged farmers in Mali? Well, there wasn’t muchsympathy for them in Mississippi. If they can’t keep up, Hood suggested,“MaybethefarmersinAfricashouldbetheonesnotraisingcotton.”

Thatwouldleavemorethan2millionhouseholdsinWestandCentralAfricawhoreliedoncottonutterlydestitute.Andseveralnationaleconomieswouldbewithoutanexportcrop.BakaryTraore,presidentofMali’sstatecottoncompany,

hadabetteridea.Hedidn’twanttodeprivetheAmericancottonfarmersoftheirincome. Not at all, for he, and all Malians, knew what it was like to havenothing. “Itwouldbebetter [for theUnitedStates] topay their farmersnot toplant cotton,” he said. Thatway, the cheap handpickedMali cottonwould bebetterabletocompeteontheworldmarket.AndtheSangarefamilycouldfulfilloneofitsdreams.Madou,theeldestbrother,saidtheirplanwastoearnenoughmoney from cotton to send youngest brother Bala to high school and then tocollege inFrance, or even theUnitedStates—somewherewithbetter jobs andprospects thanMali. Then Bala would send money from his job back to thebrothersinKorokoro,alleviatingtheirdependenceonthecottonprice.Butwithcotton revenues dwindling, the dreamwas fading. “WewantBala and all ourchildrentohavebetterlivesthanus,”Madousaid.“Wewantthemtoeatbetter,have better health, be better educated.” Beyond the cotton, this aspiration—abetterlifeforthechildren—wastheonethingtheSangareshadincommonwithU.S.farmers.“Isn’tthatwhateveryonewants?”Madouasked.

It was certainly what farmers across Africa wanted. But internationaldevelopment practice had left them to fend for themselves in a global tradingsystemincreasingly tiltedagainst them.As theU.S.FarmBillwent intoforce,hungerspreadacrossAfrica,dashingdreamsandstealinglives.

In Ethiopia, two decades of neglect and hypocrisywere about to erupt intoanotherepicfamine.

CHAPTER6

Who’sAidingWhom?

NAZARETH,ETHIOPIA,2003

ThemainroadtoNazarethispavedwithgoodintentions.ItbeginsattheportofDjibouti on theGulf ofAden and runswest through theAfarDesert, past theancientsandswherethebonesofourhominidancestor“Lucy”werefound,andfinallyalong theAwashRiverbasinup to theRiftValleyhighlandsandon toAddis Ababa. In times of great hunger, this is the road that brings relief toEthiopia.Overtheyears,millionsoftonsofgraingrownbyAmericanfarmers,andthegoodintentionsthattravelwiththem—tofeedstarvingEthiopianswhilehelpingU.S.agriculture—havemadethisjourney.

Thereisasecond,less-traveled,roadtoNazareth.Thisoneshootsupfromthesouth,fromtheArsiandBaleregionswhereChombeSeyoum’sfamilyhaslongfarmed. In good years, when the rains generously sprinkle the highlands,caravansoftrucksmakethetreknorthladenwiththebountyofEthiopia’swheatandcornfarmers.

The two roadsmeet in the center of Nazareth, in a cacophonous cluster ofunbridledcommerce:marketstalls,busstops,outdoorrestaurants,transithotels,andchickenandgoatauctions.During2003,astruckspiledhighwithfoodcamespeeding into that intersection from both directions, there was a spectacularcollision: The mythology of American food aid ran smack into the reality ofAfricanagriculture,wherehungerandplenty, shortageandsurplus, sometimesexistsidebysideinthesamecountryinthesameyear.

JermanAmente,athirty-nine-year-oldEthiopianfarmerandgraintrader,hadaroadsideviewofthecollision.Standinginthedirtparkinglotoutsidehisgrainwarehouse,hecouldfeelthetrucksrumblinginfromDjibouti,massivedouble-load wagons stacked to the top with 220-pound white woven-plastic bagsbearing the characteristic red, white, and blue markings of American foodintendedforstarvingforeigners.Thetruckscameinwaves,carryinginallmorethan 1 million tons of wheat, corn, beans, peas, and lentils from the UnitedStates.Thegroundshookastheyrolledoverthepotholes.

Jerman shook with anger whenever he saw those trucks, for inside hiswarehouse, a vast concrete cavern,was an astonishing sight in a country thensufferingfromepichunger:baguponbagofEthiopianwheat,corn,beans,peas,andlentilsstackedintoweringcolumnsstretchingtowardtheceiling.ThiswaswhatChombeandSasakawa’sTakeleGebrewantedeveryonetosee.Itwasthebounty from the twoseasonsbefore, thebumpercrop fromJerman’s farmandfromthefieldsofhisneighborsinArsiandBaleandthegrain-growingregionsout west. This was the fruit of Sasakawa and Borlaug’s effort to introducefarmingmethodsthatwouldboostproduction.Thesecropswerealsopreservedinwhitesacks,thoughtheyborethegreen,yellow,andredstripesofEthiopia.WhileAmerican-grownfoodpouredintothecountry,thishomegrownEthiopiansurpluslanguisheduntouched.

Jerman,ashort,wiry,energeticman,scrambled to thesummitofoneofhismountains of grain and comically posed for pictures. “I should hold a signsaying,‘Pleasesendfood.InEthiopiawehavenofood!’”Hehowledwickedly.“Idon’tthinkAmericanscanimaginethis.”

No,in2003,Americansimaginedtheirfoodaidarrivingtosavethedayamidblighted landscapes of misery where everything was brown, dying, and grim.Their perceptions of the situation—and of their own best intentions—wereperhaps most clearly expressed on one of the trucks that rolled up to theEthiopiangovernment’s strategicgrain storehouse inNazareth,groaningunderthe weight of American wheat and corn to be unloaded there. The truck’spassenger-side window had been converted into a stained-glass painting ofJesus. It was perfect imagery: Jesus, in Nazareth, bringing salvation to theEthiopians.

Americans certainly didn’t imagine their food aid arriving in green fields,rollingpastwarehousesfulloflocalfood.Theydidn’timagineAfricancountries

producinggrain surpluses, certainly not those countrieswith all those starvingpeople. And they certainly didn’t imagine their aid being welcomed by bittersarcasmfromthelocalfarmers.

“AmericanfarmershaveamarketinEthiopia,butwedon’thaveamarketinEthiopia,” huffed Kedir Geleto, who managed a grain-trading operation inNazareth.Kedir,withJerman,ledatouroftheirwarehousesinNazareth,justoffthemain road fromDjibouti toAddisAbaba.Doingaquick inventory in theirheads,theyestimatedthatatleast100,000metrictonsofEthiopian-growngrain,beans,andpeaswereidlinghere.And,theybelieved,therewereanother50,000tons stored elsewhere in the country. Itwas surplus food they hadn’t sold thepreviousyear,whenpriceshadcollapsed.Theyhadheldit intheirwarehousestopreventpricesandfarmerincentivefromplummetingevenlower.Andnow,withnearly2milliontonsofinternationalfoodaidrushingintothecountry,themarketwasfurtherundermined.

Thetwotradersknewthattheirgrainwasn’tnearlyenoughtofeedalloftheircountrymen,and,asEthiopians,theyweregratefulfortheinternationalfoodaid.“Wereallyappreciateit,”saidJerman.Yetasfarmersandbusinessmen,heandmanyofhiscolleagueswerealsodisgustedanddiscouraged.

Jermanreportedthatsomefarmershaulingtheirowngrainupfromthesouth,hopingtosellitonthemarkets,hadpulledaU-turninNazarethwhentheymetthe food-aid trucks coming in from the east. They returned to their farms andstashed thegrain in flimsystorage facilities,breezybinsopen to theelements,whereinsectsandpestsandtheheatwouldruinitinamatterofmonths.Whatkindofincentivewasthisforfarmerstoimprovetheirharvests?Withfoodaidfloodingintothecountry,whatwastheuseofproducingasurplus?

“Wedon’toppose foodaid.When there’sadeficit in thecountry,ofcourseweneedit.Butwhenthere’splentyoffoodinsomepartofthecountry,thenit’sunbelievable,” said Bulbula Tulle, Chombe’s neighbor who had his ownstorehouseinNazareth.

Why,themenwondered,didn’tAmericaprovidecashaidtobuyupthelocalsurplus,andthensendfoodtocovertherestoftheshortage?“IftheAmericansreallywanttohelpus,tofeedourhungryandtohelpourfarmers,”Kedirsaid,“firstofall theymustbuywhatisavailablefromthefarmersandmerchantsinthecountry.”

ButtheAmericanscouldn’tbuyfromthelocalfarmers.Sincethe1940s,the

U.S.CongressfollowedtheprinciplethatAmericanfoodaidmustbegrowninAmerica.Astheyearswentby,U.S.businessandpoliticalinterestshadcometowieldevermoreinfluenceoverfood-aidpolicy,keepingthefocusonwhatwasbestforAmericanagribusinessandforthepoliticiansitsupportedratherthanonwhatwasbestfortheworld’shungry.EvenasAmericangenerositygrew—halfof all international food aid is provided by theUnited States—so did its self-interest.

“IfwetaketheperspectiveoftheAmericanfarmer,itislogicaltosupplyfoodaidtotheworld.ThisistherightpolicyforAmerica,”saidJerman.“ButifthemainaimofaidisnotonlytosupportAmericanfarmersbuttosupportthepoorcountry,thenthedonorsmustdowhatisbestfortheEthiopianfarmersandtheEthiopianpeople.If this is theaim,tosolvethehungerproblem,thentheU.S.mustchange.Don’tonlysendyourfood.”

Following the 1984 famine, Ethiopia routinely had been the largest annualrecipientofemergencyfoodaidinsub-SaharanAfrica.U.S.foodaidalonewasrunningatmorethan$250millionayearleadingupto2003.Asthevolumeofthis emergency food aid expanded, the amount of longer-term aid to helpdevelopEthiopianagricultureandavertfuturefaminescontracted.In2003,U.S.emergencyfoodaidjumpedtomorethan$500million,comparedtolessthan$5millionspentonagriculturaldevelopmentprojects.Andwhenthatfoodaidcamestreaming inwhile Ethiopian farmers couldn’t sell their surplus from the yearearlier,adarkcynicismspreadacrosstheland:Maybefoodaidwasmeantnottosolvethehungerproblembuttoperpetuateit.“AmericanfarmersneedEthiopianfamine,”saidBulbulabluntly.“IfAmericanfarmersaren’tputtingtheircropsinhere,thenwherewouldtheygo?”

The dependency ran two ways. The regular deluge of food aid had turnedEthiopiaintoaglobalwelfarestate.AnditsrelianceonthehugevolumesfromtheUnitedStatesbredabizarredependencyonweatherandgrowingconditionsintheAmericanMidwest.“Youhearpeoplesaytheydon’tcarewhetheritrainsinEthiopia as long as it rains in Iowa,” saidMesfinAbebe, an adviser to thedeputyprimeministerandministerofruraldevelopmentduringthefamine.HesatonabrownsofainagovernmentofficebuildingatopahillinAddisAbaba,stirringacupoftea.Aphotoofadonkeyrunningacrossthedesertrestedonawoodencabinet;alonelyredtiehungonametalhatstand.Thecityandallits

povertysprawledbeyondhisconcretebalcony.

“Food aid in Ethiopia has really perpetuated a dependency syndrome. Thegovernmentispainfullyawareofthis,”lamentedProfessorMesfin,strokinghisgoatee as he gazed out the window. It was shameful, he said, that manyEthiopianshadbecomesofood-aiddependent,waitinginlineforhoursonceamonthtoget theirwhitebagsemblazonedwiththeAmericanlogosrather thanworkingtotrytofeedtheirfamiliesthemselves.“Theyconsiderittheirrighttogetfoodaid,”hesaid,“whethertheyarestarvingornot.”

A day’s drive south of Mesfin’s office, the 120 families of Boditi, in thehighlandsnearBoricha,werestarving.Theyweresodesperateforfoodthattheyrushed forward theminute relief-aidworkers began hauling bags ofAmericanwheatoutofa small storageshed.Villageelders,wielding long, thinwhiplikesticks,chasedbackthemostaggressive,particularlythosescramblingaboutwithreedbasketstocaptureanyspillagefromthebags.

LaaLakamo,afatheroften,patientlywaitedhisturnonhislittleplotoflandbesidethedistributionsite.“Idon’thaveenoughtofeedanyofthem,”hesaidofhis children, some of whom stood at his side, holding tight to his legs. Thedroughthadwipedouthiscornandbeans theyearbefore.Thearea insidehisone-roomhutwherehewouldnormallystorefoodwasbarren.Heactuallyhadlessthannothing,hesaid,forhewasindebttocreditorsfortwoyears’worthoffertilizer and seed. His clotheswere in tatters. He balanced a square piece ofblackandgreencarpetonhisheadtowardofftheblazingsun.

Butathisfeet,ashewaitedforhisfood-aidration,greenstalksofcornshotupfromtheground,nearlytohisknees.Theearlyrainshadbeengood,butheworried that the late rainessential tokeep thecorngrowing tomaturitywouldfail,extendinghisdependenceonfoodaidforanotheryear.Ashewatchedhisneighborsatthedistributionsitecarryawaybagafterbagfestoonedwiththered,white,and,bluestripesof thedonorcountry,Laaobserved,“At least therainshavebeengoodinAmerica.”

InNazareth,150milesnorthofBoditi,amorningrainstormfloodedthestreets.Itwas heavy but brief, ending as suddenly as it started.The skies brightened.Roosterscrowed.But themood in thewarehouses remaineddark.“Ifwekeepgettinggoodrainsallover thecountry, theharvestwillbegood,”Jermansaid.

“Butstill,thefoodfromAmericawillcome.”

Jerman carried a slim, hollow silver poker as he inspected his columns ofgrain.Randomly,hewould thrust it intoabagofwheatorcornorbeans, andretrieveasample.“Look,”hesaid,clutchingahandfulofcorn.“It’ssuitableforhumanconsumption.It’shighquality.”

TamiratHaileMariam, a driver from the big city ofAddis, leaned in for alookandgasped inastonishment.“I’veneverseenanything like this,”hesaid.“Wehearthatwedon’thaveanyfoodinthiscountry,thatwemustbefedbytherestoftheworld.ButhereisEthiopianmaize!”

AlittlemothflutteredpastJerman’sface.Hemissedwithaswat,thentoldhisforeman,“Youmustfumigate.”Thelastthingheneededwasaninfestation.

Jerman hurried to his wheat warehouse. No bugs there. “Come, come,” heurged, approaching a tower of sacks. He inserted the poker and pulled out ahandful of wheat. “This is better for us than U.S. wheat. This is hard brownwheat,goodforpasta.”

“Thisisunbelievable,”saidTamirat,hiseyeswidening.

In Bulbula’s warehouse, Tamirat grabbed some corn himself from an openbag.“Look!”heshouted.“Goodforporridge!”

Thatgave Jermanan idea. “Lunch!”he said. “You’ll seewehaveplentyoffood, all from Ethiopia.” Jerman led the way to the Rift ValleyHotel on theDjibouti-Addisroad.Whilethefood-aidtruckstrundledpast,thegrouporderedstir-friedfishandpork,Wienerschnitzel,beefkebabs,spaghettimadefromthatbrown Ethiopian wheat, and lentil soup with the orange tinge of Ethiopianlentils.

“And inAmerica theybelievewehaveno food,”Kedir scoffedas the feastarrivedatthetable.

Over lunch,KedirandJermanwonderedifEthiopianfarmerswouldeverbeaspoliticallypowerfulas theybelievedAmerican farmers tobe.The twomenwerepartofagroupofgraintradersandlargefarmerswhohadrecentlysentapetition to the prime minister’s office, urging the government to seek moneyfromdonornationstobuylocalgrainforfood-aiddistributionbeforebringinginmore from theoutside. In thepetition, theywarned that ifwarehousesweren’tcleared out soon, theywouldn’t havemoney to buy up the coming harvest or

spacetostoreit.Peasantincomeswouldagaincollapse.Loanswouldgounpaid.Foodwouldrotonthefarms.Farmerswouldplantlessthenextyear.Thecycleof famine would keep on spinning. “And we’ll never develop,” Jermanconcluded.

Awaiter approached the tablewith a check for the lunch—less than twentydollars for six people. Jerman moved quickly to snatch it away from theAmericaninthegroup.Histriumphantlaughfilledtherestaurant.“WehavehadenoughfreelunchfromAmerica!”hesaid.

Ontheothersideoftheworld,inAmerica,attheverysametime,acoalitionofU.S.farminggroupswasdraftinganotherpetitionwithadiametricallyoppositeplea.TheywereappealingtotheWhiteHouseformorefood-aidexports.TheywantedWashingtontobeginbuyingfromU.S.farmersaminimumof3millionmetrictonsofwheatayeartodonateinfoodaidaroundtheworld,upfromthe2.2milliontonsofthepreviousyear.Americanfarmerswereproducingtwiceasmuchwheatasthecountryneeded.Thatsurplusneededtobemovedsomehow,somewhere,beforeprices fell. “Webelieve theU.S.government should ‘KeeptheFoodinFoodAid,’”thelettersaid.ItconfirmedwhattheEthiopiantraderssuspected:AmericanfarmersneededhungryAfricans.

“We need food aid to get rid of our excess commodities,” explained JimEvans from his cab atop awheat combine near the Idaho-Washington border.During the wheat harvest in America’s fertile Pacific Northwest, Evans spentday and night piloting his John Deere combine, a twelve-ton behemoth thatinhaled1,000bushelsanhour,orabout twenty-seventons,overhis1,000-acrefarm. He figured that about one-third of the roughly $200,000 he generatedannuallyfromwheat, lentils,andpeascamefromdoingbusinesswithfood-aidprograms.“Foodaidhasahugeimpactonfarmshere,”Evanssaid.“Withoutthebusiness,ImighthavetogetajobatWal-Mart.”

ThisregionwasknownasthePalouse,amonikertakenfromtheFrenchwordfor “green lawn.” Probably no other place in America relied so heavily onsupplying foodaid to feed itsown local economy.Theclimatemade thehillyregionuniquelysuitedforgrowingafewminorcrops,suchaslentils,peas,andthe softwhitevarietyofwheat.But the thingwas,Palouse farmersgrewa lotmoreof thesecrops thanAmericanscouldeat.Mostof thewheatgrown therewasconsumedoverseas.Whattheycouldn’tsellabroadwassnappedupbythe

U.S.governmenttouseasfoodaid,whichhadbeenconsumingabout10percentof the crop. Without those food-aid orders, wheat prices would fall, and sowouldlandprices,wheatindustryofficialsargued.

In 2003, farmers on the Palouse and on the Ethiopian highlands foundthemselves in the same leaky boat riding out the turbulent waters of bumperharvestsandlowerprices.ButthePalousefarmershadthefood-aidmarketasalifepreserver.“WefeelitwouldbeadisasterforU.S.agricultureifthesystemchanges,” said Thomas B. Mick, chief executive officer of the WashingtonWheatCommission,afarmer-fundedgroup.TheEthiopianfarmerswerelefttosink.

The Palouse-grown peas that were cleaned and processed at Spokane SeedCompany in Spokane,Washington, were used in everything fromCampbell’sSouptoGerber’sBabyFood.Butstill,therewereplentyleftover,sothefamily-owned firm relied on food-aid orders for 40 percent of its sales. “People hereknow their jobs depend in part on food aid,” said Jim Groth, plantsuperintendent, as he grabbed a handful of dried yellow peas from a giantrotating cylinder.Thosepeasweremaking theirway intobags embossedwiththeU.S.AgencyforInternationalDevelopmentlogo,partofa420-tonfood-aidorder for Kenya. Kenya bordered Ethiopia to the south, but none of theEthiopiansurplushadmovedthere.U.S.foodaidhadcorneredthatmarket.

Down the street in Spokane, at Northwest Pea and Bean Company, GaryHeatontoiledintheshadowsofmetalsilosfulloflentils.Hismostimportantjobasmanagerwasscanningthegovernment’stwice-monthlyorderlistforfoodaid.Onelinecaughthiseye:Thegovernmentwasrequestingtwoandahalfrailcarsof lentils for shipment to Djibouti. By the end of the year, they would besteaming in on the road past Jerman’swarehouses inNazareth. “Ethiopia hasbeengoodforus,”Heatonsaid.

The hunger business was keeping the U.S. lentil industry afloat. WhenswellingCanadian production sharply depressedU.S. prices in 2001, theU.S.government nearly doubled its food-aid purchases from American farmers to83,000tons,whichwasmorethanhalfofthePalouse’sentireharvest.In2002,NorthwestPeaandBean,partofafarmer-ownedcooperative,soldone-thirdofitslentilsandpeastofood-aidprograms,abusinessvaluedat$2.8million.

TheplightofEthiopia’sfarmersandcommodity traders—andtheirplea thatdonors like the U.S. government should contribute money to buy Ethiopian

cropsforfoodaid—didn’tgetmuchsympathyonthePalouse.“Theideamakesmyhairstanduponend,”saidJimThompson,whoraised1,400acresofwheatand lentils near Farmington, Washington. In August 2003, he sold $20,000worthof lentils to thegovernmentforfoodaid.“Idon’tfeel likeI’mtoblamefortheproblemsinthedevelopingworld,”hesaid,standinginthemiddleofoneof his fields at dusk.His facewas haggard from a long day in his harvestingcombine.“IjusttrytoproduceasmuchasIcansoIcanmakeendsmeet.”

America’s food-aid program, run by the federal government, beganwith goodintentions inWorldWar I,whenminingengineerandfuturePresidentHerbertHooverledprivateeffortstofeedandclothemillionsofwarvictimsinEurope.Butwhenfederalmoneygotinvolved,sodidpoliticsandpoliticiansfriendlytopowerfulagricultural interests. In1949,Congresspassed its first food-aid law,designed to dispose of surplus crops being turned over to the government bysubsidizedfarmers.Themandatewentforth:AmericanfoodaidmustbeintheformofU.S.crops,notmoney.

With price-depressing American surpluses continuing to grow, farm-statelegislators such as Senator Hubert H. Humphrey ofMinnesota championed apermanent food-aid policy. A law passed in 1954, called PL-480, or morepopularly,“FoodforPeace,”gavenationseasycreditforbuyingAmericancropsandgavetheWhiteHouseabigbudgetfordonatingU.S.agriculturalproductsaroundtheworld.Initsearlyyears,foodaidwasresponsibleformorethanhalfofAmerica’swheatexports.

In the 1980s, Washington cooked up novel new outlets for agriculturalsurplus.RatherthandispatchingcashgrantstoU.S.humanitarianaidgroupsfordevelopment projects such as digging wells and vaccinating children, thegovernmentgavethemfoodcrops.Theaidgroupsthensoldthesedonationsinthe foreign countries where they worked, turning the food into cash. ThiscircuitoussystemofforeignaidwasgiventheOrwellianmonikermonetization.Sometimes,thesesalesofU.S.foodsqueezedlocalproductsoutofthemarket;inEthiopia,severalcooking-oilcompanieshadgoneoutofbusinesswhenabigshipmentofAmericanvegetableoilhitthemarket.

Over the years, a cozy economic equation evolved:WhenU.S. farm priceswere depressed by production gluts, the volume of food aid rose. The size ofAmericangenerosityseemedtiedtoconditionsontheAmericanfarm.In1999,

the Clinton administration tripled the amount of wheat bought for food aid,buyingmillions of metric tons in the hope of lifting prices from their lowestlevels in twodecades.Thateffort includedoneof thebiggestaiddeals inU.S.historyuptothattime,asWashingtonspentabout$250milliontodonatewheattoRussia,counteringtheeffortsoftheEuropeansandotherstosellwheatthere.Twoyearslater,whenfood-aidordersforriceslowedin2001,lawmakersfromricestateswrotetheWhiteHouse,complainingthatmillswereclosing.Thenextyear,federalpurchasesofriceforfood-aidprogramsjumped53percentto$81.2million.

European food-aid policy had also originally begun as a way to get rid ofsurplus crops. Spurred on by subsidies tied to production, European farmersbecamefamousforproducing toweringmoundsofexcess food.Theadditionalcosts related to these surpluses—separate export subsidies to move thecommodities and payments to store or dispose of any crops that couldn’t beconsumedwithin Europe or exported—became a huge drain on the EuropeanUnion’sbudget.MountingtaxpayerprotestsoverthesecostspromptedtheEUtochange its farm-subsidy regime; most subsidies linked to production werescrapped, and the supportwas insteaddoledout as direct incomepayments tofarmers to maintain income stability regardless of the amount of cropproduction.Within a fewyears, the overwhelming surpluses disappeared.Andsodidtherationaleformovingcropsthroughfoodaid.In1996,theEUfood-aidpolicy switched to donating cash to buy food as close to the recipients aspossibleratherthanalwayssendingfoodfromEurope.

AsEthiopiadescendedintofaminein2003,theEUwasthusabletoprovidecash tofirstpurchasefoodavailable locally. Inhiswarehouse,JermanAmenteshowedoff7,000tonsofgrainpackedinbagsstampedwith theSwedishflag;Sweden had donated cash to Ethiopia’s disaster-relief organization, some ofwhich was used to buy a portion of Jerman’s surplus for distribution to thehungry.

Andrew Natsios, the administrator of the U.S. Agency for InternationalDevelopment,wanted todo thesame.He felthandcuffedby theU.S. food-aidlegislation in addressing theEthiopian famine.Buying locallywould speedupthejourneyoffoodtothehungry,heargued;gatheringupandthenhaulingU.S.commoditieshalfwayaroundtheworldcouldconsumemorethanfourmonths.Local purchases, he said, would also encourage Ethiopia’s farmers by givingthemamarket.And,he insisted, itwouldbecheaper.U.S. legislationrequired

that 75 percent of food aid must leave the country on vessels owned byAmerican companies (shipping companies having borrowed a page fromagribusiness’spoliticalplaybook),whichtendedtochargesomeofthesteepestratesonthehighseas.Overall,U.S.officialscalculated,roughlyhalfthecostofgettingAmericanfoodaidtothehungrywasbeingconsumedbytransportation,storage, and handling.World Food Program logistics experts in Addis Ababafigured that transportation and handling from theUnited States to Ethiopia in2003addednearly$200tothecostofeachtonofgrain.

Natsios, who grew up listening to stories of his family’s experience withhungerinGreeceduringWorldWarII,toldTheWallStreetJournalin2003thathewould like tospend10percentofhis food-aidbudgeton local food.Butatthattimehedidn’tdareapproachCongresswiththatrequest.“Itwouldcauseahugecontroversy”in thefarmlobby,hesaid.“Butweneedmoreflexibility inthewaythelawiswritten.”

Heknewfoodaidwascaptive to theentrenched interestsknownas theIronTriangle. The three sides of the triangle consisted of farmers and otheragricultural interests, the shippers, and the humanitarian aid groups thatdistributedthefoodtothehungry.Thefarmersandshipperswouldvehementlyfightanychangetotherequirementthatallfoodaidbehomegrowncrops.Andthe relief agencieswarned thatbuying foodabroadand thereby slashing fundsspentonU.S.commoditieswoulderodethefarmandshippingsectors’supportforfoodaid.Withoutthatpoliticallobbyingclout,theaidworkersdoubtedtheycouldwin asmuch congressional funding for food aid solely on the principlethatfightingfamineandhungerwasthemorallyrightthingforAmericatodo.Onlynarroweconomicself-interest,theybelieved,couldwintheday.

When the petition from American farm groups asking for more food-aidexportsreachedtheWhiteHouse,therewasnoonewithanypoliticalinfluencestrongenoughtoopposeit.

NotonlydidtheIronTrianglenotyieldtotheneedsofEthiopianfarmersinthe2003famine,butitsrepresentativesboldlyfollowedthetrailofhungerlookingformorebusiness.

In the lobby of the luxuriousAddisAbaba Sheraton,where classicalmusicwaftedaroundawaterfountainandtearoom,asignpointedtoareceptiononthe

second floor. The host was the U.S. National Dry Bean Council, which hadcometoEthiopiainthemiddleofthe2003famineseekingtogetitsmembers’beansintothefood-aidmix.Althoughabout5percentofU.S.productionofdrybeans—suchaspintobeansandnavybeans—wentabroadinfoodaid,nonewasheading toEthiopia.TheDryBeanCouncilwashoping tochange that.At thereception,amidcocktailsandpetits fours,council representatives talkedup thenutritious benefit of their beans with workers from international and localorganizationsthatdistributedthefoodaid.“We’realwayslookingfortheperfectfit,wherewecanbenefitourownindustryandwherewecanrelievehungerinthe world,” explained one of the council’s representatives in an openingpresentation.

WerquMekashahadputonhisbestsuitandarrivedearly.Ashort,gregariousman, he was the local director of an American-funded group that helpedorganize smallEthiopian farmers into cooperatives. Someof his farmers grewbeans.Hethoughtthisbeancouncilfromtheothersideoftheworldmightbeanewcustomer.

WhenBobGreen,theexecutivedirectoroftheMichiganBeanCommission,wandered by and introduced himself, Werqu enthusiastically grabbed thevisitor’shand.“CanyouhelpourfarmersselltheirbeansinAmerica?”heaskedhopefully.

“Actually,”Greensaid,“werepresentAmericanbeangrowers.”

“Oh,”saidacrestfallenWerqu,droppingtheAmerican’shand.“Thenyou’reourcompetitor.”

Thenextday,justoutsideNazarethontheroadtoDjibouti,twoEthiopianlentilfarmers were also surprised to be staring down their competition. They werebarefoot,andwearingpantsandshirtsthatwereanassemblageofragsstitchedtogetherinariotouspatchworkofcolorsandmaterials.Theirfields,whichtheyworkedwiththeirhands,werebehindthemastheypausedtowatchacaravanoffood-aidtrucksrumblepast.Fromoneofthetrucksdrippedalighttrailofcargo.The farmers scurried to the road and scoopedup someof the spillage: lentils,mostlikelyfromthePalouse,perhapsfromGaryHeaton’ssilosinSpokane.

“WhywouldAmericasendlentils?”askedathirdfarmer,BashadaIffa,wholefthisfieldtojointhegroup.“WegrowlentilsinEthiopia.”

During the previous four years, Ethiopia had produced an average of about35,000tonsoflentils,andhadevenexportedabout1,200tons.Bashada,ayoungmaninhistwenties,wastendinghisownlentilsontenacresoflandstretchingalong the Djibouti road when he spied the food-aid caravan. He had oncewelcomedAmerican grain and beans and peas. The previous year, his familyreceived about 65 pounds ofwheat and other food aid tomake it through thedrought. But this season, the rains returned, and his corn, beans, and lentilslookedgood.Hebelievedhemightreapasurplus,especiallyinlentils.Now,hesawAmerican food aid as a threat. “Ifwe have a good harvest, I think theseAmericanlentilswillonlyhurtourprice,”Bashadasaid.Hescratchedhishead,reachingunderthebillofabluebaseballcapthathadalsocomefromtheUnitedStates.“IthinkAmericashouldbuyourlentils,”heconcluded.Hereadjustedhiscap.StitchedintothecrownwerethewordsGoodLuck.

CHAPTER7

Water,WaterEverywhereBAHIRDAR,ETHIOPIA,2003

Tesfahun Belachew was finding it difficult to live up to his name. Tesfahunmeans “be hope” in the Amharic language, yet he was the very definition ofdespair.Hewasdrapedinragsandhadtwirledawoollyscarfintoaturbanonhis head—themakeshift outfit of a manwithout a penny in his pockets. Thedroughthadturnedhisfieldtodust,chokinganychancetogrowcornormilletorrice.Forninemonths,sincethebeginningoftheyear,hisfamilyhadsurvivedonfoodaidfromabroad.

Anyhoperanswiftlyaway,rightpasthisfeet.TheRibbRiver,atributaryofEthiopia’smightyBlueNileRiver,floweddirectlybesidehisone-acrepatch.Ashe paced the muddy banks of the Ribb, Tesfahun uttered one of the mostconfoundingandpitifullamentseverheardinAfrica:“Thewaterisrighthere,”hesaid.“Butwecan’tgetitout.”Whynot?Whynotsiphonoutsomewaterforirrigation? “We would like to, of course,” Tesfahun explained. “We have nomoneyforpipesorpumps,andnoonewillbuilddamsorcanalsforus.Wearetoldthewaterisn’tforus.ItisforEgypt.”

Throughout the famine, the Blue Nile and its tributaries flowed strong andsteady.TheBlueNilebeginsatEthiopia’sLakeTana,whichisfedbyanumberof smaller rivers such as the Ribb originating in the country’s northern andcentral highlands, where rainfall is often plentiful. FromLake Tana, the BlueNile becomes one of Africa’s great waterways, cascading down a series of

dramatic,untamedgorgesasitcarvesa560-milearcthroughcentralEthiopia.Itrushes boldly into Sudan, and in Khartoum it meets up with the White Nilecoming from the south to form the great Nile, which surges northward intoEgypt.

TheBlueNile provides about two-thirds of theNilewater flowing throughEgypt; in all, rivers originating in Ethiopia contribute 85 percent of the Nilewater.InEgypt,thatwater,coursingthroughavastwebofdamsandirrigationcanals first commissioned by the pharaohs, turnsmillions of desert acres intofertile fields.A cornucopia ofEgyptian fruits and vegetables and grains giveslife to millions of people. Yet on the banks of Ethiopia’s Blue Nile and itstributaries,countlessfarmersandtheirfamiliesdesperatelyholdouttheirhandsforfoodaidtostaveoffstarvation.

The famineof 2003 exposedoneofAfrica’s bitterest ironies:The land thatfeedstheNileisunabletofeeditself.Tesfahunandothershadcometoabrutalconclusion: The world’s powers had decided that Egypt should prosper andEthiopiashouldbeg.“TheU.S.givesus$500millioninfoodaidthisyear,andit’s gone, it’s eaten up. But it never brings additional value to the country,”fumed Shiferaw Jarso Tedecha, Ethiopia’s minister of water resources, as thefamineraged.Abigbillboardoutsidetheministryproclaimed“WaterIsLife”;inside, wallswere plasteredwith posters blaring slogans like, “NoWater, NoLife.”Shiferawwasembarrassedthatsomanyofhiscountrymenwerestarving,andangrythathisministrywaspowerlesstohelp.“Now,ifthatmoneywouldgotoirrigationprojectsorpowerprojects,”hesaid,punchingtheairwithafinger,“itcankeeponhelpingeveryyear.Everydayitwouldmakemoney.”

Butforcenturies,treatiesandthreatsandgeopoliticshadpreventedthatfromhappening. From the time the pharaohs built the pyramids along theNile andfirstharnessedtherhythmoftheriverforirrigation,Egyptianshadlookeduponthe Nile waters as their own. In the colonial era, European rulers engineeredtreatiesthatdivviedupuseofthelowerNilebetweenEgyptandSudan(wheretheBritishgrewcotton), to theexclusionofEthiopia, the rareAfricancountrynever to be colonized and thuswithout representation at the great councils ofEurope.Ethiopia’srulersfearedthatiftheybuiltanydamstodivertwateraway,thecountrywouldbeinvadedbythemorepowerfulcountriesdownstream.

During the 1960s, at the height of theColdWar, theNilewaters became abargaining chit in the high-stakes pokermatch between the superpowers. The

SovietUnionhelpeditsclientstateEgyptconstructthevastAswanHighDamtobettermanagetheflowoftheNile.TheUnitedStatescounteredbydrawingupplanstobuildaseriesofdamsontheBlueNileinEthiopia,anAmericanallyatthetime.AyoungboynamedTakeleTarekegnwasleadinghisfamily’scattletodrinkintheKogaRiver,aBlueNiletributary,onedaywhenheencounteredagroup of strangers surveying the landscape. He later overheard village elderstalkingexcitedlyabout“Americans”andthedamstheyplannedtobuildandthebountifulharveststhatwouldfollow.Fromthatdayon,Takelekeptoneeyeonhiscowsandanotheronthedistanthorizon,waitingfortheAmericanstoreturn.

But thegeopolitics in theHornofAfrica tookasharp turn.Egyptshifted totheWesterncampandwasshoweredwithhundredsofmillionsofdollarsfromtheUnitedStates andother allied countries to rehabilitate and expand itsNilecanal network. In Ethiopia, the U.S. plans for dams on the Blue Nile wereshelved;itwasnotimetoupsetEgypt.Thoseblueprintswerethenrelegatedtothe dark recesses of the archives after Ethiopia’s emperor Haile Selassie wastoppledbyaMarxistdictatorin1974andEthiopiabecameaSovietclientstate.AllthecountrygotafterthatwasmilitaryequipmentfromtheEasternblocandfoodaidfromtheWest.TakeleneversawthoseAmericansagain.

Modern Nile politics, following the Camp David peace accords betweenEgyptandIsraelin1978,havecontinuedtofavorEgyptbecauseofitsstrategicpositionintheMiddleEast.EvenafterEthiopia’scommunistregimewasoustedin 1991, major international lenders and development agencies were loath tosupportanythingupstreamontheNile—beitirrigationschemesorhydroelectricpowerplants—thatmightdiminish thevital flowofwater toEgyptandtriggerinstability there. Ethiopia, meanwhile, lacked the funds and the engineeringknow-howtodevelopitsownbroadirrigationnetwork.

ThedisparityoffortunesdictatedbytheNilegeopoliticswasstark.In2003,Egypthad8millionacresoflandirrigatedbythousandsofmilesofNilecanals;Ethiopia had less than 500,000 acres of irrigated land. Although Ethiopiaboasted vast stretches of arable land—the government estimated there wereabout9million acres that could thrivewith irrigation—farmershad to relyontheerraticrainsfor,atbest,onecropeachyear.InEgypt,theirrigationnetworkusingwateroriginatinginEthiopiayieldedtwoorthreeharvestsannually.EgypthadharnessedtheNiletoelectrifythecountry.InEthiopia,lessthan1percentofthenation’shydropowerpotentialhadbeentapped;fewerthan10percentofitspeoplehadelectricity.Ethiopia’spercapitaconsumptionofelectricitywas the

lowestinAfrica.Thathadledtoamassiveharvestofthecountry’streesforfueland,inturn,widespreadsoilerosion.Everyevening,millionsoffireswerelittoprepare theeveningmealandprovide light.A thickblanketof smokecoveredthecrowdedcities.

Most smoke obscures.But this nightly smoke curling up from cooking andheatingfiresalloverthecountryclearlyilluminatedthefactthat,onceagain,thedevelopmentexpertshadn’theededthelessonsofhistory.“Thereisnoprecedentfor a country developing without harnessing its rivers and utilizing its waterresources,”saidDavidGrey,theWorldBank’sseniorwateradviser.

“We’ve seen thewritingon thewallduring the famine,” saidSamNyambi,whowastheheadoftheUnitedNationsDevelopmentProgramofficeinAddisAbabain2003.HewrunghishandsandpacedinhisofficeatthegrandioseUNbuilding inAddis, built in the heady early days ofAfrican independence.Thefamine, he said, injected an urgency into the nascent deliberations of a bodycalled the Nile Basin Initiative, which schemed to devise a more equitablesharingoftheNilewatersamongthetencountriesinthebasin.“TheNileforsolonghasbeenariverofconflict,”Nyambisaid.“Wemustturnitintoariverofdevelopment and hope. The amount of food aid coming into Ethiopia can’tcontinue.Something’sgottobedone.”

World Bank officials conceded that the bank didn’t want to interfere withgeopoliticalstrategybygrantingloansfordamsorirrigationprojectsontheBlueNile. They argued that, in any case, Egypt or Sudan would have raisedobjections,citingdownstreamimpact,andblockedtheprojects.ButastheBlueNilerushedpast thefaminefields in2003,“webegan to thinkmoredeeplyofthe implications of the Nile usage. The international community can’t go onforever ignoring the inequities,” said anotherWorldBankofficial. “Water andenvironmentaldegradationneedtobetargetedifEthiopiaistogrow.It’shardtothinkoftheEthiopianeconomybeingviablewithoutaccesstotheBlueNile.”

Mosteverydevelopedeconomyintheworldhasbenefitedfromharnessingitswaterways. America’s mighty rivers, particularly the Mississippi, became anintegralpartoftheagriculturaltrade;flotillasofbargesladenwithcorn,wheat,andsoybeansshuttlebetweengrainelevatorsandGulfofMexicoports,wherethecropsarereloadedontoshipsanddispatchedaroundtheworld.WesternandcentralEuropethrivedfromthecommerceconductedontheRhineandDanuberivers.

YetEthiopia,knownacrossthecontinentas“thewatertowerofAfrica,”hadremained one of theworld’s poorest countries and become its largest beggingbowl.Itdefiedlogic.Manyotherplacesoftheworld—fromtheMiddleEasttotheAmericanWest—facedlimitstotheirgrowthandrisingtensionsbecauseofwater scarcities.Places suchasChina and Indiaworriedhow their rising foodproductioncouldcontinuewhiletheirwatertablesfell.ButitwasEthiopia,withanabundanceofwater,thatwasthehungriestofall.

“PeopleareverysurprisedwhentheytravelaroundEthiopia.Youseealotofwater, we have many rivers. But yet we have drought and famine,” MeleseAwoke was saying as he drove alongside a rapidly flowing river whileinspecting food-aid distribution sites in 2003. Before becoming acommunications officer of theWorld FoodProgram,Melesewas a student ofNile politics, having written his college thesis on the subject. “Ethiopia’sproblemisnothavingenoughwater,whichisastrangethingtosayinafamine,”hesaid.“Ourproblemisaccesstothewater.”

Tesfahun Belachew knew that better than anyone. As he paced beside theRibb River and his parched field, he said he was on the lookout for thieves,thoughtherewasnothingtosteal.ThepoliticsoftheNilehadalreadytakenitallaway.

Formorethan4,000miles,thewatersoftheNileflowpastsomeoftheworld’spoorest,hungriest,andmostwar-wrackedandheavilyerodedlandscapes.Nearly200millionpeoplespreadovertencountrieslivedwithintheNilebasinin2003,andthatpopulationwasexpectedtodoubleby2025,makingthecompetitionforthewaterevermorefierce.Thesepeople,intheirownwaysandcustoms,havedeifiedtheNilewaterasagodforgivingsustenanceandlife.Buttheyhavealsodefiledthewaterwithcenturiesofjealousy,covetousness,andfear.

“This river, theNile, has causedahostile environment since the creationofhumans,”snarledBelayEjigu,Ethiopia’sagricultureminister in2003.Hespatout his words as if they were bitter wine, seething that so many of hiscountrymenmuststarvewhilesomuchwaterrushespastuntouched.AskedhowEthiopia’sfarmerscouldbenefitfromtheuseof theNile,hescoffed,“AsktheEgyptians,they’retheoneswiththeirrigation.”

“For Egypt, the Nile is the main source of life,” proclaimed Abdel Fattah

Metawie, the chairman of theNilewater sector in Egypt’sMinistry ofWaterResourcesandIrrigation.TheNilesaunteredthroughthecenterofCairo;afewblocksfromMetawie’soffice,aparty-boatcaptain,dressedlikeapharaoh,triedtoenticetouristswithalunchtimecruise.“Ifwedon’thavetheNilewewouldn’thave the pyramids. Why are there no pyramids in Libya, why are there nopyramidsinSaudiArabia?Becausetheydon’thavetheNile!”Metawieargued.He noted how theNile inspired such architecture and aided themovement ofmaterial,howitwasat thecenterofancientEgyptianworshipandmythology,andhowtheNile’sseasonalrhythmswereusedtorecordthepassageoftimeanddevelop new agriculturalmethods. “Thewholeworld has benefited from this.Whywouldyouwanttoharmthis?”

Egyptian farmer and cattleman SamirHamed cringed at the thought of lesswaterflowingtoEgypt.“WithouttheNile,Iwon’tplantcropsorraisecattleorhaveanythingtodrink,”hesaid.Heworkeda205-acrespreadaboutahundredmilesfromtheNile,a two-hourdriveonasmooth,pavedroad. Itwas the lastfarmbefore thedesert,where thecanalssurrender to thesand.Hesaidhewaslimitedtousing10,000cubicmetersofwateraday.Ifhewantedtoexpandhisoperation,hewouldneed toaddon to thecanals.“Weare the lastdropof theNile,”hesaidproudly.

Fifteenyears earlier, thisPonderosaof theSaharahadbeenall sand.But in2003,whileEthiopia starved,Hamed tended to fifty acres of apple trees; fiftyacres of grapes; twenty acres of apricot trees; forty greenhouses filled withcucumbers, peppers, broccoli, brussels sprouts, lettuce, cherry tomatoes, andeggplants;andsixhundredheadofcattle,all thanks to thewater thatbeganasrainfallinthehighlandsofEthiopia.IftheEthiopianslikewisetappedtheNile,Hamedworried,“I’msureitwouldaffecttheamountofwaterwecanuse.”

Outsideoneofhisbarns,agroupofwaterbuffalocalvescrowdedintoapenand jostled for position under a series of sprinklers. The calves had come fortheir regular shower. That too was Ethiopian water. “It makes them happy,speeds up the fattening process,” Hamed said, laughing at the sight of hisshoweringcows.“Happiercowseatmore!”

ForMohamedAbd-Elsalam,afarmerwhotilledamuchsmallerplot,theNilebenefitsweremoreexistential.“TheNileismysoul,andwithoutasoul,amanisdead,”hesaid.Herosefromaprayerrugintheshadeofatreetoshowoffhissingleacreof land,which isconnected to theNileby threemilesof irrigation

canals.He simply turned a tap—“TheAmericans built this, in 1994,” he said,pointing to the irrigation hardware—andwater filled the furrows of his crops:wheattofeedhisfamilyandgarlicforexport.

Heand three fellowfarmersdiscussed theoriginof theirpreciouswater.“ItcomesfromtheAswanHighDam,”saidone.

“No,”insistedanother,“itcomesfromSudan.”

“No,no,”correctedAbd-Elsalam.“ItrainsinEthiopiaandthewatercomestoEgypt,tothehighdamandthentous.”

TensionandsuspicionandmisinformationflowedfreelyalongwiththeNilewater.TheEgyptiansfearedthatEthiopia,perhapswithfundingfromIsrael,wasbuilding dams to block the flow of theNilewater. In hisCairo office,AbdelMetawie confirmed that these suspicions reached into elite, educated circles.“ParliamentariansandreportersarealwaysattackingEthiopia,sayingEthiopiaisbuildingdamswithU.S.andIsraelihelp,they’lltakeourwater,”hesaid.“Asatechnicianhere,Iknowit’snottrue.”Heshruggedhisshoulders,concedingthattechnicalevidencewasnomatchforparanoidconjecture.

InAddis,Ethiopia’swaterminister,ShiferawJarsoTedecha,sputteredatsuchfancifulaccusations.“WhenIvisitEgypt,journalistsaskmeaboutdamsontheBlueNileconstructedbyIsraelandotherdonors.Whydotheyaskthis?Therearesatellites,youcouldseethedams,wecan’thidethemunderground,”hesaid.“Whywouldwestop thewater?Theseare ignorantpeoplewhosay this.Whywouldwestopthewaterandkeepitallforourselves?Wegetraineveryyear,wewouldflood!”

The Ethiopians were convinced they were under constant surveillance byEgypt.TheybelievedEgyptiandiplomatsbasedinAddistraveledonlynorth,totheBlueNile region, toscrutinizewater levelsandspyon farmers.Ethiopiansalso suspected that Egyptians strategically targeted positions in internationalagencies to control water policy. “An Englishman once told me that in theinternationalfinanceagencies,inthewaterdepartments,whenyouknockonthedoorforfinancing,thefirstpersontoopenthedoorisanEgyptian,whowilltellyou to go away,” said Teferra Beyene, an engineer in Ethiopia’sMinistry ofWaterResources.“Thisiswhatwehear.”

Toalleviatethismutualsuspicion,EthiopiahadseveraltimesinvitedEgyptianopinionmakerstovisitthemostwretched,hungriestplacesofthecountry.They

flew government officials, parliamentarians, and journalists to areas north andeastofLakeTanawherethestarvationwasparticularlybadin1984andagainin2003.Thesewereareasofdeeppovertyandseverelanddegradation,achainofdenudedplateauswheretherainscarriedawaythesoilandcarveddeepgulliesintotheground.Peasantfarmersstruggledtoekeoutalivingfromthedepletedland, squeezing every bit of nutrition from the anemic dirt. Hunger wasn’tseasonal;itwaschronic.

TheEgyptiansthoughttheyhadbeenspiritedawaytoanotherplanet.“AfterwetaketheEgyptiansthere,itconvincesthem,”saidMinisterShiferaw.“Theysee the drought areas, they see how people suffer. For humanity itself, thesepeoplehavetoimprovetheirlives.AndweshowedtheEgyptiansthepotentialwehaveforirrigation.”

AbbasAlTarabeelywenton the tripwithopeneyesandanopenmind.Aneditor of the Egyptian newspaper Al-Wafd, he traveled to Ethiopia withsuspicionsandreturnedtoCairowithideas.“Whynotcreatewater-storageareasforirrigation,likesmalldams?TheywouldhelprelievesufferingwhilealsonotplacingtoomuchburdenontheNile,”hesaid.“ItisimportanttoletEgyptiansknow that the Ethiopians are going through enough without making mattersworsebyfocusingonconspiracytheories.”

Metawieagreed.“TheyarereallysufferinginEthiopia,”hesaid.HereturnedfromthefaminetourinEthiopiawithawarningforhiscountrymen:Millionsofstarving people on Egypt’s southern flank portended instability for the entireregion.WithoutdevelopmentoftheBlueNilebasin,hepredicted,“youhavetoexpectacrisisinthearea.”

TheEgyptianswerealsoalarmedwhen theysaw theamountof soilerosionthatturnedthewatersoftheNiletributariesdark.Muchofthatwouldendupassilt at the bottomof theAswan dam, reducing the storage capacity there.ThemiseryofEthiopia,theysaw,wasalsoexactingatollinEgypt.

“From thehelicopter, theEgyptians could see that not even a tree grows tohold back the soil. They were really surprised,” said YacobWondimkun, thecommissionerforsustainableagricultureandenvironmentalrehabilitationintheLake Tana region that is home to the origins of the Blue Nile. As the tourcontinued, Yacob pointed out that the only trees still standing surroundedOrthodoxchurchesonwhatisseenasholyland.“Treemuseums,”Yacobjoked.Thenhe turned serious. “Unlesswehavewatershedmanagement inEthiopia,”

Yacobinsisted,“thewholesystemwillbehurt.”

Teferra Beyene, the engineer from the ministry of water, suggested a closerinspection of the neglect, proposing an overland journey to the source of theBlueNile,andthesourceofsomuchEthiopiansufferingandanger.Itwouldbeabone-jarringeleven-hourodysseyoverruggedroadsthatsometimesdissolvedintodirtandgravelpathwayswhileskimmingflatplateausordescendingsteepgorges. It would also be a roller-coaster ride through the politics of theNile.“Youmustcometounderstandhowwecanhavefaminewithsomuchwater,”Teferrasaid.

The journey began at daybreak in Addis Ababa, as legions of women—asmanyas15,000ofthem—headedtothehillsandforestssurroundingthecapital.They would spend all day among the eucalyptus and fir trees, collectingbranches,leavesandtwigs,andothermaterialtoburn.Bynight-fall,thewomenwould be trundling back down the hills in a slow, stooped trot, with bundlesweighing seventy to a hundred pounds strapped to their backs. If they werelucky,abundlemightfetchseventycents.Untilmorehydropowerisdeveloped,the backbreaking work of the women fuelwood carriers, as they are called,wouldcontinuetobeindispensable.Biomassfuelssuchaswood,charcoal,andcow dung accounted for more than 90 percent of the country’s energyconsumptionin2003.

“Such hard work,” Teferra said as he navigated past a group of fuelwoodcarrierstrudgingtotheoutskirtsoftown.“It’sheartbreakingtosee.Suchheavyloads.”Helamentedthecontentofthosebundles,too.“Thebiomassthatpeopleburn is needed to preserve the watershed, and the cow dung to replenish thesoil,”hesaid.“TheNilepolicyhassomanyimpacts.”

Teferrawas a tallman in his fortieswith a gentle, scholarly demeanor. Forhim,thistriptotheNorthwasajourneybackintime.“Itisironic,”hesaid,“thatthemost problematic area in the country for food has been theBlueNile andTekezeRiverbasin.Thatwholeareaispronetodrought.It’sbeencultivatedforthousands of yearswith no irrigation beyond small projects. The land is veryeroded.Oneofmygrandfathers comes from that area.When Iwasyoung, hetoldmestoriesof forestsandwildanimals.Now,whenIgo, therearen’tevenbushes.”

Addis’s urban sprawl of little shackswith sheet-iron roofs gaveway to theround thatch-roofed tukuls of ruralEthiopia.About fiftymilesnorthofAddis,TeferrabroughtthewhiteToyotaLandCruisertoastopontheroadleadingtothe townofDebreLibanos.Hewalked to the edgeof a cliff andpointed to awaterfall in the distance—proof, he said, of the power-generating potential ofEthiopia’s rivers. In the valley below, farmers scrambled up and down theslopes, tending crops. “These are very steep slopes, all terraced to plantsorghum,beans,andteff[astaplegrain],”Teferraexplained.“Thesoilissothin,butstillthepeoplelivehereandfarm.”HeturnedtowalkbacktotheToyota.“Ifeelterribleforthesepeople,”hesaid.

Severalsmallriversbeganinthishighlandareaandmadetheirwaytojoinupwith theBlueNile.As the roaddescended to the lowlands, past someheavilyerodedfieldsthatlookedlikemoonscapeswiththeirbrownbarrencrevicesandoddlyshapedoutcropssculptedbythewindandrainwater,Teferraexplainedhisministry’s strategy: “If you have irrigation projects, you could move thesepeople here on the slopes to those irrigated areas and give this land, the landwheretheylivenow,timetorecover.”Bylyingfallowforacoupleofyears,hesaid,thesoilwouldreplenishandtheyieldswouldimprove,shouldthefarmersmoveback.

A few miles beyond the town of Goha Tsiyon, and about 120 miles fromAddis,theroadspiraleddownacanyon.Atthebottom,theBlueNilealternatelymeanderedthroughstraightawaysortumbledoverrapids.OnlytworoadsinthecentralpartofthecountrycrossedtheBlueNile,soinevitablythetrafficbecameheavier and more ponderous, slowing to a creep, particularly on the moretreacherousstretcheswheretruckscrawledandwheezedaroundthedescendingcurves.

Trafficcametoahaltaltogetheratadicey-lookingbridge.Onlyonevehiclewasallowedtocrossatatime,andgiventhericketywoodensupports,eventhatseemedoptimistic.Below, thewater churnedanangrybrown, thecolorof thetopsoil it had picked up along the way. The standing traffic gave soldiers achancetopeerintoeachvehicleandscanforbanditsandsmugglers.

The ministry had a plan for this gorge, too, Teferra noted while the LandCruiser idled andwaited to cross. It called for a dam to be built a bit fartherdownthecanyon.Thisoldbridgewouldbeswallowedbywater.Thetopofthedamwouldserveasthenewbridge.“Thewaterwouldfillthegorgetwenty-five

kilometers longorso[aboutfifteenmiles].Nopeople livehere,so itwouldn’tdisplaceanyone,”Teferraexplained.“Itwouldbeaprojectforhydroelectricity,but it could also pump water for irrigation. It would also provide flood andsedimentcontrol.Wecouldexportsomeof thepower toEgypt. Ifwedeveloptheprojecttogether,webothwouldgain.”Ifonly.Thoseplanshadbeensittingontheministry’sshelvesfordecades.

After a slowclimbout of the canyon,Teferra suggested abreak at the firstwateringhole toappear in thecrossroads townofDejen, theAlemHotel.Thebar was dark and cool. Posters of American actress AlyssaMilano and someinternationalsoccerstarsdecoratedthewalls.Awaiterhastilyclearedatableonthe terraceoutside.UnderbluePepsiandredCoca-Colaumbrellas—evenherethecolawarsraged—Teferraconsultedamapandchosetheroadtotheleft.Theonetotheright,hesaid,mightbequickertoLakeTana,butitwasknowntobepatrolledbybandits.Oneofhisministrycolleagueshadbeenchasedbyagangonarecenttrip.

Theroadlesstakenwasacircuitouspath,madeevenmoresobythefrequentconstruction detours choreographed by Chinese contractors hired by thegovernment to rehabilitate themain stretches.But it provided the incongruoussettingthatTeferradesired:anever-thickernetworkofcreeksandstreams—thesource water of the Blue Nile—in a region suffering from ever-thinnerproduction of food. Some of the waterways rushed by; some took their time.They all flowed past crops literally dying for a drop of water, all eventuallyendingupinLakeTanaandthenthemightyBlueNile.

“Thefarmersalwaysaskme,‘Howcanthisbe?’”Teferrasaidashestoppedtomarvelatthefast-flowingKogaRiver.Backinthe1960s,theKogawasoneoftheriversselectedbyAmericansurveyorsforanetworkofdamsthat,itwaspromisedthen,wouldprovideirrigationtothesurroundingfieldsbythedawnofthe twenty-first century. “Well,” saidTeferra, “the next century has come andwestilldon’thaveanything.”

As theparched landgaveway tomarshes, the townofBahirDar andLakeTanacameintoview.BahirDarhuggedthesouthernedgeofthelake,wheretheBlueNileemerged.TeferrastoppedtheLandCruiserasitcrossedabridge.Hepointedtoametalgateinthewater,rightneartheriver’smouth.“Thatregulatestheflowoutofthelake.We’veincreasedthelevelofthelakebytwometersandassureaminimumflowintotheBlueNile,”heexplained.“Wedon’thaveabig

peakofwateranymore,butasteadyflow.This iswhat theEgyptianswant,soeveninthedryseason,thereisaguaranteedminimumflowintheriver.”

TwentymilesdownstreamthunderedthespectacularTisIsatFalls,wheretheBlue Nile plunged over its first escarpment. Above the falls, the water lazilymeanderedthroughlushgreenmeadows,wherechildrentendedtograzingcowsandchasedafterheronsandibises.Itwasastarkcontrasttotheturbulentchaosatthebottomofthefalls,astheBlueNilecrashedintoapoolofrocks.Beforethefalls,someofthewaterwasdivertedtoaparallelcanal,whichchanneledthewater through a seventy-meter drop that powered a hydrostation generatingseventy-threemegawattsofenergy.(Itwasanamountthatwouldelectrifyabout50,000single-familyhomesintheUnitedStates; inEthiopia, itwasoneof thefewpowerplantsintheentirecountrybeyondthemaincities.)Atthebottomofthestation,thewaterrejoinedtheBlueNileandcontinuedonitsway.“See,wedon’ttakeoutanyofthewater,”Teferrawisecracked.“It’sallstillhere.”

Athree-storypinkbuildingroseontheeasternbankoftheBlueNilewhereitemergedfromLakeTana. Itwas theofficeof theSustainableAgriculturalandEnvironmental Rehabilitation Commission. A poster depicting two nursestending to a thinman lying in a bedwas plastered on the front-doorwindow:“BewareofAIDS.”Therewasalsoadecallistingadozen“principlesofethicalpublic service”: integrity, loyalty, transparency, confidentiality, honesty,accountability, serving the public interest, exercising legitimate authority,impartiality,respectinglaw,responsiveness,andexercisingleadership.

YacobWondimkun,thepublicservantwhoheadedthecommissionandwhohadearliergiven the touringEgyptians aviewof the suffering along theBlueNile, bounded out of the building with a fistful of blueprints. They were hisgrand plans to irrigate aminimumof 70,000 acres on the plains east of LakeTana.Severalrivers,includingtheRibb,runthroughthearea.Theyoriginateinthemountains sixtymiles to the east,where famine and land degradation hadbeen theworst.During the seasonal rains,when the precipitation is good, theriversfloodtheplains.Thewaterstandsinthefieldsuntilitevaporates,andthenthe farmers plant. If no further rain comes, the cropswither and die.Yacob’sirrigationplancalledforsomeofthewatertobestoredinahighlandreservoirtocontrolfloodingduringtherainyseasonandthentoprovideirrigationduringthedryperiods.“Theamountofwatersavedfromevaporationinthefieldsafterthefloodswouldcompensate for theamountofwaterused for irrigation,”Teferraexplained.“Soitwouldn’ttakeanywateroutofthesystem.FortheEgyptians,

thisshouldbeviewedasadrainageproject,becausethewaterdrainedfromthefloodswouldbeusedforirrigation.”

Yacob led theway to theRibb,and there, standing in theparchedfields,heunfurledhisblueprints.TesfahunBelachew,standingwatchforintruders,cameover for a look. The farmer complained that the drought and the inability toirrigatehislandwiththewaterrunningpasthisfeethadmadehimdependentoninternationalaid.

“This issosadandfrustratingforus,”Yacobsaid,shakinghishead.ButhetoldTesfahunthatif theplansonhisblueprintscametolife,hewouldn’tneedfoodaidanymore.If,heemphasized.Untiltheworldsupportedinvestmentinhisplans,theywouldremainjustsketchesonpaper.

“Actually,thisisavalleythatcanproducefoodaidforotherpeople,”Yacobnoted. “Our farmers always say, ‘Whynot help us grow food and then buy itfrom us and give it to people over themountain, just one hundred kilometers[aboutsixtymiles]away.Is itbetter tofeeduswithfoodaid,orshouldwebehelpedtofeedourselves?’”

The commissioner gave Tesfahun a sympathetic pat on the back. “Peopledownstream,inEgyptandSudan,theymustseethatsomethingmustbedone,”Yacobsaid.“Yourbrotheriswithoutfoodandyouhavefood.It’snonsense.”HetoldTesfahuntoholdtighttothepromiseofhisname.Behope.

OnthedrivebacktoLakeTana,aclusteroflargebrownbuildingsappearedonthehorizon.Thesunbrightlybouncedoffthetinroofs.

“Guesswhatthoseare?”Yacobchallengedhisguests.

Chickencoops?

“Tryagain.”

Greenhouses?

“No.”

A sign heralded the local operation of Ethiopia’s Disaster Prevention andPreparedness Commission. The buildings were food-aid storage warehouses.“They should be turned into grain processing factories instead of food aidwarehouses,”Yacobhowled.“I’mprovidingyouwithirony.”

Crossing back over the Blue Nile bridge at its Lake Tana source, Teferra

pointedtoanotherscenefromEthiopia’stheateroftheabsurd.Ablue-and-whitebushadbackeddownthemuddybankrighttotheriver’sedge,therearwheelsstandinginthewater.Thedriverwadedintotheriverandwaswashingthebus.Teferra erupted in laughter. “This is how we use our share of the Nile!” heproclaimed.“Wewashourvehiclesintheriverandputthewaterrightbackin.”

Afterafewminutes,thecleanbuscrawledbackuptheriverbankandrushedoff.AndsodidthewateroftheBlueNile,straighttoEgypt.

PARTII

EnoughIsEnough

CHAPTER10

“WeCanDoSomethingAboutThis”

DUBLINANDSEATTLE

Outrageoverthetreatmentoftheworld’spooreruptedintwoblastsonoppositesidesoftheglobein1997,involvingtwooftheworld’smostfamousmen.

In Dublin, Bono, who was fast becoming the biggest rock-and-roll concertshowman of his generation, read a report from a coalition of British churchgroups seeking his support for a burgeoning grassrootsmovement demandingthattheUKandotherwealthynationsforgivethedebtsofthepoorestcountriesatthedawnofthenewmillennium.Itwasacallrootedinthehumblingparablesof theBible thatBonoknewwell, and in thecold,hardeconomicsofpovertythathehadalwaysintendedtoknowbetter.OnefactwashighlightedtograbtheIrishman’sattention:The$200millionthatBandAidandLiveAidhadraised,aheroic sum, was dwarfed by Africa’s debt payments to creditors in the richworld.Inparticular,Ethiopia’sannualdebtobligationsweredoublethatamount.WhateveraidhadbeencomingintoAfricahadbeengoingrightbackoutindebtrepaymentstoWesternbanksandfinancialinstitutions.

Bonowasgobsmacked.Theequationhehadpondered inEthiopia remainedunsolved: What good was charity without justice? The singer was about todiscoveranewpurposeforhisfamousvoice.

InSeattle,BillGates,theMicrosoftmogulwhowasalreadyamongtherichestpeopleintheworld,andhiswife,Melinda,werebeginningtonoticenewspaperstories about themillions of children in poor countries dying every year fromillnesses that could be defeatedwith simplemedicine.One article in theNewYork Times detailed the devastation of diarrhea. They also read about oneparticularlydeadlyinfectiontheyhadneverevenheardof—rotavirus,acommoncause of severe diarrhea—thatwas readily treatable in richWestern countriesbutkilledhundredsofthousandsofchildreninthedevelopingworldeveryyear.

BillandMelindaaskedeachother,Canthisbetrue?Ifitwas,theyagreed,itshouldbeapriorityoftheirgrowingphilanthropy.TheysentthenewstoBill’sfather, Bill Gates Sr., whowas running the family foundation. In an attached

note,theywrote,“Dad,maybewecandosomethingaboutthis.”

Inthesetwomomentsofrevelationwasbornanewactivismthatwouldunitechurch groups, rock stars, and philanthropists; passion, buzz, and money; thesympatheticheart, thepromotionalego, thecalculatingmind.ItbroughtAfricato the center of a grassroots agenda, which aimed to reverse the neglect ofgovernmentsanddevelopmentinstitutions.Theissuesofdebtanddiseasewouldinitially inspire thismovement, but soon a new realizationwould emerge:Aslongashungerpersisted,successcouldn’tbedeclared,orevenachieved,onanyotherfront.

WhenBono and hiswife left Ethiopia after their famine reliefwork in 1985,they vowed to remain involved in helping Africa. But celebrity pulled in theopposite direction. Back up north in the well-fed half of the world, U2’spopularity was spreading. There were albums to record, markets to conquer,months-longconcerttourstonavigate.BonoandfellowIrishrockerBobGeldofcontinuedtheirLiveAidactivismbysupportingthehumanrightscampaignsofAmnesty International, Greenpeace, and the UK’s Comic Relief, an annualtelevisionfund-raiserhighlightingdevelopmentneedsintheforgottencornersoftheworld.Buttheseweremainlyone-offappearances:aspeech,asong,agigtoraisemoneyforacharity.

Now in the flurry of entreaties from the drop-the-debt campaigners, Bonofoundacompellingsignaturecause.Thiswasacrusadethatmergedeconomicsandtheology.AfricahadpiledupamountainofdebtduringtheColdWar,whencountries from both the Western and the Soviet blocs wooed the continent’seager postindependence governments with generous loans in return for theirfealty. By the 1990s, the annual service payments on that debt alone weredrainingtensofbillionsofdollars,emptyinggovernmentbudgetsanddeepeningpovertyandhungeracrossthecontinent.InZambia,forinstance,percapitadebtwas more than $700, which was twice the average annual income. InMozambique,thedebtwasfourtimesthecountry’sgrossnationalproduct.

As economic disaster approached, so did the millennium. Christian groupsseizedonthebiblicalideaoftheJubileeYear,whereeveryfiftyyearsdebtsareforgiven and slaves set free. It was right there in the Old Testament book ofLeviticus, chapter 25. Verse 13: “In the year of the jubilee, you shall returneverymanuntohispossession.”Verse35: “Ifyourbrotherbecomespoor and

cannotmaintainhimself,youshallmaintainhim...youshallnotlendhimyourmoney at interest, nor give him your food for profit.” And there were theteachingsofJesusinLuke4:18-19:“TheSpiritoftheLordisuponme,becausehehasanointedmetopreachthegospeltothepoor;hehassentmetohealthebroken-hearted,topreachdeliverancetothecaptivesandrecoveringofsighttotheblind,tosetatlibertythemthatarebruised.TopreachtheacceptableyearoftheLord.”

Theyear2000wouldbeaJubileeYearwritlarge.Andinthemid-1990s,fromthe pews of churches and the lecture halls of universities arose the UKDebtCrisisNetwork,channelingtheeighteenth-centuryspiritofWilliamWilberforce.Wilberforce was a legendary English social reformer—a fervent Christian,philanthropist,andpolitician—whodedicatedhislifetotheabolitionoftheslavetradeintheBritishrealm.Afterfourdecadesofcrusading,appealingtoboththehigh and mighty in their fancy salons and the commoners on the street, hesucceededinendingslaveryintheempire.

The campaigners at the end of the twentieth century saw themselves as thenew abolitionists; to them, debt was the new slavery. But they didn’t havedecades to accomplish their goal; they had only a few years. They needed anaccelerant,afueltosetthegrassrootsablaze.

In1995, JamieDrummond,adevelopmentactivist at theBritish faith-basedhumanitarianagencyChristianAid,headedtoEthiopiatolookattheimpactoftheLiveAidconcerttenyearson.Hesawsomepositivedevelopmentsthathadcome from themoney that had been raised: community projects, some healthinvestments, some agricultural improvements. But he also discovered that theonetime donation by an enthusiastic global audience was overwhelmed byEthiopia’s annual debt obligations. Although the country owed some $400millionayear,itcouldaffordtomakeonlyafractionofthatpayment.ThedebttransferstotheWesterncreditorsweremorethanthegovernmentwasspendingoneitherhealth, education, or agriculture.Here,Drummond thought,were theshacklesofthepoor.“I’mgoingaroundinEthiopia,I’mgettingangryatallI’mseeing,andthenthepennydropped.YoucouldseetherewasastructuralcauseofpovertyinAfrica,”Drummondwouldlaterrecall.

Debtwas an arcane, theoretical subject, unlikely to fire up themasses. ButDrummond’s travels in Ethiopia had conjured up a stark image of debtdevouringaid.Anditgavehimanidea:Makedebtrelieftangiblebyillustrating

what debt payments prevented countries from doing—inoculating children,building clinics, paying teachers, feeding families—and then a populistcampaignmightgainsometraction.

WhenhereturnedtoLondon,DrummondandhisfellowdebtcrusadersbeganlobbyingthoseinthemusicindustryinEnglandandIrelandwhohadstagedtheLiveAid extravaganza.A single concertwasn’t enough, they told them;whatwasneededwas concerted action.They sent faxes and letters andknockedondoors.Bono,becausehehadbeentoEthiopia,wastheirtoptarget.“Couldyouchampiona campaign that attacked the structural causeofpoverty inAfrica?”Drummondaskedhimin1997.

Bonounderstoodimmediately,forherehesawhispathfromcharitytojustice.AndtheJubileeideaplayedtohistwopersonaltheologies,onehonedfromtheBible, the other in Ethiopia: care for the poor, equality for Africa. It alsoappealed to his seriouslywonkish side,which had beenwell disguised by theblasérock-and-rollveneer.HetoldDrummondthatthejuxtapositionoftheLiveAidmoneywiththedebtpaymentswaspowerful.Buthewonderedif thetimewas truly ripe for such a campaign, given the Asian financial crisis that haderuptedinmid-1997.HenotedthatAsianeconomieswereinfreefallatthetime,rattlingtheworld’sfinancialstructures.Doesn’tthatmakedebtcancellationby2000fanciful?Bonoasked.

DrummondtoldhimtheAsiancrisismadeitallthemorenecessarytorelievethedebtburdenonAfrica,forsqueezingmoneyoutofthecontinentwouldonlyworsen the countries’ economies.Thedebt campaigners believed theyhad theeconomicandtheologicalanglescoveredandwerebeginningtomakeprogresson those fronts. What they needed, Drummond told Bono, was somebody toprovide the populist edge. “If you get behind the campaign,” he promised therockstar,“wecoulddosomethingevenmorespectacular.”

Bono formally joined Jubilee in early 1998 and used his celebrity to gainaccess toEuropeanpoliticiansandputdebt reliefongovernmentagendas.Thedoorsreadilyopened,fortheContinent’spoliticswereturninginJubilee’sfavor,swingingfromrighttoleft.TheconservativegovernmentsinLondonandBerlinthat had backed the strict structural adjustment policies were falling out ofpower.TonyBlairandhisLabourPartymovedintoNumber10DowningStreetin London in 1997, replacing the Conservative Party. In Germany, GerhardSchroeder, leader of the liberal SocialDemocrats, became chancellor in 1998,

sendingtheChristianDemocraticUniontothesidelines.

The sweep of European culturewas turning in Jubilee’s favor aswell. TheascendancyoftheLabourPartyaftermanyyearsinoppositionusheredinaneraofCoolBritannia, a pun on the patriotic song “RuleBritannia,”where thingscoming out of Britain were hip again. Jubilee made debt relief cool. InMay1998, Jubilee organized 80,000 people into a human chain surrounding thesummitmeeting of the heads of state of the leading economies known as theGroupof8,orG8, inBirmingham,England.Theydidthesamethingthenextyear, at the G8 meeting in Cologne, Germany.World leaders at that summitpromisedtowriteoff90percentofpoor-countrydebtandaportionofdebtduetotheinternationalfinancialinstitutions,suchastheWorldBank.

Jubileewasmakingprogress.ButBonoandhisfellowactivistsknewthatthedebtreliefmovementwouldsucceedonlyif theAmericanscameonboard,fortheUnitedStateswas theworld’s financial superpower. Itcontrolled thepursestringsof themajor institutionalcreditorsandcouldreallymove theneedleondebt forgiveness. American leadership was crucial, yet on this issue themostobstinate.

For much of 1999, Bono relentlessly shuttled between Dublin andWashington,D.C.HebenttheearofPresidentBillClintonandwasoftenseenwithadministrationofficials.Butherealizedthatthe“realElvis”inWashington,asheputit—theonebodythatdidthecrucialmovingandshaking,atleastwhenitcametopassinglegislation—wasCongress.

And itwas inCongresswhere the debt relief skeptics resided.Therewas astrongbloc,mainlyanchoredbyconservativeRepublicanssuchasSenatorJesseHelms, that believed foreign aid was a waste of money; they claimed it wascorralled by corrupt dictators to prop up repressive governments. And on thedebt issue, the doubters insisted that forgiveness would only encourage thebeneficiariestoengageinmorefiscalirresponsibility.

Manyof thosemembers ofCongresswere alsodeeply religious, and this iswhereBonohit them.HecouldBible-thumpwith thebestof them;hepointedout that there were more than 2,100 passages about caring for the poor, andtogethertheywouldsearchtheScripturesforthem.Sometimeshewouldtellhisdriver tocontinuecirclingCapitolHill and theWhiteHousewhileheselectedtheproperBiblepassage,sohewouldhaveonereadyforthemeeting.Hestoodbeside U.S. faith-based groups like Bread for the World, Mazon, and the

CatholicBishopsConferenceandrefinedhislobbyingmessage:TheJubileedebtcancellationwas the right thing todo, themoral thing todo.After reading theBiblewithSenatorHelms,whohadledthecongressionalchorusagainstforeignaid, the gentleman fromNorthCarolina proclaimed the error of hisways andbegansingingthepraisesofthedebtreliefmovement.

But forallofBono’shigh-profile lobbying, itwas theeffortsofacoupleofgenteel church ladies inBirmingham,Alabama, that clinchedU.S.backing fortheJubileedebtforgiveness.TheybecameExhibitAofthepowerofindividualactionsinchangingtheworld,andproof,asBonowouldsay,thatGodworksinmysteriousways.

Oneevening in early1999,PatPelham’sphone rangwhile shewaspreparingdinner at her home in theBirmingham suburbs. “Hello,” she answeredwith apinchofirritationinhervoice.Shedidn’tlikegettingcallsatdinnertime.

“HiPat,it’sDavid,”saidthefamiliarvoiceofDavidBeckmann,thepresidentofBread for theWorld. “Guesswho’s chairmanof the relevant subcommitteefordebtrelief?”

Inthenewlyseated106thCongress,conservativeRepublicanSpencerBachushad been tapped to head the domestic and international monetary policysubcommittee of the House Committee on Banking and Financial Services.Fromthatrathertechnicalperch,hewouldbethegatekeeperforanylegislationondebtrelief.Bachuswas therepresentativefor thedistrictwherePatandherfriendElaineVanCleavelived.Forthepastcoupleofyears,theyhadbeentwoof hismost persistent and persuasive constituents, twisting his arm to supportBread’sagendaforfeedingthehungryinAmericaandabroad.

Beckmann, who had positioned Bread at the vanguard of the Jubileemovement in the United States, told Pat and Elaine to pack for a trip toWashington.TheyhadanassignmentonCapitolHill.

PatandElainewerenoidealisticfirebrands.Theyweretwoyoungmothersintheupper-middle-class suburbswhomet twoTuesdays amonth in awomen’sstudy group at the Independent Presbyterian Church. They would talk aboutkids,husbands,thecommunity—and,wistfully,aboutchangingtheworld.

A fewyears beforeBeckmann summoned them toWashington, before they

even knew him, Pat was at home watching a rerun ofDesigning Women, atelevision sitcom about the lives of four southern women running an interiordesign firm. It was one of Pat’s favorite shows; she most identified with thecharacterSuzanneSugarbaker,playedbyDeltaBurke,aonetimebeautyqueenwholaterstruggleswithherweight.PathadlongfeltasimilarpressuregrowingupinthecomfortablesuburbsofBirmingham:Onecouldneverbetoothin.

In theepisodePatwaswatching thatday,entitled“TheyShootFatWomen,Don’t They?” Suzanne fusses over what to wear to her high school reunion,wonderingwhichoutfitwillbesthideheradditionalweight.Still,shesuffersthestaresandsnidecommentsofheroldclassmates.At thesame time,Suzanne’sfriendsparticipate ina two-day fast to focusonworldhunger,which, theyaretold, kills asmanypeople every seventy-twohours asdied in thewakeof theHiroshimanuclearbomb.AboyfromEthiopia,whosayshisentirefamilydiedduringafamine,tellsSuzannethatsheisbeautiful,extraweightandall.

Backatthereunion,Suzannewinsthe“PersonWhoHasChangedtheMost”award.Shocked, she tellsher formerclassmates:“Lastnight Igotmy feelingshurtbecauseIcametothisreunionthinkingIwasbeautiful,andwhatIfindoutwasthatI’mfat,atleastyouthinkIam....ImetalittleboyfromAfricatonightwhose family died of starvation, and I realized that I spent the whole day athomeworryingabout the fact that Ihad toomuch toeat. I’mnot sure theoldSuzannewouldhaveappreciatedtheabsurdityofthat,butthisonedoes.”

Patdid,too.

“Itwasaspowerfulamoment ina sitcomas therecanbe,” shewould latersay.“It reachedoutof theTVscreenandgrabbedmeby thecollar: ‘Listen tothis!’Theparadoxofthatreallygotmethinking.”

Later, out for awalk inherneighborhood, she stopped in themiddleof thesidewalk,paralyzedalmost,andbeganweeping.ApassagefromtheBiblekeptrepeatinginhermind.ItwasfromIsaiah.“HereamI,Lord.Sendme.”

Pat,apsychiatricnursepractitioner, toldherwomen’sstudygroupatchurchaboutherSidewalktoDamascusmoment.“IreallybelieveGodreachedouttomeandsaid,‘Makesomethingofthis.’”Forthegroup,everythingtheyhadbeendiscussing over themonths suddenly came together. They had been reading abook,’TisaGifttoBeSimple,andmullingitsmessage:Simplifylife,letgoofthethingsthatdon’tmatter,embracethosethatdo,andchangetheworld,makeitabetterplace.

Thewomenknewwhat theymust do. “We all said, ‘Let’s answer this call,let’s start a hunger ministry,’” Elaine recalled later. “As mothers of youngchildren,wecouldn’t imaginebeing amother andnotbeing able to feedyourchild.Theimageofalittlechildcryingfromhungerandnotbeingabletostopitbecause therewas nothing to eat . . . I couldn’t imagine any painworse thanthat.”

TheirpastorsteeredthemtoBreadfortheWorld.ElainedidtheresearchandsignedupforBread’smailinglist.OnedaycameanoticethatDavidBeckmann,Bread’s president, would be speaking at Birmingham’s Our Lady of SorrowsCatholicChurch,hostedbyFatherMartinMuller.PatandElainearrivedearlyandsatinthefrontrow.

Beckmann,alanky,winsomemanwithapreacher’sgiftforstorytelling,saidBreadcoulduseBirmingham’shelpinendingworldhunger.Raisingmoneyandcollectingcansoffoodwasimportant,hesaid,butwhatwasabsolutelyvitalwaschanging public policy and stirring political will. Pat noticed that thisunassuming man talking about the poor had a hole in his shoe. They werehooked.AstheyleftOurLadyofSorrows,PatandElainewerereadytoenlistinBread’sarmyofcitizenlobbyists.

TheyalignedtheirchurchwithBread’snetworkofcongregations.Nextstep,in good Presbyterian tradition, was to host a church dinner. Beckmann wasinvited to be the guest speaker, and Pat and Elaine ambitiously dispatchedinvitations to Alabama’s senators and congressional representatives, stateofficials,andthemayor.Theydidn’treallyexpectanyofthemwouldcome.

ThehostsnearlyfelloverwhentheysawCongressmanBachusandhiswifewalk through thedoor.BachusrepresentedAlabama’sSixthDistrictandhadareputation as one of the most conservative members of the House ofRepresentatives.PatandElaineputhimatthesametablewithBeckmann,whowentintolobbyingoverdrive.“We’dbegratefulifyou’dconsiderco-sponsoringapieceoflegislationtoendchildhoodhunger,”hepressedthecongressman.

Attheendoftheevening,aloneatthechurch,PatandElainewereuncertainif the gathering had made an impression on Bachus. They laughed at theaudacityoftheirinvitation,andatthenotionthattheywouldeverhearfromhimagain.

Thenextnightat fiveo’clock,asPatwaspreparingdinner,herphone rang.Who,shewondered,wouldbecallingatthathectictime?

It was Congressman Bachus. He would be proud, he said, to championBread’sagendainCongress.“Andthankyou,”headded,fortheintroductiontothe hunger cause. “The issue of hunger had always beenout there,” hewouldlatersay.“Itjusttooksomeonetocallitoutforme.”

Pat andElaine had their entrée to public policy. From thatmoment on, theladiespepperedBachuswithasteadystreamof letters,keepinghimpostedonBread’sactivities.

In1998,BreadjumpedintotheworldwideJubileecampaignandcrankedupitslobbyingefforttopushfordebtrelieffortheworld’spoorestcountries.ItwasanissueclosetoBeckmann’sheart.HehaddegreesfromYaleandtheLondonSchoolofEconomics,andhadworkedattheWorldBankinthe1980s,wherehehada front-rowseat to theburgeoningdebtcrisis in thedevelopingworld.Hekneweverydollarspentpayingdowndebtwasonedollarlessthepoorcountrieshadtospendonfoodoragriculturaldevelopment.Relievingthedebtburdenwasacrucialfrontinthewaronhunger.

WhenthecommitteeassignmentscameoutforthenewCongress,Beckmannwas delighted to see that his dinner companion from the Birmingham churchwouldbethestewardofdebtrelieflegislation.HisfirstcallwastoPat,whothencalledElaine.TheybookedaflighttoWashington.

Thetwowomenknewthecapitalonlyastourists.BeckmannandothersfromBread transformed them into Capitol Hill lobbyists with virtually around-the-clockbriefingsessions.Overdinnerand thenbreakfast the followingmorning,with only a few hours of sleep in between, Pat and Elaine and two fellowmembersoftheirBirminghamchurchlearnedalltheycouldaboutdebtrelief.

Afterbreakfast,theyhustledovertoBachus’soffice,onlytobetoldhewasinthecommitteechambers.TheyhurriedthroughtheundergroundpassagewaysofCapitol Hill, Pat and Elaine racing on high heels, tomake their appointment.Before theyentered thecommittee room, they stood in thehallwayand said aprayer.Patlookeddownandsawherskirthadtwistedbackward,sofasthadshewalked.

Bachus greeted his constituents warmly and asked them to educate him ondebtrelief.“PretendlikeIdon’tknowanythingaboutit,”hesaid.“Tellmewhyyou’rehere.”

For an hour, they talked. The delegation from Birmingham handed over a

petition calling for debt relief carrying several hundred constituent signaturesgatheredbyFatherMuller.Patcitedthebiblicalimperatives.Elainespokeasamother:“Therearethousandsofchildrenofmothersdyingofhungeranddiseaseeveryday,” she toldher congressman. “I can’tdoanythingasoneperson,butworkingwithyouwecandosomethingtogether.”

Bachusgot themessage.“Weallvaluechildren,”hesaid.“Childrengetourattention.” Without hesitation, to the giddy delight of Beckmann, Bachuspromisedhisconstituentshewouldtakeupthebannerofdebtrelief.

Andhedidsowithgreatpassion,holdingforththeimageofamotherunabletofeedherchild.Heintroducedlegislation.Hesummonedcommitteehearings.HebroughtraremomentsofemotionandpoignancytotheBankingCommitteedeliberations.

“Doing the right thing, whatever the material cost, should always be theimperative,” Bachus exhorted his Banking Committee colleagues on June 15,1999.Thenhedelineated thematerial costof the three-year$970milliondebtcancellationbill:$1.20foreachAmericancitizeneachyear.“Itisthecostofanicecreamcone,”hesaid.

LikeElaine,hementionedchildren. “Today, indozensofpoor countries allovertheworld,littleboysandgirlsarebornintopoverty,diseaseandhunger....Forthepeoplelivinginthesepoorcountries,theirsufferingistemporal.Itwillendwith their lives.Forus, thedecisionwill followus.Wewillnotonly livewithitinthislife,butwewilllivewithitinthenextlife.”

AmazedtohearsuchemotioncomingfromBankingCommitteedeliberations,membersoftheClintonWhiteHouseandcabinetattendingthehearingsreportedback to the president. They urged that theUnited States provide internationalleadershipondebt forgiveness. If conservativeRepublicanBachuswas talkingabout hungry children in Africa, they said, the White House could count onsupportinCongressfarbeyondtheusualliberalDemocraticranks.

AsBonohadsuspected,wheretheUnitedStatesled,otherWesterncountriesfollowed.Bythedawnof theJubileeYear,world leadershadagreedtocancel100percentofthedebtowedtotheircountriesbythepoorestnations.Billionsofdollars would remain in Africa to help feed the hungry. Beckmann told thegeneral assembly of theUnitedNations Food andAgricultureOrganization inRomeafewyearslaterthatitmightneverhavehappenedifPatandElaine“hadnotsoeffectivelylobbiedtheirrepresentativeinCongress.”

Ontheothersideoftheworld,thetwogenteelladiesfromAlabamablushed.“Soccermomswatching soap operas and sitcoms go toWashington,” laughedElaine.“Wecanalldosomething.Therearenoactstoosmall.”

Bonooften said that a lobbyingallianceof rock stars and soccermomswas asurefirerecipetogetpoliticiansquakingintheirboots.Nowtheywerejoinedbyanotherforcerallyingattentiontotheinequitiesofextremepoverty.

AssoftwaremogulBillGatesbegantofocusonphilanthropy,heinitiallysetouttobridgethedigitaldividebetweenrichandpoor.Computersandaccesstothe Internet, whether in Seattle or Senegal, could be the great equalizer. Butwhenheandhiswifeandfatherbeganresearchingtheglobalhealthissuestheyhadstumbleduponintheirreading,theydiscoveredanevenbiggerdivide:Somelives were seen as worth saving, and others weren’t. Why were millions ofchildren in the poor corners of theworld dying of diseases that had long agoceasedtobekillersintherichworld?Whydidn’ttheirlivesmatter?

In 1998, the Gates family began pumping money into efforts to researchchildren’s vaccines. That year, Bill Sr. spotted the work of the InternationalAIDSVaccine Initiative (IAVI), aNewYork-based nonprofit agency foundedtwo years earlier to work on the development of a vaccine to prevent HIVinfection andAIDS.He forwarded a report on the organization’s ambitions toBill andMelinda,noting in themargins: “Idon’tknowwhatwecandoaboutthis. But if this isn’t what philanthropy is for, I don’t know what is.” In thespringof1999,thefoundationgave$25milliontoIAVI,which,atthetime,wasthelargestcharitablegifttargetingtheAIDSepidemic.

Thosewerethefirstdropsinwhatwouldbecomeatorrentofmoneyflowingintoglobalhealthtobankrollresearchondiseasesprimarilyafflictingthepoorerprecinctsoftheworld.In1999,theGatesesmadeaninitialgiftof$750millionto the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization, a coalition ofdevelopment organizations such as UNICEF, theWorld Bank, and theWorldHealthOrganizationworkingtobroadenaccesstoimmunizationsindevelopingcountries. The next year, they consolidated their philanthropic efforts into theBillandMelindaGatesFoundation,whichtheyendowedwithaninitialblastof$16billionandthisphilosophy:“Everyhumanlifehasequalworth.Thelifeofan impoverished child in a developing country is as precious as the life of amiddle-classchildinadevelopedone.”

Threediseasesinparticular—AIDS,tuberculosis,andmalaria—werefingeredasthosethatdisproportionatelystruckdownlivesinthedevelopingworld.Thenewestofthethree,AIDS,wasthemostterrifyingasitrampagedacrossAfrica,particularly the southern tip. In the 1970s and 1980s, before a commonworldwide labelwas attached to the disease,Africans called it “Slim.”Peoplewere mysteriously wasting away, stick figures seemingly populating wholevillages. Doctors and nurses, as well as traditional healers, noted that it wasespecially prevalent in certain sectors of the population: traders, truckers,traveling teachers—mobile vocations that required a lot of time away fromhome.Theycarriedthesexuallytransmitteddiseaseintothegeneralpopulationand across borders. By the 1990s, it had exploded on a horrific scale.As thetwentieth century rushed to a close,AIDSwas savagingAfrica like theBlackPlague of the Middle Ages had ravaged Europe. In the bucolic countries ofBotswana and Swaziland, where nearly 40 percent of the women in prenatalclinicstestedpositiveforHIV,anentiregenerationfacedextinction.

FortheGateses,AIDSwasanespeciallyacutecaseofthevalue-of-lifedivide.TheantiretroviraldrugsthatweresavingthelivesofAIDSsufferersintherichcountrieswererarelyavailableinAfrica.Andwhentheywere,fewpeoplecouldafford them.TheGatesFoundation spendingon thishealthdivideacted likeamagnet,attractingadditionalfundingfromotherphilanthropiesandaidagencies,aswellasthetalentandenergyofthescientificworldtodevelopvaccines,andofthedevelopmentcommunitytomodernizepublichealthsystems.In2002,theUnited Nations created the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, andMalaria.Pledgesamountingtobillionsofdollarsrolledin.

BillGates knew thatmoney alonewouldn’t be enough to bridge the healthdivide. Like debt relief, AIDS relief would need a global movement to buildpoliticalwill.GateshadneverbeentoaU2concert,butheknewBono’svoice.ItwasasirencalleventherichestmaninAmericacouldn’tresist.

BonohadmetBillGatesinDavosandatotherstopsalongtherich-and-famouscircuit, and the rock star kept hammering away at an idea he had to keep thegrassrootsmomentumof theJubileecampaignrolling.Throughout2001,BonoandGateshuddledwithBobGeldofandBobbyShriveroftheKennedyclantocreateaneworganizationthatwouldtargetthe“extremepoverty”oftheAfricancontinent in the new millennium. In 2002, they launched the cleverly named

DATA.Theinitialsprojectedtwomeanings:“debt,AIDS,trade,Africa”aswellas“democracy,accountability,andtransparencyinAfrica.”Asoneword,italsoconveyedtheimageofafact-driven,policy-orientedorganization.

Based in Washington, D.C., the DATA staff, along with other policy andlobbyinggroupslikeOxfamandBreadfor theWorld,kept thepressureontheWhiteHouseanditsnewoccupant,PresidentGeorgeW.Bush,andotherworldleaders to keep their nations’ promises to increase aid levels made at the G8meetingsandothersummits.Therewereadvancesandsetbacks.InMarch2002,withBono’sapplause,PresidentBushannouncedthecreationoftheMillenniumChallengeCorporationandasteepincreaseinannualdevelopmentassistanceforthepoorestcountriesintheworld;theMCCwouldfunnelnewaidmoneytothemost accountable governments, which would take part in designing the aidprograms.Thepresidentalsocalledon theworld’s richestcountries tostepupthe offensive against AIDS. But later that spring, Congress passed and Bushsigned the 2002 FarmBill that expanded subsidies for American farmers andincreasedtheinequitiesinglobalagriculturaltrade.

AftertheterroristattacksofSeptember11,2001,Washingtonwasfulloftalkabout the need to use the soft diplomacy of development assistance to spreadAmericanidealsabroad.But,Bonowondered,didAmericareallygetit?WhenhepushedCongress beyond thedebt relief issue, especially on theurgencyofcombating AIDS and unfair trade practices, he and his colleagues were oftentold,“NobodyinMiddleAmerica isclamoringabout these issues.Nobodyouttherecares.”

Bono’s response: You want clamor, we’ll get clamor. He and his DATAassociatesstudiedthepoliticalmap,andsawthatmanyof thekeymembersofthecongressionalcommitteesoverseeingthefundingfordevelopmentaidwerefrom theMidwest.That, then,wouldbewherehewouldgetpeople talking. ItwouldalsobehispersonalFrankSinatra challenge. Ifhe could succeed there,he’dsucceedanywhere.NoNewYork,NewYork.ThiswouldbeDesMoines,DesMoines.

“IfelttherewasakindofdecencyinMiddleAmericathatisveryattractivetome,” Bono would later say in an interview in his New York apartment. HisfondnessfortheMidwestwentbacktohisearlytourswithU2.“EventhoughIwasstandingthereinmytartantrousersandpiercedears,eventhoughweweregetting strange looks, I just loved the honesty of the people in theMidwest.

There is a moral compass, this is where America is. If you can disprove thecliché thatpeople inMiddleAmericadon’tcareaboutwhat isgoingon in therestoftheworld...”

Thatwas the challenge:Get them to care. The truckers, thewaitresses, thestudents,thefactoryworkers.Thechurchgoers.Especiallytheevangelicals,thespiritual descendants of Wilberforce, and the evangelical megachurches withtheir huge flocks. “They are an army waiting to be well-mobilized, and theyhave leaders. It’s a no-brainer,” advised Jamie Drummond, who becameDATA’sexecutivedirector.

Theirstrategy:MotivatetheseChristiansoldierstomarchinanewdirection,awayfromthebedroomissuesoftheoldMoralMajorityandtowardtheissuesofhowwetreatthepoor,theissuesofanewconstituency.“Youcouldcallthemnarrow-minded idealists, blinkered idealists, fundamentalists,”Bono said. “Butif you widen the aperture of their ideals, these people, they really are aresource.”

When he first came to theUnited States carrying the banner of the Jubileecampaign, he was mystified: Where was the church on these issues? “Thesleepinggiantof the churchwasananomaly tome,”he said. “I found it verydifficult to accept the lackofgood judgment and the judgmental-ism thatwasaround.In2000,only6%ofpolledevangelicalsfeltitwasincumbentonthemtorespondtotheAIDSemergency.Itjustcompletelyconfoundedme.”

BonohadcometoseeAIDSasthenewleprosy,andJesushealingthelepers,he said, “is at the heart of Christianity.” But in America, if evangelicalcongregationswere talking at all aboutAIDS, it was as divine retribution forimmoral behavior. “This holy huddle, this bless me club, is so dangerous, itcontradicts the whole purpose,” he said. “There’s two main things from myreadingofScripture:personalredemptionandsocialjustice.Secondtopersonalredemptionishowwetreatthepoor.Idon’twanttotakeawayfromthetopline,butthecounterpointisdefinitelyjusticefollowingontheheelsoftruth.AndinareligiouscountrylikeAmerica,that’safantasticthing.Ifyoucouldharnessthatenergytogooutandactuallyliveyourlifelikethat...”

On November 29, 2002, Bono embarked on the Heart of America tour, awintry bus ride over the cold and bleak midwestern highways, far from thebrightlightsthatusuallyfollowhim.HehitsevenstatesinelevendaystotalktoAmericans about fighting poverty in Africa. The first stop was Lincoln,

Nebraska. Then it was on to Omaha, Des Moines, Iowa City, Davenport,Dubuque, Chicago and nearby Wheaton, Indianapolis, Cincinnati, Louisville,and, finally,NashvilleonDec.9.He travelednotwithhismates fromU2butwithAgnesNyamayarwo,anHIV-positivenurseandactivistfromUganda,theGateway Ambassadors youth choir from Ghana, and a cadre of internationalAIDSactivistsandexperts.

Bono bounced off the bus at truck stops, greasy spoons, college campuses,andchurchesandascendedthepulpits,podiums,andbarstoolsoftheMidwest,intentonshapinganewmoralmajorityinAmerica.Hewastheantithesisoftheslick,silver-hairedtelevangelistswhohadlongcaptainedthereligiousRight.Hisvestmentswerea leather jacketandsunglasses.He lacedhisScripture-quotinghomilieswithanoccasionalexpletive.Heonlyhalf-jokinglyconfessedtohavingaMessianiccomplex.Hecamenottosingandplay,buttopreachandpray.

He told his audiences that the country was missing the point with all therighteous fulminating on personalmorality bywhat he called “God’s second-handcar salesmenon thecableTVchannels.”He recitedhis favorite statistic:The Bible mentions poverty—“not sex, not immorality”—more than 2,100times.“It’snotacoincidence,”hewouldsay.“It’snotanaccident.”

Bonorelished thechallenge; therewerehard-coredoubters likeJesseHelmswhereverhespoke.“Therewasatruckstop,IthinksomewhereinIowa,Iwasspeakingtothepeoplehavingtheircoffee,”Bonorecalled.HetoldhisroadsidecrowdsthattruckdriversinAfrica,migratingupanddownthecontinent,wereparticularly afflicted with HIV/AIDS. “There was this guy,” Bono said,describing a caricature of the American open road straight out of a MontyPythonskit:burly,tattoos,fearsome,sittingofftotheside,nursingacoffee.“IhadspokenabouthowtoturntheseissuesintoanAmericannecessity,whichistosaytomakecaringaboutotherpeopleintheworldapatrioticact.I’mwalkingbythisguyonmywayout...”RetellingthestoryinNewYork,Bonorosefromhiscouchandrecreatedhiswalk,awarysidestepontiptoes,makinghimselfthinasiftoavoidthetattooedone.Asherecountedtheconversation,hisbroguegavewaytoaflatIowaaccent.“‘I’matrucker,’hesaystome.‘Ijustwannatalktoyouherenowasecond.Yousaythatallthesepeople,thesetruckers,aregoingtodieinAfrica,orhalfofthemare?’Isaid,‘That’sright,50%areHIV-positive,andiftheydon’tgetthemedicationtheyareallgoingtodie.’Hesaid,‘Idon’tknowanythingaboutpolitics,Idon’tknowanythingaboutanything,butIknowthat’snot right. I’llgiveyoumyname. Idon’tknowmuch,but Icandrive. If

youwantmetodriveforyou,Iwilldrive.’”

“Thereitis!”BonoshoutedinNewYork,springingfromhiscouch.“That’stheAmerica that theworldneeds tosee.The turningpoints formewereJesseHelmsand the trucker,because they’re thepeopleyoudon’t expect.Toughasoldboots.YouunderestimateAmericans.”

As he neared Chicago on his tour, Bono stopped first to meet with BillHybels, the pastor ofmegachurchWillowCreek and an influential teacher ofotherpastors.Hybelsdidn’tknowthistravelingtroubadour,butBonohadkeptpestering him for a meeting. The two prayed together, and soon Hybels’scongregationwouldberaisingmoneyforAIDSworkinAfricaandBonowouldbeaddressingHybels’snetworkofpastorsacrosstheworldontheChristiancalltohelpthepoor.

Bonothenlaidsiegetothecitadelofevangelicallearning,WheatonCollege.WheatonwaswhereBillyGraham,thegreatandtirelesspreacherofthegospel,saver of souls, had studied. Whatever was discussed in the lecture halls anddormitories ofWheatonwould soon spread to evangelical communities acrossthecountry.ThiswastheHeartofAmericatour’sboldestforay.

Tothunderousapplausefromacrowdofnearly2,500,BonoboundedontothestageofEdmanChapel,wherethestudentsregularlygatheredtoponderspiritualmatters.What was about to happen on the cold, starry night of December 4,2002,wastrulyradical,mind-blowingstuff.Wheatonwasadeeplyconservativeschoolwhere,asoneprofessordescribedit,the“onlyactionopentothestudentswasprotestingabortionandsavingsouls,”where“historicallywe’veseparatedloveofGodfromloveofGod’speople.”Andherenowwasarockstar—arockstar,ofallpeople,ataschoolthatdidn’tevenallowdancingoncampus—beingenthusiastically welcomed to their chapel (their chapel!) by the collegepresident.TheassembledactuallyprayedthattheAlmighty“usethesewordstoenergizeus.”

Andwhatwordstheywere.

“Equalityisapainintheass,”Bonobellowedfromthechapellectern,justashort walk from the Billy Graham Center. “It won’t sit still, it’s constantlyevolving.”

“Painintheass”wasn’texactlyapassagefromDeuteronomyorLamentationsoranywhereelseintheBible.

But thiswas:“Love thyneighbor,”Bonosaid.Thatwasn’ta suggestion,headdedinadmonition,“It’sacommand.”

Andwhowere thy neighbors? The hungry, the poor, theAIDS afflicted ofAfrica,hesaid.Lovethem,heimplored,asyouwouldthepersonsittingintheseatbesideyou.“Distancehasdisappeared,”Bonoexplained.

HereturnedtotheBible:“Jesussaid,‘Iamcometobringasword.’”Andwiththat, Bono brandished a sword of his own—ametaphorical one, of course, achallenge to confront and rally the reticent into a crusade for social justice inAfrica.

“We’rewaiting for amiracle inAfrica,”Bono said.Hepaused, a showmansettingthehook.“IthinkitismuchmorelikelythatGodiswaitingforustoact.Godisonhiskneestothechurch,tous,toact,toturnaroundthesupertankerofindifferencetoourbrothersandsistersinAfrica.”

The crowd hung on every syllable of his Dublin brogue. He recited versesfromMatthew25,perhapsthemostpowerfulandpoeticofthosepassageswhereJesusaddressescaringforthepoor.“ForIwashungryandyougavemefood....Whateveryoudofortheleastofthesemybrethren,youdoforme.”

“In Africa right now,” Bono said, “the least of my brethren are dying inshiploads,incontainerloads.Andwearenotyetresponding.WheatonCollege,willyousoundthealarm?”

Hechallengedthecampus,andbyextensiontheentireevangelicalmovement,to save the physical soul as well as the spiritual one. “The problems we cansolve, we must,” Bono urged. “We’re not here looking for charity. We’relookingforjusticeandequality.JusticeandequalityareattheheartofAmerica.Weneedstudentstosoundthealarm,”hepleaded.“Willyousoundthealarmforus?”

The audience, Sunday-morning silent, exploded like a raucous Saturday-afternoon football crowd. Epiphany tipped toward ecstasy. Sandra Joireman,head of Wheaton’s Department of Politics and International Relations, sawscalesfallfromeyesthroughoutthechapel.“Forthestudents,theentireeveningwasshocking,”shesaid.“Bonocomesandtheyseethere’sadifferentwaywecanembracethis.Allofasudden,wow,he’susingScriptureanditisembracedbytheschool.It’sshowingthemadifferentpracticeofevangelicalismthantheyhad seen.The old evangelicalmodelwas:we care about your soul, not about

your hunger. We’ve been brought forward to where social justice can bediscussed.”

In Bono’s wake, students flocked to a class called Third World Issues;enrollment would quadruple, forcing a move to the biggest lecture hall oncampus. A program called Human Needs and Global Resources, or HNGR,whichsentstudentsonsix-monthinternshipsindevelopingcountries,alsogrewinpopularity.

“Bono’scomingchangedthewholeschool,”ProfessorJoiremansaid;studentshad a new prismwithwhich to viewChristianity and theworld. “Repent, besaved,liveasanctifiedlife.That’sviewedasinsufficientbyyoungevangelicals.They’renowalsoasking,‘Whatabouttheotherpeople?’”

Bonohadbarely left the lectern inEdmanChapelwhenProfessor Joiremanand Sister Sheila Kinsey from the Wheaton Franciscans formed the DuPageGlocal AIDS Action Network (Glocal being a combination of Global andLocal), a community organization in surrounding DuPage County, to rallyresidents to lobby government representatives on poverty issues. And Bono’swords were still echoing across campus when a group of Wheaton CollegestudentsfoundedachapteroftheStudentGlobalAIDSCampaign.Thestudentgovernmentpasseda resolutioncallingfor thefundingof theglobalAIDSbillbefore Congress at the time. Professors and students came together to draft atheological statement onAIDS.The college administration contactedWheatonalumni in national think tanks, in Congress, and in theWhite House to urgeactiononpovertyreductionmatters.

FromtheheartofAmericaaroseaclamor:Dosomething,andfast.

Alittlegirl,carryinghersisteronherback,waitsoutsideanemergencyfeedingtentinBoricha,Ethiopia,2003.

Hagirso and his father,TesfayeKetema (center),wait for deliverancewhilesitting on a mattress on the floor of an emergency feeding tent in Boricha,Ethiopia,2003.

ChombeSeyoum(center,whiteT-shirt)withneighboringfarmersonhisparchedfieldsnearAdamiTulu,Ethiopia,2003.Chombeturnedoffhisirrigationsystemwhenpricescollapsedfollowingbumperharveststheyearbeforethefamine.

Norman Borlaug, father of the Green Revolution, takes notes on promisingplants in his wheat plots. Courtesy of the International Maize and WheatImprovementCenter.

Henry A.Wallace studying results of corn-breeding experiments.Courtesy ofPioneerHi-Bred,aDuPontunit.

Norman Borlaug with villagers in Ghana, where farmers saw their harvestsmultiplywhentheyusedhisnewtechniques,1988.CourtesyofChristopherR.Dowswell,SasakawaAfricaAssociation.

KennethHood,Mississippicotton farmerandchairmanof theNationalCottonCouncil,in2002.

Members of the Sangare family inMali plow their cotton field in 2002. ThisphotowastakenthesamedayasthephotoofKennethHood.

JermanAmenteisdwarfedbysacksofEthiopian-growngraininhiswarehouseinNazareth,Ethiopia,2003.

Two Ethiopian lentil farmers stand beside the Djibouti-Addis Ababa road astruckscarryingAmericanfoodaid,includinglentils,barrelpast,2003.

Tesfahun Belachew (with scarf twirled into a turban on his head) on patrolbesidetheRibbRiver,partofthesourcewatersoftheBlueNile.Hisfamilywasreceiving international food aid in 2003 while his crops died in the drought.Tesfahun, whose name means “be hope,” was unable to use the water forirrigation;itwasmeanttoflowunimpededtoEgypt.

ThewideBlueNile near its source in northern Ethiopia during the famine of

2003.

Egyptian farmer SamirHamed gives his calves a showerwithwater from theNileRiverwhile theEthiopian famine raged in 2003.Some85 percent of thewaterintheNilecomesfromEthiopia.

MakhosazaneNkhambule,agesixteen(onright),andheryoungersiblingswereunabletofarmthefamilylandaftertheirparentsdiedofwhatneighborsandaidworkerssaidwerecomplicationsfromAIDS,2003.

ZimbabweansinthetownofPupuawaitdistributionofU.S.foodaid,2003.

FatherAengusFinucane,CSSp,afounderofConcernWorldwide,atConcern’sUnaccompanied Children’s Center in Rwanda, 1997. Courtesy of ConcernWorldwideLibrary.

FlankedbyAIDSactivists,Bonotakeshis“HeartofAmerica”tourtoWheatonCollege,December2002.HewasaccompaniedbyAmericanentertainersAshleyJuddandChrisTucker.CourtesyofWheatonCollege.

BonoandanAfricanchoirperformatWheaton.

Dr.JoeMamlin,whobeganhandingoutfoodalongwithmedicinetoHIV/AIDSpatientsinEldoret,Kenya,2007.

HIV/AIDS patients atDr.Mamlin’s clinic inMosoriot,Kenya. SalinaRotich,thefirstpatienttoreceivefood,isinthecenter,2007.

Ethiopian farmer Chombe Seyoum today runs the country’s John Deeredealership,2008.

Students at theMagadaPrimarySchool in ruralMalawi gobble up a porridgemade of corn and soy beans grown by local farmers, 2007. Hungry studentsmakeuponeofthebiggestmarketsforMalawi’ssmallfarmers.

Amarketstallmuralbeckonscustomerstotryorangesweetpotatoes,whicharerichinvitaminA,intheMozambiquevillageofMilange,2007.

AmotherfeedsherseverelymalnourishedchildPlumpy’nutinarefugeecampinDarfur,Sudan,2005.

After photographing this starving girl in northern Ghana in 2000, HowardBuffett plunged into the fight on hunger.Courtesy of the Howard G. BuffettFoundation.

HowardBuffettteachingfarmersinaBurundicornfield.CourtesyofMelissaL.Hickox,2009.

Eleni Gabre-Madhin rings the brass bell to open trading at the EthiopiaCommodityExchangeinAddisAbaba,2008.

SusanKaninipresentsagreenpeppertoJimRufenachtofArchbold,Ohio,whileReverend CosmasMwanzia looks on (above). The pepper is part of the firstharvest froma field irrigatedwith rainwater storedbehind theMercyofGodDam (below) built by local farmers with funds provided by the residents ofArchbold,2007.

NormanBorlaug, at ninety-three years of age in 2007, returns to where it allbegan,Mexico’sYaquiValley.

CHAPTER12

TwoStepsForward,TwoStepsBackAROUNDTHEWORLD

KofiAnnanhadfinallyseenenough.FortheheadoftheUnitedNationsandthehighest-ranking African in the world of statecraft, the hunger of 2003 wasdoublypainful:Itrepresentedthefailureoftheworldcommunityheledandthefailureofhisbelovedcontinent.

WhileEthiopianchildrenstillbattledfortheirlivesinfeedingcenters,AnnansummonedAfrica’s headsof state and international development specialists toAddisAbabainJuly2004.Hediscardedtheusualdiplomaticniceties.Standingunder a banner blaring “ACall toAction,” theUN secretary-general recited alitany of woes that left the assembled embarrassed and ashamed. Behold, hesaid,whatAfricahadbecome:“Nearlyathirdofthemen,women,andchildreninsub-SaharanAfricaareseverelyundernourished.Africaistheonlycontinentwherechildmalnutritionisgettingworseratherthanbetter.Weareheretogethertodiscussoneofthemostseriousproblemsonearth:theplagueofhungerthathasblightedhundredsofmillionsofAfrican lives—andwillcontinue todosounlessweactwithgreaterpurposeandurgency.”

Previous food summits under the UN banner stretching back to 1974 hadfailed,Annanacknowledged.TheUN’sloftyMillenniumDevelopmentGoalofhalvinghungerbytheyear2015appearedtobe“moreafar-offfantasythananachievable target” for dozens of countries, he lamented.Africa had become acontinent of Oliver Twists holding out their bowls to the world, begging for

more.Thehumiliationandmiseryof2003hadtobeawatershed,acatalystforfinally doing right by the poorest people ofAfrica, Annan insisted, or all thesufferingwouldhavebeen fornaught. “Letus all doourpart tohelpAfrica’sfarmers and their families take the first steps out of chronic poverty,” Annanurged.“LetusgenerateauniquelyAfricangreenrevolution—arevolutionthatislongoverdue,arevolutionthatwillhelpthecontinentinitsquestfordignityandpeace.”

There it was: a demand for the Green Revolution to finally be brought toAfrica.Itwasacalltoreversetwodecadesofinternationaldevelopmenttheoryandpracticeandtostrikeadeathblowtostructuraladjustment.Surely,Annansuggested, the hunger of 2003 proved that agriculture was the key to liftingAfrica out of such poverty, that its farmerswere part of the solution, not theproblem.“Wearehere,”hetoldthegathering,“aspartofthemovementfortheruralandagriculturaltransformationofourbelovedcontinent.”

AnnanwaskeenlyawarethataquorumofAfricanleaderssawthatfarworsetimeswerecomingifsomethingdidn’tchange.SeveralmonthsbeforeAnnan’scalltoaction,manyofthoseleadershadgatheredinMaputo,Mozambique,andpledged to spend at least 10 percent of their budgets on agriculture and ruraldevelopment—avastimprovementoverthemiserlyamountspreviouslythrowntoward the farmers. And shortly before theAddis summit, at a conference ofinternationalhungerfightersandAfricanministers inUgandacalled“AssuringFoodandNutritionSecurityinAfricaby2020”—Vision2020,forshort—anewrealpolitikemerged.There,AfricanvoicesclamoredforAfricatotakechargeoffeedingitsownpeople.

Oneof themost passionate of those voices came in a higher octave than isnormally heard in top-level discussions on the continent. Graca Machel, theformerminister of education inMozambiquewho hadmarriedSouthAfrica’slegendaryleaderNelsonMandela,bluntlyrebukedherfellowAfricans:Startthefeeding and stop the fighting. “We have a proliferation of small arms on thiscontinent,”shesaid.“Incertainplaces, it ismucheasier togetapistol than togetabookforachild.”

Researchers at the International Food Policy Research Institute, theWashington, D.C.-based agency that had convened the Uganda conference,counted more than 37 million people in twenty-two countries of sub-SaharanAfricawhowere in needof food assistance directly because of conflict at the

turnofthemillennium.Theywerescroungingforfoodeitherduringwars,afterwars, or while fleeing wars as refugees. The total number of hungry andmalnourishedpeopleinthosetwenty-twocountries—wherethepreoccupationofthe population was surviving the violence rather than growing food, and thepriority of government spending was procuring guns rather than distributingseeds—was198million.

“Conflict,refugees,internallydisplacedpeopleandfoodinsecurityarecloselyinterlinked,”Machel said. “We are quite aware, asAfricans, that none of ourprojects tochange the statusof thiscontinentareachievablewithout resolvingconflict.Notonlyaretheremovementsofpeople,butpeoplehavelostland,theyhave losteverything theyhad, theyhave losteven thestrengthandcapacity toworkbecausetheyhavebeeninadebilitatingsituationformany,manyyears.”

No matter which direction she looked from the podium, she saw amanifestation of her words. Uganda had been hideously scarred by conflict,particularly the murderous lunacy of dictator Idi Amin. Even during theconference,justseveralhours’drivetothenorth,governmentforcesbattledtheLord’sResistanceArmy,agroupofrebelswhotalkedaboutinstallingrulebasedon the Ten Commandments while murdering, raping, and pillaging in thecountryside. The fighting had uprooted nearly 2 million people, renderedfarmingimpossible,andleftnearlyhalfofthechildrenintheregionchronicallymalnourished.

Machel’spassionbuilttoacrescendo.“Weneedtoreprioritizeourresourcestowarddevelopment,”sheexhorted.“Resourcesthatwereonceconcentratedonarmies,onso-called‘security,’mustnowbedivertedtohumansecurity,oneofwhose basic aspects is food and nutrition.”There can be no higher goal for acountry,shesaid,thantofeeditschildren.Andnogreatershamethanthefailuretodoso.

Machel’smessage reverberated down to the shriveled cornfields in the skinnysouthern African nation of Malawi. The region’s drought had stretched onthrough 2004, and food production inMalawi fell precipitously.More than 5millionpeople—nearlyhalfthepopulation—wenthungry.BinguwaMutharikahad become president inMay 2004, and one of his early official acts was toformallydeclareastateofemergencysotheUNcouldlaunchaspecialappealforfoodaid.Thecountryheldoutitsbeggingbowl,and$110millionworthof

emergency food rushed in to fill it.Countless liveswere saved,butMutharikafelt humiliated that he couldn’t feed his own people. Enough is enough, thepresident told his countrymen. Malawi couldn’t continue to live on foodhandoutseveryyear.“Ifwearetomakehungerathingofthepast,”hesaid,“weneedtomakeseriouschanges.Nolongerbusinessasusual.”

So Mutharika, a development economist and diplomat, brushed aside twodecades of dictums from outside advisers and declared thatMalawi, a formerBritishcolony,wasstartingitsownprogramtosubsidizetheprovisionofseedsand fertilizers to the country’s farmers. Such subsidies hadbeen eliminated inthe early 1990s under pressure from the World Bank. Now, the bank andBritain’s Department for International Development howled in protest atMutharika’splan,whichwas the first substantial challenge to thedisciplineofstructural adjustment. The bank threatened to withhold new lending if thepresidentpersisted.

Thepresidentpersisted. “These areMalawi’s childrenwhoare starving,nottheWorldBank’s,”hetoldhiscabinet.“AslongasI’mpresident,Idon’teveragainwanttogobeggingforfood.”

Mutharika’sgovernmentintroduceda$55millionfertilizerandseedsubsidyprogramfor1.4millionsmallfarmersin2005.Thatyear,Malawi’sproductionofcorndoubledto2.6millionmetrictons,yieldingasurplusofseveralhundredthousand tons above thenationaldemand.Thenextyear, the subsidyprogramwasexpanded—partiallypaid forwithmoneysavedwhenabigportionof thecountry’s international debt was canceled—and the corn harvest topped 3million tons. In 2007,Malawiwould sell surplus corn to Zimbabwe for $120million, and, in a stunning turnaround, would even donate corn to theWorldFoodProgramtofeedthehungryelsewhereinAfrica.

“We wanted to make a statement: With good policies, you can feed yourcountry and you can help others in need,” said Patrick Kabambe, permanentsecretaryintheministryofagriculture.

The subsidy program also helped expandMalawi’s nascent democracy intothe countryside. As it crafted the procedure for distributing the fertilizer andseeds,thegovernmentforthefirsttimeconsultedwithfarmerorganizationsandtheagriculturalprivate sector.And itbrought the rural areas intodevelopmentdiscussions.“Thishasbecomeapoliticallyburningissue,”saidfinanceministerGoodall Gondwe. “Our political foes are saying there’s hardly any money

around.Theymeanaroundinthecities.We’remakingrurallifemoreattractive.That’swhere the votes are. But don’twrite that!”He erupted in laughter andleanedacrossatableinhisoffice.“TodayinMalawi,youreally,reallyhavetopayattentiontothefarmers.Allthepoliticiansnowknowthat.”

Once theWorld Bank and British development officials saw the economicbenefits of the homegrown subsidy system—it actually made money for thecountrythroughtheexportofsurpluscrops—theyofferedtheirfinancialhelptoextendtheprogram.Indoingso,thebank’sactionsrepudiatedtwodecadesofitsdevelopment theoryandsparkedareconsiderationof thepracticesofstructuraladjustment,atleastthosethatappliedtofarming.

At thesame time,achange in leadershipat thebankset the table foranewattitudetowardagriculture.JamesWolfensohnretiredafterhissecondfive-yeartermaspresident andwas replaced inmid-2005byPaulWolfowitz,PresidentBush’sdeputysecretaryofdefensewhowasbestknownasamastermindoftheIraqwar.AlthoughWolfowitzwascriticizedbyhumanitarianactivistsforalackof experience on development issues as well as for his hawkish record, hebrought a fresh curiosity about agriculture’s ability to lift economies. He hadseen firsthand how the Green Revolution benefited Asia while serving asPresidentReagan’sambassadortoIndonesiainthe1980s.SeveralmonthsafterbecomingWorldBankpresident,heandotherofficialsdecidedthatforthefirsttime in twenty-five years the bank’s annual World Development Report—aseminal study thatoften setsdevelopmentpriorities foryears to come—wouldfocusonagricultureasapotentialengineofpovertyreductioninthedevelopingworld.

While the reportwasbeingprepared, thebank’s consciencewasprickedbyscathing criticisms from within. In 2007, a critical internal evaluation reportblasted the bank for neglecting African farmers by reducing spending onagriculturaldevelopment.Aglossybooklet thebank itselfpublished,FertilizerUse in African Agriculture: Lessons Learned and Good Practice Guidelines,bluntly blamed the structural adjustment demands that governments abandonfertilizerpricecontrols,endsubsidies,anddismantlestatedistributionagenciesforincreasinghungerinAfrica.“Althoughthesereformshadgenerallypositiveimpactsongovernmentbudgets,”theauthorsfound,“theyresultedinsignificantreductionsinoveralllevelsoffertilizeruseandincreasedfoodinsecurityamongmanyruralhouseholds.”

Wolfowitzmadeagricultureatoppriority—alongwithcuttingofflendingtocorruptregimes—buthistenureendedinJune2007withallegationsthatheusedhispositiontohelphisgirlfriend,abankstaffer,getabetterjob.Fortunately,hissuccessor, Robert Zoellick, who had been President Bush’s top traderepresentative,continued topush thebank’s farmpolicy in thesamedirection.His work on the Doha trade talks had schooled him on the importance ofagricultureinthedevelopingworld,particularlytheroleofsubsidies.HequicklyembracednewWorldBankresearchthatshowedagriculturecouldbefarmoreeffective at raising the incomes of the world’s poorest people than any othersectorof theeconomy.InOctober2007, theWorldDevelopmentReportcalledforthebanktoquicklyboostitsinvestmentsinagriculturaldevelopmentandtocreate theconditions foraGreenRevolution inAfrica.Malawi’sprogramwashailedasamodeltofollow,aworthycaseof“smartsubsidies.”

It was then that Kevin Cleaver, the World Bank official who argued thatBorlaug’smethodsweren’tappropriateforAfrica,acknowledgedthatthebank’spast strategy for African agriculture—a strategy he helped articulate—hadn’tworkedoutasexpected.“MyerrorwasIthoughtthatifthegovernmentgotoutthe private sector would go in,” Cleaver said minutes after participating in apaneldiscussiononthereport’sfindings.

As the conference room cleared, the lanky economist lingered at the headtable.Hehad left theWorldBank towork at theUN’s InternationalFund forAgriculturalDevelopmentasanassistantpresidentin2006.HewantedtomakeclearthatpartofwhathadmotivatedhistrustinAfrica’sprivatesectorwashisdistrustofAfrica’spublicsector.Hehadseentoomuchgovernmentcorruptionand ineptitude. In the early 1970s, inZaire, he hadworked in theMinistry ofFinanceofPresidentMobutoSeseSeko,whoroutinelyusedthepublictreasuryasifitwerehisown.Atthebank,Cleaverdespairedasagriculturalprojectsthatflourished in Asia, Latin America, and North Africa withered in sub-SaharanAfrica.

“What’s changing,” Cleaver said as he hailed the return of World Banksupportforagriculture,“isnowweseeAfricangovernmentsarestartingtocaremore.”

At thesame time thatMalawiwas implementing its subsidies,anotherAfricanvoice, on the other side of the continent, also rose to challenge the old

developmentorder.IntheWestAfricannationofLiberia,EllenJohnson-SirleafbecameAfrica’sfirstelectedfemaleleader.Afterherelectionin2005,andafternearly two decades of civil war had ravaged her country, President Johnson-Sirleaftoldallwhowouldlistenthatitwastimetoputdownthegunsandpickup the plows. “African leaders need to prioritize agriculture,” Johnson-SirleafsaidinaninterviewwithTheWallStreetJournalshortlyafterassumingoffice.“Wehavespentsomuchonsecurityanddefense.Agriculturehastocomefirst,thatwillbethebasisforourindustrialization.That’sthewayithashappenedinevery developed country in the world. If we don’t get food security andagriculturedevelopmentfirstandforemost,we’llnevergettoourindustrializedobjectives.

“Wehave to be careful about food imports,” she continued. “To thosewhowanttogiveusaid,wemustsay,‘Giveusseedsandtoolsinsteadoffood.’”Sheblasted theWorldBank and the InternationalMonetaryFund for not allowingAfricangovernmentstosupporttheirfarmers;that,shesaid,hadledtowoefullyundevelopedagricultureacrossthecontinentandadependenceoninternationalfood aid. “Rethink subsidies,” she urged. “Support farmers more, rather thanusingmoneytoimportfood.Wemustdoourownsubsidiestobringagriculturebacktofullfoodsecurity,toexport.”

To show the way, President Johnson-Sirleaf planted high-yield rice in aswampbehindherhomeinthecapitalofMonrovia.Thisactionrecalledimagesfrom four decades earlierwhen India’s IndiraGandhi tore up a flower bed toplantNormanBorlaug’snewwheatstrainastheGreenRevolutiontookrootinAsia.ThatdramaticgesturebecameanenduringsymbolofthepoliticalwillthatwasvitalforthesuccessoftheGreenRevolution.Johnson-Sirleafwashopingtoconveythesamemessage.“Weallhavetogetinvolvedinproduction,”shesaid.“Weallhavetotrytofeedourselvestotheextentpossible.”

The assertive voices ofAfrica crying out that foodmust be a prioritywerebecomingachorus.InalettertotheWhiteHouseinMay2005,healthministersfromKenya,Zambia,andZimbabwethankedPresidentBushforhis$15billionAIDSprogram,andthenpassedonapieceofbushwisdom.Thatgreatgift,theywarned,wouldbe lost if therewasn’tanequalamount invested inagriculturaldevelopment.GivingAIDSmedicine to a patientwhodoesn’t have enough toeat,theytoldthepresident,“islikewashingyourhandsandthendryingtheminthedirt.”

AllthesecallstoaidtheAfricanfarmerstirredactionwithintheUnitedNationsandWesterncapitals.JeffreySachs,aColumbiaUniversityeconomistandUNspecial adviser on the Millennium Development Goals, crafted a series ofMillenniumVillagesintenAfricancountries,wheresimpleagricultural,health,and educational initiatives would be launched. The goal: Prove that aninvestmentof roughly$110perpersonperyear in thosevillagescould lead tofood self-sufficiency and even surplus production for the market. To expandsuchinitiativesacrossthecontinentwouldrequireadoublingofaidspendingbythefraternityofdevelopedcountries.That,inturn,wouldbereachableifthosecountries would invest just 0.7 percent of their gross national income on thedevelopment of the world’s poorest countries. At the time, their developmentassistancegenerallyamountedtobetween0.1percentand0.5percentofincome.

ThataidtargetwasalsocomingintothesightsofBritishPrimeMinisterTonyBlairashewatched theempire’s formercoloniessinkdeeper intopovertyandmisery.Back in2003,ashungerspread,BlairandBobGeldofhadestablishedtheCommissionforAfricatodrawupablueprinttoreverseAfrica’sslide.Thecommissionrecommendedincreasedpublicaidandprivate-sectorinvestmentforthe continent to support the work Africans were doing themselves. “We arestoring up trouble for the future,” the commission warned in its 2005 report.“ThelongerAfrica’sproblemsareleftunaddressedtheworsetheywillget.”

International activists hailed the report and designated 2005 as the Year ofAfricatoshinealightontheproblemsofhunger,disease,anddebt.Theyzeroedin on the summitmeeting of theGroup ofEight inGleneagles, Scotland, thatBlair would be hosting that summer. Bono and Geldof organized Live 8concerts, reprising the LiveAid concerts held during the Ethiopian famine of1984-1985,andotherorganizationsrallied31millionpeoplearoundtheglobetosend textmessages or e-mails to theG8 leaders.Thegrassrootsmovement,AGlobalCalltoActionAgainstPoverty,attracted120millionsignatures.

At thesummitmeeting,Blairpushedhis fellowheadsofstate toheed thesecalls. The year before, meeting on Sea Island, Georgia, the G8 leaders hadendorsedaplanpromotedbyPresidentBushgrandlytitled“EndingtheCycleofFamineintheHornofAfrica,RaisingAgriculturalProductivity,andPromotingRuralDevelopmentinFoodInsecureCountries.”Thedocumentbegins:“Weareunited in our belief that famine is preventable in the 21st century.” At

Gleneagles,Blairurgedhis fellow leaders toputup themoney toachieve thatgoal.After twodaysof talks, theyagreed toadoublingofaidby2010,whichwouldmeananextra$25billionforAfrica,andtowritingoffasmuchas$55billionindebtsoftheworld’spoorestcountries.

TheBritish primeminister—whohad earlier describedAfrica as “a scar onthe conscienceof theworld”—injected amoral, aswell as economic, urgencyfor ending the hunger in Africa. “If what happens in Africa happened in anyothercontinentintheworld,therewouldbeacompleteandtotaloutcry,”hetoldTheWallStreetJournal inaninterviewin2005.“It’sjustsocruelandtragic.”Hewas in Davos, Switzerland, after he had given the opening address to theWorldEconomicForum.Theprimeministerhadchangedfromhisdarksuitintojeans and a polo shirt and was drinking a local Alpine beer, MonsteinerHuusbier.Relaxing in his hotel suite, hemade a rare (for aBritish politician)connectionbetween religion andpublicpolicy: “Youcan’t be apersonof anyfaithandseewhathappensinAfricaandnotbeashamedattheworldnotdoinganythingaboutit.”

ThenextdayinDavos,atapressconferencewithBillGatesandBono,PrimeMinisterBlairsaid,“AllofusfeelthemoralforceofwhathappensinAfrica,butalsoanenlightenedself-interest.”Suchwretchedpoverty,heworried,wouldbeabreedinggroundforanti-Westernsentiment.ForthesakeofWesternsecurity,hesaid,“Itisn’tsensibletoletAfricastayinthisshape.”

Notalltheself-interestintheWest,though,wassoenlightened.Thereremainedmanypeoplewho failed toheed the lessonsof the2003 famine.Theguilt forAfrica’shungerproblems,theycontinuedtobelieve,wasn’ttheirs.TheypointedtotheactionsofRobertMugabeinZimbabweandOmaral-BashirinSudanandsaid,“There,thosearetheguiltyones.”

So, despite thepledges from their headsof government, somepoliticians inthe United States and Europe didn’t follow through with support for Africa,electinginsteadtocontinuetheirself-interestedpolicies.Theyremainedfirminsupportingtheirownfarmerswithagriculturalsubsidiesthattiltedtradeintheirfavor;intheDoharoundofworldtradetalks,therewaslittlemovementtoscalebackWesternsubsidiesandcreateanevenplowingfieldaroundtheworld,eventhough African negotiators insisted subsidy reform was their top issue. TheAmerican Congress refused to consider reforming the U.S. food-aid policy,

despite growing evidence that it had becomeoutdated.Both theUnitedStatesand Europe plunged deeper into programs to turn food into biofuels, despitesigns thatworld grain stockswere diminishing as the demand for food soaredfromburgeoningmiddle classes in emerging powers such asChina and India.AndthewarsagainstterrorisminAfghanistanandIraqtappedthetreasuriesofWestern countries for ever-greater amounts.That spending prompted a budgetsqueeze, jeopardizing those lofty promises to increase aid for internationaldevelopment,particularlytoAfrica.The0.7percenttargetoftherichcountriesrecededfurtherandfurtherintothedistance.

“TheG8arewayoff trackwith theircommitments to increaseeffectiveaid,the kind that we know works,” concluded a 2007 report by DATA, Bono’sadvocacyorganization thatmonitored theprogressof theGleneaglespromises.“TheG8wererighttomakeboldpromises—andprofoundlywrongtoletthemslip.”

Writinginthereport,LiberianPresidentEllenJohnson-Sirleafscolded:“TheG8’scommitmenttoAfricaseemstobefaltering....Ifthesepromisesarenotkeptonbothsides,wecannotrealizeourcollectivedreamsforAfrica.”

Itwas theunenlightenedself-interest in theUnitedStates,Britain,andotherrich countries—the exact opposite ofwhatBlair called for—thatmade hollowtherhetoricoftheG8leaders,betrayedtheeffortofAfricanstohelpthemselves,andpropelledtheworldtowardagreaterfoodcrisis.

Andrew Natsios, the administrator of the U.S. Agency for InternationalDevelopment,hadcravedtheflexibilitytobuysurplusgraininEthiopiaduringthefamineof2003.Heknewitwouldgettothehungryfaster,anditwouldbecheaper, than bringing in food from theUnited States.He also knew that anysuggestedchangetothepolicyofshippingonlyU.S.-grownfoodwouldbemetwithfierceresistancefromtheIronTriangleoffood-aidinterestsandtheiralliesinCongress.

ButastheG8leadersintensifiedtheirfocusonAfrica,Natsiosthoughthesawanopening.HesuggestedtoPresidentBushthatreformingthedecades-oldfood-aid program would complement his initiative to end famine in the Horn ofAfrica. In early 2005, theWhite House sent the next fiscal year’s budget toCongresswith theproposal thatone-quarterof the$1.2billionFoodforPeace

food-aid money be used to buy African crops to feed starving Africans. Theadministrationargueditwouldsavetimeonshipping,savemoneyonthecostofcommodities,andsavelives—asmanyas50,000ayear.

“Whocouldopposethat?”Natsioswondered.

Heunveiledhisproposalattheannualconferenceofthefood-aidindustryinKansas City in April 2005. All the players were there: the farmers, the grainstorageoperators,thecommoditybrokers,theshippers,thehumanitariangroups.Grainmarketing executives in suitsmingledwith reliefworkers in blue jeansandT-shirts.Processorsofeverythingfromraisinsandsoybeanstosalmonandbuckwheatbellieduptothefood-aidtrough.

The2005gatheringconvenedunder theslogan“StrengtheningtheFoodAidChain.”Natsiosessentiallychallengedhisaudienceofeighthundred todo justtheopposite.CitingtheexperienceofEthiopiain2003,heaskedthemtoloosentheirgripon thefood-aidmoneyfor thesakeof theworld’shungry.“Thefactthat U.S. farmers and shippers are able to benefit from the Food for Peaceprogramisanimportantbutsecondarybenefit,”hesaid.“Theprimaryobjectiveistosavelives.”

The audiencewas aghast. Itwas as ifNatsios had asked a roomful ofNewYorkYankees fans to renounceBabeRuth. “He didn’tmake friendswith hisspeech,” saidRobertZachritzofWorldVision, anondenominationalChristianaidgroupthathadlongdistributedU.S.foodaid.Natsioswasn’tgiventosuchunderstatement.“Hostile”ishowhelabeledthereceptionhereceived.

In the politicking that ensued, shouting matches erupted and epithets flew.When faith-based aid groups, likeCatholicRelief Services andWorldVision,rejected theproposal,Natsios,whoonceworkedforWorldVision, fumed thattheiroppositionwas“morallyindefensible.”

Afterall,justinsidethelobbyofCatholicRelief’sheadquartersinBaltimoreatthetime,thewordsofJesusjumpedoffthewall.ThebiblicalverseMatthew25:35—“ForIwashungryandyougavemefood.Iwasthirstyandyougavemedrink”—was engraved on a plaque that greeted all visitors. Inspired by thesewords,CatholicReliefhadfedmillionsofstarvingpeoplearoundtheworldoverthepasthalfcentury.PopeJohnPaulIIblessedtheorganization’sfeedingofthemultitudes and extendedhis “profoundgratitude.”MotherTeresawrote to sayshekepttheorganizationinherprayers.

In World Vision’s lobby in Washington, D.C., giant wall art depicted ashepherd inblue jeans and abaseball capwalking in a grassymeadowbesidestillwaters.Workers andvisitorswaited for the elevator alongside theseotherwordsofJesus:“Ihavecomethattheymayhavelifeandhaveittothefull.”

The White House figured its proposal would provide a chance to feed anadditional50,000people.That,Natsiosreckoned,shouldbeenoughtowinovertheaidagencies.Buthedidn’tdependondivineintervention;healsoofferedabarrageofsecularevidence.HepointedtotheharmfuleffectsofU.S.foodaidon the Ethiopian market in 2003 and the disincentive to farmers. TheWorldFood Program that year had calculated that transportation and handling costsfrom the United States to Ethiopia added nearly $200 to each ton of grain.Similar evidence came in fromother parts of the continent.TheUnitedStateshadspent$57millionin2003delivering100,000tonsofgraintoUgandatofeedhungry people displaced by fighting in the northern part of that country. JohnMagnay, the chief executive ofUgandaGrainTradersLtd., estimated that theUnited States could have purchased nearly three times more grain if it hadshoppedlocallyandpurchasedsurplusesproducedbyUgandanfarmersinotherregionsofthecountry.

In a June 2003 report to the U.S. Senate on the hunger crisis in southernAfrica, the General Accounting Office (GAO) said that local productionshortfalls were exacerbated by a lack of timely food-aid donations. “WFPofficials estimate that in-kind contributions take three to fivemonths from thetime donors confirm the contribution to the arrival of food aid at its finaldistributionsites,”thereportsaid.“However,accordingtoWFPofficials,whencontributionsaremade incashandprocurement isdonewithin the region, theprocesscanbereducedtoonetothreemonths.”

The GAO also reported that Zambia had rejected 76,000 metric tons ofAmerican corn, fearing that it contained biotech products that could harm thehealth of the food-aid recipients, interfere with the country’s agriculturalbiodiversity, and impact its ability to export its own agricultural products toothercountrieswaryofbiotechcontamination.SomeAfricancountriesrequiredthatU.S.whole-kernelcornfirstbemilledbeforecrossingtheirborderssononeof thebiotechkernelswouldendupbeingplantedby local farmers.TheGAOquotedWFPestimatesthatmillingthecorninSouthAfricaaddedanother$80pertontoregionaldistributioncosts.

Armed with this mounting evidence on the benefits of local-purchaseflexibility,Natsioscountedonthesupportofthecharities,particularlythefaith-basedones,tocarrythedebateinCongress.Heplannedtoapproachlegislatorswith this line: “The humanitarian people need this to save lives and fightfamine.”

ButovertheyearsthecharityorganizationshadbecomeonesideoftheIronTriangle of farming, shipping, and humanitarian interests that benefited fromfeeding hungry people. Several dozen relief organizations participated in thedistributionoffoodaid;infact,itwasacentralpartoftheiroperationsabroad.ForCatholicRelief, donations of commodities and transportation costs,whichcamelargelyfromtheU.S.government,totaled$281millioninfiscalyear2004,or justover50percentof itsbudget.ForWorldVision thatyear,donationsofU.S.FoodforPeacecommoditiesandassociatedtransportationcostsamountedto$166million,oraboutone-fifthofitsrevenues.

No side of the Iron Triangle had an interest in seeing less American foodshippedabroad.Infact,theywantedmore.Reliefagencyofficialshadcometothe Kansas City convention wearing white buttons displaying a simple black“2”—as in$2billion,whichwas the food-aid funding level theywereseekingfrom the federal government. That amount would nearly double the spendingfromthepreviousyear.Natsios’sproposal,however,spreadfear that thefood-aidbudgetwouldactuallyshrink.HumanitarianaidofficialsarguedthatacashiteminabudgetwouldbeeasiertocutinthefuturethanafooditemthatwouldkeepmoneyinAmerica.

Warned Michael Wiest, Catholic Relief’s chief operating officer who hadspent two decades inAfrica: “The largest crisis in the history of the food aidprogramisuponus.”

The reliefofficials cautioned that slashing funds spentonU.S. commoditieswoulderodethefarmsector’sinterestinfoodaid.Arguingfromahumanitarianperspectivethatfoodaidshouldbefundedbecauseit istherightthingtodo—thatfeedingthehungryistheAmericanthingtodo—wouldn’tbenearlyenough.Onlyeconomicself-interest, theybelieved,preservedfood-aidfunding.“Ifyoubreakupthecoalition,”Wiestargued,“wewillbelessabletohelppoorpeoplearoundtheworldthanweare.”

Natsiosscoffedatsucharationale.“Ifyoucangetmorefoodforthemoney,whynotdoit?”heasked.“Justtoprotectthecartel?”

The “cartel” was a cottage industry with outposts scattered throughout theAmericaneconomy.TherewerethelentilfarmersonthePalousewhosebiggestcustomer was the food-aid program. There were the commodity-processinggiantslikeBungeLimited,whichsoldcornmealtothegovernment.Therewerethecompaniesthatmadethepatriotic-labeledsacksthatheldthefoodaid.Therewere the forty-five government employeesworking at a nondescript suburbanKansas City office park who dispatched e-mails and faxes to commoditysuppliers, inviting bids on food-aid orders for everything from flour todehydratedpotatoes.AndthereweremenlikeDwayneJordan,whofilledthoseU.S.-themed bags with Palouse-grown wheat at the Port of Lake Charles,Louisiana,whichhandledupwardsof400,000tonsoffoodaideachyear.

Jordandidn’tmuchliketheWhiteHouseproposal.“Ifyoustartspendingthefoodaidmoneyoverseas,youstartlosingjobshere,”hesaid,wipingthesweatfrom his forehead on a blistering-hot Louisiana afternoon. He noted that hispensionwastiedtohowmanyhoursheworked;thelessfoodaidhepackaged,thesmallerhispension.“Youwon’tfindmanypeoplehereinfavorofthat,”hesaid.

There weren’t many to be found in Congress, either, when hearings wereconductedonNatsios’sproposal.AllsidesoftheIronTriangleralliedtoopposeany change. The testimony featured a steady drumbeat of concern—not overhow many additional lives the proposal would save but whether it would begoodfortheAmericanfarmindustry.

Sourcing foodaidoverseas “woulddeprive theU.S. agricultural communityoftheirsenseofprideandcompassion,”testifiedJohnLestingi,vicepresidentofRiceCompany,aRoseville,California,exporter,duringaHousehearinginJune2005.

“Itisourrighttoprovideaidintheformoffoodinsteadofcash,”chimedinJimMadich,vicepresidentofHorizonMilling,ajointventurewithcommodity-processinggiantCargill,Inc.,whoseunitsandventuresdidbigbusinesssellinggraintotheU.S.governmentforuseinforeignfood-aidprograms.

Bob Goodlatte, Republican chairman of the House Agriculture Committee,saidlastritesoverthecashproposal.“Movingfundsintoforeignmarkets, intothepocketsofU.S.farmers’competitorsintheglobalmarket,isnotagooduseof taxpayer money,” he argued. Food aid, he insisted, “must come fromAmerican farmers” so the benefits would continue to “circulate through the

Americaneconomy.”

TheWhiteHouse proposal to shift one-quarter of food aid to cash, for thesakeofsavingtimeandmoneyandlivesandhelpingAfricanfarmers,failedin2005.

Andin2006.

Andin2007.

Andin2008.

The Partnership toCutHunger and Poverty inAfrica, aWashington,D.C.-basedadvocacygroup,triedtobrokersomemovementtowardreform.“MeetingthefoodneedsofhungrypeoplemustbetheprioritydrivingU.S.policyonfoodaid,” it argued. Several aid agencies, like Catholic Relief and World Vision,acceptedtheneedforsomelocal-purchaseflexibility.AndCongressdidapprovea tokenpilot project—just $60million over four years—in theFarmBill.ButstilltheIronTrianglewasabletoholdbackanysignificantreformwithitssamemantra,asconveyedbytheU.S.wheatindustryinitscongressionaltestimony:“Ourphilosophyissimple:Keepthefoodinfoodaid.”

Onebigobstacle toreformingU.S.foodaidwas thatmostof themoneyfor itwas controlled by the agriculture committees in Congress rather than thecommitteesdealingwithforeignpolicy.Thiswasalegacyoffoodaid’soriginalpurpose: disposing of surplus crops. Members of the House and Senateagriculture committees jealously protected the interests of their farmingconstituents, rather thanprioritizingwhatwasbest forU.S. foreignpolicy—ortheworld’spoor.

Similar political self-interest doomed any chance for reform of the U.S.agricultural subsidies in the Farm Bill, even though the time had never beenmore ripe for change. The Depression-era formula for doling out federal aidbased on per-bushel production was no longer fulfilling the original purpose:puttingmoney into thepocketsofpoorAmericans,manyofwhomat the timewerefarmers.Theconcentrationoftheagriculturalbusinessfromsmallerfamilyfarmers to bigger operations had reached the point that most of the subsidymoneywascollectedbythelargerfarmers.Themorebushelsafarmerproduced,the bigger the subsidy check. Fighting poverty by the bushelwasn’t effective

anymore. In 2004, for instance, theU.S.Department ofAgriculture sent $807millioningovernmentcheckstofarmoperatorswithannualincomesexceeding$200,000.By2006,thelargest10percentofU.S.farmsintermsofsalesreapedmorethanhalfofallgovernmentpayments.Andthebulkofthatmoneyflowedto just 22 of the 435 congressional districts, according to the EnvironmentalWorkingGroup,Washington,D.C.-basedcriticsofproduction-linkedsubsidies.

DuringtheDepression,farmers’incomewashalfthatofnonfarmers.In2007,theaveragehouseholdincomeoffarmerswas$86,233,whichwas27.5percentgreaterthantheaverageincomeofallU.S.households,accordingtotheUSDA.Ithadbeenthesamestoryeveryyearduringthelifeofthe2002FarmBill.Theaverage household income of farmers grew by 31 percent between 2002 and2007,comparedtojust16.9percentforallAmericanhouseholds.

The financial advantage that farmers had over the typical U.S. family wasevengreaterwhenitcametowealth,afunctionofthefactthatfarmerscontrolmuchofthenation’sland.AccordingtotheFederalReserveSystem,themediannetworthofU.S.householdswas$93,100 in2004.Thecomparable figure forU.S.farmhouseholdswas$456,914;thatamountroseto$533,975in2007.Thegap likely expanded through 2008, a year inwhich the networth of theU.S.farmsectorhit$2.1 trillion.Theaveragefarmerwasnowbetteroff financiallythan the people he fed; still, the government continued to tax the latter tosubsidizetheformer.

Emboldenedbytheseeconomicrealities,anumberoftaxpayergroupsbeganmobilizing against subsidies. They were joined by antihunger activists, likeBreadfortheWorld,whosawhowWesternsubsidiescontributedtotheAfricanhunger crisis of 2003. Strange bedfellows—from Oxfam on the Left to thelibertarian Cato Institute and the National Taxpayers Union on the Right—formed theAlliance for SensibleAgriculture Policies to campaign against thesubsidysystem.TheyevenbeganwinningconvertsintheFarmBelt.

In Iowa, one of the most heavily subsidized states, a lanky, mustachioedRepublicanrunningforstateagriculturesecretaryinearly2006toldfarmerstheyshould get smaller federal checks. Mark W. Leonard, who campaigned in awhitecowboyhat,explainedtoagroupoffarmersgatheredinabuildingontheIowa State University campus how federal payments spurred overproduction,depressingpricesforgrowersoverseas.“FromaChristianstandpoint,whatitisdoing toAfrica tugsatyourheartstrings,”Leonard told them.Hehadcome to

thisconclusionafterOxfamarrangedforhimtoescortaMalicottonfarmer tochurchgatheringsnearhis farm inHolstein, Iowa.Ateverystop,Leonardhadlistened to tales of how U.S. cotton subsidies undermined the livelihoods ofAfricanfarmers.

Theantisubsidiescoalitionalsoenlistedenvironmentalists,whobelievedthatthe systemof paying farmers by the bushel encouraged growers towork theirlandtoohardinordertogetasmuchfederalmoneyaspossible.Itwashardlyacoincidence,theynoted,thatfourofthecropsWashingtonhadchosentofavor—corn, wheat, cotton, and soybeans—consumed 60 percent of all of thenitrogen, phosphate, and potash fertilizers used in the United States. Farmerscertainlydidn’twant towasteany fertilizer,onwhich they spend roughly$10billionannually.Butdespiteincreasinglypreciseapplicationmethods,chemical-tainted runoff from the fieldsseeped into thewaterways thateventually funnelintotheMississippiRiver.AtoxicstewhadspawnedadeadzoneintheGulfofMexico that in some years has been bigger in size than the state ofMassachusetts. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reported thatexcessive nitrogen and phosphorus in the water had fueled a populationexplosionof algae,whichusedup somuchoxygen that fish andothermarinelifecouldn’tsurvive.

Atthesametime,growingpressureonthefederalbudgetfromWashington’swaronterrorproddedtheWhiteHouseandDemocraticleadersinCongressintoarareconsensus:Farmsubsidiescosttoomuch.Thepresident,whohadsignedthe 2002 Farm Bill sweetening subsidies, now wanted to get serious aboutreform.Notonlywerefarmsubsidiesadragonhisbudget,buthehadgottenanearful on the damage that Western subsidies were inflicting on Africanagriculture during his two trips to that continent. Subsidies, hewas told,wereunderminingthegoodwillgeneratedbyhisAIDSinitiative.

And there was pressure from the Doha round of negotiations at theWorldTradeOrganization,throughwhichtheUnitedStatesandEuropeanUnionhopedto win more access to developing countries for their industrial goods andfinancial services.While developing countries had in the pastmeekly ratifiedglobal trade deals negotiated by theWestern powers, now China, Brazil, andIndia had rallied a bloc of developing nations to demand a big cut in thesubsidiespaidtofarmersintheUnitedStatesandtheEuropeanUnion.Nofarmsubsidycuts,nonewmarketsforWesterncompanies, theyinsisted.TheWhiteHouse, fending off lawsuits within the WTO to stop U.S. subsidies, feared

internationaltraderelationswouldbegravelyharmed.

Then domestic politics intervened. The Democrats won control of both theHouseandtheSenateinthe2006elections,andthepartyleadership’sardorforsubsidy reform faded. Rather than lead the charge, they retreated. TheDemocratswereanxioustosolidifytheircontrolofCongressin2008—aswellaswin the presidency—and sowanted to avoid putting any seats at risk.AndchangingfarmsubsidiesmightjustdothatintheMidwestandtheSouth,wherethefarmlobbywasthemostpowerful.

The farm industry had investedwisely in lobbyists over the years. Becausealmost every state has farmers, virtually all one hundred senators weresusceptible to pressure from farming interests. In the House, meanwhile,legislatorsfromfarmdistrictshadahistoryofputtingfarminterestsbeforetheirparty even as partisan bickering grewmore toxic in nearly every other policyarea.And the legislationbehind farmsubsidieshadbeen structured tomake itunusually hard to undo. Unlike many laws, which automatically expire on apredetermineddate, the lawsunderlyingsubsidiesweren’tprogrammedtoend.Instead,ifCongressdidn’tcraftandenactanewfarmbilleveryfiveyearsorso,the law reverted back to the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 and theAgriculture Act of 1949, which contained even sweeter payments to somefarmers.

Thankstothiscunningbitoflawmaking,thefarmlobbyhadn’thadtojustifythe existence of the subsidies the way it would have if the programs wereautomaticallyslatedforextinction.Rather,Congresswasofteninaracetoavoidthatchaoticleapbackintime.

IntheDarwinianworldofCongress,thelongevityoftheFarmBillhadgivenittimetoevolvesurvivalskills.Overthedecades,theUSDAextendeditsreachintomanynewareas,creatingpoliticalcurrencyforthecongressionalagriculturecommittees even as the farm vote shrank to less than 1 percent of the U.S.population.ThefarmbillsettingtheUSDA’sbudgetgrewtoincludemoneyforfood stamps, school lunches, meat inspectors, rural utilities and housing, soilconservation,exportcreditguarantees,cropinsurance,andthefightingofforestfires.Less thana thirdof themoney spentby theUSDAwouldendup in thepockets of farmers; most would go to nutrition programs for low-incomefamilies,children,andelderly.

The expansion of the USDA’s responsibilities empowered farm-state

legislatorsbygivingthemsomethingtoswapwithlawmakerswhocouldn’ttellaheiferfromasteer,letaloneacountercyclicalpaymentfromaloan-deficiencypayment.Legislatorswhowantedmoremoneyfromtheagriculturecommitteesfor nutrition programs aimed at the poor had to go along with handouts tofarmerslivinginfarbettercircumstances.

Andso,when the2002FarmBillcameup for renewal, itdidn’tmatter thatthemarkets hadbeengoing through enormous changes in 2006 and2007 thatwouldhavemadeitrelativelypainlesstoweanmanyfarmersfromtheirsupply-based subsidies. A new push for corn-based ethanol fuel was in effectsubsidizingdemandforallsortsofcrops.Asfarmersracedtoplantmorecorntomake ethanol, prices of the crops they nudged aside also rose. Processors ofeverything from soybeans andwheat to popcorn and lentils had to raise theirpricesinordertokeepfarmersinterestedingrowingenoughoftheircrops.

At the same time,U.S. agricultural exportswere soaring to record levels.Aweak dollarwasmakingU.S. exportsmore attractive to foreign buyers as theswellingmiddleclass incountries suchasChinaand Indiawereable to spendmoreandmoreonfood.

ManyU.S.farmersreapedthemostprofitableyearsoftheircareersbetween2004and2008.Netfarmincome,theUSDA’sroughmeasureofprofitability,hita record $86.8 billion in 2007, up 48 percent from 2006. In 2008, net farmincomeedgedevenhigher,to$89.3billion.

As the grainmarkets boomed, the size of subsidy checks shrank.Althoughsome of the federal payments to farmers wouldn’t change from year to year,much of the subsidy money was linked to market prices. Crop by crop,Washingtonhadestablishedaper-bushelprice (or in thecaseofcotton,aper-pound price) that bureaucrats calculated would allow growers to recoup theirinvestmentandstay inbusiness.Forexample, thegovernment’s targetprice inthe 2002 FarmBill for a bushel of cornwas about $2.60 and for a bushel ofsoybeans$5.80.Whenmarketpricesfellbelowthesetargets,whichwasusuallythecase,thegovernmentwasobligatedtomakeupthedifference.Bylate2006,however, market prices had climbed above the levels that automaticallytriggered price-support payments. And many economists were beginning toforecastthatgrowingdemandforcropsaroundtheworldwouldliftthepricesofAmerica’ssubsidizedcropstoanewplateau.

Opponentsofthecrop-subsidysystemhopedthisoutlookwoulddomorethan

anythingtogetfarmgroupstogoalongwiththereformmovement.Itseemedtobe in the financial interests of farmers to finally break away from the oldproduction-linked system and tie their payments to another formula, such asenvironmentalpracticesorpastlevelsoffinancialsupport.

But it didn’t happen. Farmers simply didn’t believe that commodity priceswould stayhigh for long enough tomake their traditional subsidiesworthless.They had heard such talk before. Amid an export boom to Asia in 1996, aRepublican-ledCongressanxioustocut thefederaldeficitpassedlegislationtoweanfarmersfromsubsidiesoversevenyears.ButWashingtonbackedoffaftera fewyearswhenAsian exports suddenly cooled, and theU.S. farmeconomyenteredoneofitscyclicaltailspins.

AndsotheagriculturecommitteesofCongressdidwhattheydosowell.Toovercomearisingwallofopposition,whichincludedtheWhiteHouse,thefarm-state legislators offered a bigger batch of political goodies to their nonfarmcolleagues.TheresultwasthemostbloatedFarmBillinhistory.

TheFarmBillthatwasfinallyenactedinJune2008had672pages,60percentmore than the 2002 Farm Bill. According to Congressional Budget Officeforecasts,thefederalgovernmentwillspendabout$104.2billionduringthelifeof the five-year bill on programs that put money into the bank accounts offarmers. The amount covers everything from crop-price support payments toland-idling checks to crop-insurance subsidies. The bill’s pork included anauthorization to sellNational Forest land to a ski resort andmoney for desertlakes.Inexchangeforabigincreaseinspendingonnutritionprograms,farmerswonanincreaseinthesubsidyratesforseveralcrops,thelengtheningofthelistofanointedcropseligibleforsupport,andthecreationofa“permanent”disasterfundforlivestockandcrops.

President Bush, who had tried to keep the Doha talks alive by offeringAmerica’s trading partners a reduction in the U.S. spending cap on certainsubsidiesby60percentover fiveyears, took theextraordinary stepofvetoingthe FarmBill.But it didn’tmatter.Congress easily approved the legislation asecondtimewithaveto-proofvote.

Farm groups applauded the 2008 Farm Bill for providing “stability” toagriculture. The Doha round of trade talks sank deeper into a coma, MarkLeonard losthis race for Iowaagricultural secretary,andcriticsof thesubsidysystem could only complain about a squandered opportunity for reform. “The

pigsatthetroughcontinuedtopromotegeneroushandoutsfromtaxpayers,”saidOxfam. Added Craig Cox, a vice president of the Environmental WorkingGroup:“Thestayingpowerofsubsidiesisremarkable.”

Another burst ofAmerican self-interestwas turning food into fuel at an ever-accelerating pace, even as global stocks of grain were dwindling and worldhungergrowing.Despitethe2003famine,whichportendedever-greaterstrainsontheworld’sfoodsupply,Washingtonpoliticiansignitedaboomintheethanolindustry—whichusescorntomakeagasolineadditive—anditbecameamajorcompetitorwiththeworld’shungryforfood.About30percentofthe2008U.S.corncropwasdestinedtogointocars.

Once again, a subsidy put the hungry at a disadvantage in the competitionwithenergycompanies.EthanolhadbeenasacredcowforWashingtonsincethe1970s,whentheAraboilembargohobbledtheU.S.economyandensnareditintheMiddleEast’sancientconflicts.Ethanolwasaneasyanswertothechallengetodevelopalternativeformsoffuelbecause itwassimple tomakefromgrain,whichtheUnitedStatesoftenproducedingreatabundance.Cornkernelsprovedtobea rich sourceof the sugar lovedby theyeasts andothermicroorganismsgood at making the ethanol brew, which was basically the same thing as thebeveragealcoholthathadlongbeendistilledfromcornandothercrops.Buttheethanol industry isn’t economically viable on its ownbecause ethanol ismoreexpensivetomakethangasoline.Sosince1978,theU.S.governmenthadgivenoilrefinersa taxcreditforeverygallonofethanol theyaddedtogasoline.ThegovernmentalsomovedtoprotecttheindustryfromBrazil’scheapersugarcane-derivedethanolbrewwithaper-gallontariffoffifty-fourcents.Theseincentivesgrewtobeworthbillionsofdollarsannually.

Afteracoolingofoilpricesinthe1980sand1990schilledinvestorinterestinethanol,AmericanpoliticalinterestinalternativefuelsswelledagaininthenewcenturywhenoilbeganasteadyclimbandthewaronterrorandthecostsofthewarinIraqincreasedthepoliticalappealofahomegrownenergysupply.IntheEnergyPolicyActof2005,Congressmandatedthatthepetroleumindustryuserenewable fuel, and set amounts that increased each year. Since corn-derivedethanolwastheonlyrenewablefuelofanysize,itbenefitedmostfromtheact.Themandatecalledfor4billiongallonsofrenewablefuelin2006,escalatingto7.5billiongallonsby2012.

Theseincentivesfueledanethanol-plantbuildingboomacrosstheCornBelt.In what was the biggest investment movement to sweep rural America indecades, farmers and their neighbors raided their nest eggs to pour billions ofdollars into local ethanol companies.By the endof2007, the ethanol industryhad grown so big that its 134 plants were capable of producing 7.2 billiongallonsannually,farmorethanthefederalestimatesofwhatthecountrywouldbeneedingforseveralyears.Anddozensmoreplantswereunderconstructionorondrawingboards.

To keep up with this dizzying expansion, Washington ratcheted up themandates, compelling the petroleum industry to use even more ethanol.Congress passed the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, whichmandatedtheuseof9billiongallonsofrenewablefuelsin2008and36billiongallonsby2022.

In 2004, about 1.2 billion bushels of corn, or 11.6 percent of the country’sharvest,wasturnedintofuel.Justtwoyearslater,ethanolplantsused1.6billionbushels, or 14.4percent of the crop.By2007, 20percent of thenation’s cornwasbeingturnedintoethanol—theequivalentofanIowacornharvest.

This demand pushed corn prices skyward. It also scrambled the amount ofothercropsbeinggrown;somanyfarmersabandoned their traditionalcrops togrowcornfortheethanolindustrythatpricesofsoybeans,sorghum,andbarleyclimbedsharply,too.

TheUnitedStateswasn’ttheonlycountryfeverishwithbiofuelmania.Food-to-fuelmandates proliferated around the globe. About 40 percent of Europe’sfourth-largestcropbyhectares—rapeseed—wasdivertedtomakebiodieselaftertheEUsetatargetofgetting10percentofitsmotorfuelfrombiofuelsby2020.Theneededcropswouldoccupyabout15percentofallthearablelandintheEUrealm.InAsia,Thailandandothercountriesadoptedthepolicyofencouragingtheuseofbiodieselmadefromtheoilofalocaltreecalledtheoilpalm,widelyusedintheregionforcookingoil.Thepushcontributedtoaneardoublingofthepriceofpalmoil in thecountry in2007,forcingtheThaigovernment toallowthe import of 30,000 tons. In India, the government beganoffering subsidizedloanstosugarmillsforbuildingethanolplants.Brazilencourageditsconsumersto use sugarcane-derived ethanol by taxing ethanol-containing fuel at a lowerlevel than gasoline. Canada, China, and Indonesia also adopted mandates ortargetsforbiofuelproduction.

Criticsscoffedthatitwasallcounterproductive.Intheireagernesstoreduce,by even a little, their dependence on high-priced foreign oil, these countriesinadvertentlycoupledthepriceofseveralmajorcropstothepriceofpetroleum,makingtheireconomiesevenmorevulnerabletothenon-renewableresource.IntheWest, in particular, themotor-fuel business is so big that a huge share ofthese cropsmust be consumed tomake even a small dent. TheUnited Statesused about 20 percent of its record 2007 corn harvest tomake an amount ofethanol that displaced only about 3 percent of the 142-billion-gallon gasolinemarket.Notonlydoesagallonofethanolpushacarfewermilesthanagallonofgasoline,butthegrowingandharvestingofcornconsumedalotofpetroleuminthe first place.U.S. corn farmers appliednaturalgas-derived fertilizeron theirfields,rantheirtractorsandcombinesondiesel,andoperatednatural-gasheaterstodrytheircrops.

For the hungry of the world, though, this was the bottom line: Filling atwenty-five-gallonfueltankofasportutilityvehiclewithablendcontaining85percent ethanol—the highest mixture available at commercial pumps in theUnited States—would consume about eight bushels of corn, which containedenoughcaloriestofeedapersonforayear.

JeanZiegler,thethen-UNspecialrapporteurontherighttofood,didthemathas forecasts indicated the United States would soon be pumping billions ofbushelsofcornintocars.Whatitaddedupto,hecharged,wasa“crimeagainsthumanity.”

CHAPTER16

SmallActs,BigImpactsKENYA,OHIO,ANDMALAWI

TheMercyofGodDamstretchingacrosstheIkiweRiverinMachakos,Kenya,wasn’tmuchtolookat.Asdamsgo,itwasamodestedifice,maybeonehundredfeetwideand ten feetdeep,crudelymadeofcement,boulders,mud,andsandandshapedbytheunskilledhandsoflocalvillagers.Butitbeautifullydiditsjob,whichwastocapturethewaterduringtheregion’stwobriefrainyseasons,onein the spring and the other in the fall. Before the dam was completed inSeptember2006, the rainwaterwouldquicklywashaway, and the Ikiwe, afterflowingwildlyforacoupleofweeks,wouldbecomeadrybedofsand.Thedamheldtherainfallformonths,givingtwohundredpeasantfarmersareliablewatersourcefortheircattleandenablingthemtoirrigatetwenty-fiveacresforthefirsttimeandgrowvegetablesfortheirfamiliesandforthemarket.

“We’re not so hungry anymore,” declared the Reverend CosmasMwanzia,pastor of the RedeemedGospel Church,who had christened the damwith itsecclesiasticalname.MercyofGod,indeed.

Butnowhewasconsideringgivingitanewname.HewasstandingbesidethedaminthecompanyofJimandLindaRufenacht,cattlefarmersfromthesmalltownofArchbold,Ohio.ForfouryearstheRufenachtshadralliedthetownsfolkof Archbold to raise calves that were sold for the benefit of struggling farmcommunitiesinthisaridregionofsouthernKenya.Here,holdingbackthewateroftheIkiwe,wasoneoftheprojectstheyhadfinanced.

“MercyofArchboldDam,that’swhatweshouldcallit,”ReverendMwanzia

suggested.Ithadagoodringtoit,hesaid,bettercertainlythantheunintendedprofanity,whenyousaiditquickly,ofMercyofGodDam.Thevillagersrarelyspoke theEnglishname.MercyofArchboldDamsoundedbetter andbetter—andveryappropriate.“Itisherebecauseofyou,”hetoldtheRufenachts.

TheArchbolddonationshadprovided$3,000,and the farmersofMachakosbuilt the dam themselves. They used themoney to hire aKenyan engineer todesign the dam and to buy the cement. The farmers themselves supplied thesand,rocks,andlabor.Withintwenty-fivedays, justbeforetherainscame,thedamwasfinished.

As the Ikiwe filled with water, the farmers bought a small pump with theArchboldmoneyandlaidsomepipesfromtherivertotheparched,scrubbyfieldontheleftbank.Severalmonthslater,whentheRufenachtsvisited, therewereacres of tomatoes, peppers, chilis, andwatermelons. SusanKanini, one of thefarmers, leaned on her cane and triumphantly picked a green pepper fromherfirstharvest.Shepresented it to Jim.“Thankyou,” shesaid,“forallyouhavedone.”

“Oh, it’s nothing special,” Jim replied, his voice choking up. Tears formedbehindhissunglasses.“We’rejustfarmerslikeyou.”

Thedamstoodasamonument to thebig impactofsmallprojects:howonefamilyandonecommunitycanoftendomorethanabiginternationalagencytospuragriculturaldevelopmentandalleviatehunger.TheArchboldinitiativewaspart of the Foods Resource Bank (FRB), a U.S.-based hunger-fightingorganization financed by churches and other donors that connects urbancongregationswithfarminggroups.ThechurcheshelpfundthegrowingofcropsortheraisingofcattlethatarededicatedtoaparticularagriculturaldevelopmentprojectinAfrica,LatinAmerica,Asia,oreasternEurope.Ratherthansendthefoodasaid,it issoldonU.S.marketsandtheprofit isthendispatchedabroad,wheretherecipientfarmersdecidehowbesttousethemoneytoboosttheirownproduction.Since2000,FRBgrowingprojects in twenty-two stateshad raisedmore than $10 million for rural communities in about three dozen countries,mostly inAfrica; through 2008, that amount had been supplemented bymorethan$3millionfromthepublic-privatepartnershipinitiativeoftheU.S.AgencyforInternationalDevelopment.

The farmers in the Machakos district were particularly in need of help.Recurringdroughthadleftthousandsoffamiliesscratchingforfoodandwalking

ever-longerdistancesforwater.“Itwasverybad,”ReverendMwanziarecalled.“IfIthinkaboutit,Icry.”

Hehadtriedtocomforthishungryparishionerswithhispreaching.“Onedaywe’llallbeinheaven,”hewouldsay.“Andinheaven,therewillbenoshortageofwater.Inheaven,therewillbenofamine.”

“Butpastor,”camethecryfromthecongregation,“whatarewesupposedtodobeforewegetthere?”

ReverendMwanziabegandistributingfoodaidprovidedbyreliefagenciesathischurch.Butthat,heknew,wasnosolution.“Afterthefirstyear,Iworriedwehadbecomedependentonhandouts,”hesaid.“Thatwasn’tright.”

Hesummonedthecommunityleaderstoameeting,andtogethertheyformedtheMachakos Rural Development Program to fight back against the drought.Theirtopprioritieswerewaterandseedsfordrought-resistantcropsandmoneytogetstarted.Theywrote tovarious internationalaidorganizations,askingforhelp.TheFoodsResourceBank,hearingaboutthepleafromoneofitsmemberorganizations,embracedthecause,anditbroughtElizabethKamau,oneof theMachakosleaders,totheUnitedStatestoputafaceonthefarmers’struggles.

Kamau told gatherings at churches and schools how she and her childrenwould trudge farther and farther for water as the drought tightened its chokehold, lengthening the quest from six to twelvemiles. She and her four oldestchildrenwouldsetoutatnineandreturnhomeatfourthenextmorning,walkingandluggingthewaterduringtherelativecoolofthenight.Herchildrenwouldgetonlytwohoursofsleepbeforetheyroseandpreparedforschool.Thenextnight,theywouldmakethesametrek.

Herplight struckachord inArchbold,where theMennonitechurchworkedwiththeFRB.“Thethingthatgottouswasthattherewerepeopleintheworldwhohavetowalksevenmilesonewayforwater.Ifwehadtowalkthatfarforwater,wewouldn’tgetanythingelsedone,”saidCorkRufenacht,Jim’sbrother.“We’re in a very blessed area of theworld here, andwe know it.When youknowit,somegenerositycomesoutofyourheart.”

TheRufenachtbrothersdecidedtodedicateseveraldozencalveseachyeartobesoldforthefarmersofMachakos.Buttheyknewtheprojectwouldbemoresuccessfuliftheentiretownwouldgetinvolved.Archbold,population4,500,isa quintessential middle-American farming town of sturdy houses, steepled

churches,andsteadycommerce,surroundedbygreenfieldsandredbarns.ThevillagewassettledbyMennonitesandLutherans,whotamedthewilderness inthe first half of the nineteenth century, and it still reflects their earnest,hardworking,salt-of-the-earthnature.Ablue-and-whitesignon themainstreetleading into town greets visitors with a slogan from the Archbold CharacterCouncil.Everymonth,anewadmonitionappeared:“Self-Control:HavingaLifePurposeBiggerthanSelf,”“Enthusiasm:BeinganEnergyGiver,MotivateandUpliftOthers,”or“Gratefulness:ShowingAppreciationinWordandAction.”

When the Rufenachts spread the word about the cattle-raising project, thetownjumpedintoaction.“Iwouldtalkatachurchandsayweneedmorefeedforthecalves.AndbythetimeIgottothebackofthechurch,there’dbeseveralbalesofhaywaitingforme,”Corkrecalled.

DarlenePolasekandLouiseShortdonatedabarntoholdthecalves.“Wehaveit,it’sempty,whynotuseit?”Darlenereckoned.

JohnPoulson,anagriculturalscience teacherat thePettisvilleLocalSchool,which runs from kindergarten through high school, volunteered his olderstudentstohelpwiththebookkeeping.“It’sgoodpracticeforthekids,”hesaid.

Cecily Rohrs, the local social worker, raised the alarm. “You can make adifference in our unsettled world!” trumpeted a flyer she printed. “Not onechurch.Notoneschool.Notonecommunitygroup.Butallofus—together!”

Charlie Beck, a retired farmer, stepped forward to look after the calves.Archbold’schurcheshostedanannualBurgerBashinacityparktoaddtothepotofmoney.

By the end of 2008, the project had raised $130,000,which had helped thefarmersofMachakosconstructaboutfivehundredsmall-scaledamsandwater-retentionponds,deliveringmore than5,000families fromdroughtandhunger.In Kenya, the visitors fromArchbold were hailed as saviors. “We ain’t doneanythingspecial,” JimRufenacht saidoverandover inhisaw-shucksmanner.“Wealljustgavewhatwehad.”

EdwinOnyancha, standingbeside theMercyofGodDam,begged todiffer.“Whatyouhavedoneisveryspecial,”saidtheeasternAfricadirectorforDorcasAid International, adevelopmentagencyworkingwithFRBmemberChristianReformed World Relief Committee to channel the Archbold money toMachakos.“Foryears,wehavebeenignoredbytheWorldBankandotherbig

agencieswhobuildbigprojects.Wedidn’tmatter.Butnowwehavelearnedthatsmall projects like this are very important. A big dam would be veryintimidating.Thelocalcommunitywouldworry,‘Nowhowdowerepairthatifsomethinghappens?’Withthisone,itwasbuiltbytheirownhandsanditcanberepairedbytheirownhands.”

RufenachtandhiswifehadsetoutforAfricawithJonandSharilynGrushkinofaFoodsResourceBankgrowingprojectinIllinoisandFRBPresidentMarvBaldwin to see for themselves what their donations had wrought. They oftenrubbedtheireyeslikedisbelievingkidsonChristmas,makingsurethatthelushfieldstheywereseeingweren’tmirages.Amanoffewwordseveninhismostloquacious moments, Jim’s mantra through the Kenyan bush became“Awesome.”

Nosoonerweretheybackonthedirtroads,havingleftthedam,whenPeterMutiso, a small, wiry man with big ambitions, pedaled his bicycle alongsidetheir rambling safari van. On the back of his bike balanced a pump and amechanicalmotor.

“What’swiththepump?”ReverendMwanziaasked.

“Improving my irrigation,” Mutiso said, a smile filling his face. The FRBtravelingpartypiledoutofthevantolistenasthefarmerrelatedhisremarkableclimboutofhunger.

Twoyears earlier, hewas a hardscrabble subsistence farmer, growing cropslikecornandbeans to feedhis familyand sellingwhatever surplushehad. Ingoodyears,whichwerefew,Mutisoestimatedhemadeabouteightydollars.Inbadyears,whichwereplenty,hisparchedsoildidn’tyieldenoughtosatisfyhisfamily.Likemanyofhisneighbors,hechokeddownhisprideandacceptedfoodaid.

WiththeaidandadviceofReverendMwanzia’sRuralDevelopmentProgram,Mutiso bought some shovels and dug a water-retention pond to collect therainwaterthatfallsduringtheregion’stwoannualrainyseasons.Healsoboughta simple manual pump, called the SuperMoneyMaker, designed by KickStartInternationaltoworklikeaStairmaster.Forseveralhoursaday,heorhiswifeortheirchildrenwouldstepupanddownonthepump,drawingwaterfromthepondtohisfields.Itwashardwork,butitutterlytransformedhistwo-acreplot.In addition to the staple foods, heused thewater to expand intomarket cropslikechilipeppers,greenpeppers,watermelon,andfruittrees.In2007,heearned

aboutfivehundreddollarssellinghisproduceatthenearesturbanmarket.

Mutiso said the extramoneyboughtmore food forhis family.Andhe tookabout one-third of his profit to buy the generator and pump. The new pumpwould spare his family the hours of stepping, hours that could be moreproductively used to double the size of their cultivated land.Mutiso said thiswouldallowhimtofurtherdiversifyhiscroptoprovidebetternutritionforhisfamily andmore variety for themarket.He had already planted four hundrednewmangotrees.

“That is my story,” Mutiso said. He doffed his cap, emblazoned with theblack-and-red logo of English soccer club Manchester United, and profuselythankedhisvisitorsfortheirhelp.

Reverend Mwanzia swelled with pride, and the Rufenachts’ eyes lit up.“Progress!”shoutedJim.

Mutisoexcusedhimself,forhewasinahurrytopedalovertotheneighboringvillage,wherehehoped tofindsomeonewhocouldshowhimhowtoconnectthe pump to the generator. The parts didn’t come with instructions, and theshopkeeperwhosoldthemtohimhadnoclue.Hepointedaheaddownthedirtroadtowherethevisitorswouldfindhishouseandhisfields.

As they climbed back into the van, the traveling party joked that, givenMutiso’sacceleratedrateofprogress,theirnextvisitwouldfindhimsittinginarecliningchairandwatchingEnglishsocceronabig-screen television.For themoment,though,thevanwasatimemachine,transportingitspassengersbacktoanearliertimeinagriculturalhistory.ThequantumjumpsinfarmproductioninMachakosmadepossiblebytheavailabilityofwaterandhybridseeds“mustbelike theU.S. in the1940s,” Jim said. “Farmersused their own storesof seedsand then thehybrids cameand itwas like, boom!”His thoughtsdrifted tohischildhood on the family farm in Archbold as the latest seed technology wasapplied in the mid-1960s. “It was BOOM, this is unbelievable! I can evenremember the field, itwas that pronounced. I’dnever seen corn like that.Theyieldswere20%to25%better.”

Thevanstoppedsuddenly, twohundredyardsshortofMutiso’sroundmud-brick hut, and the Rufenachts were jolted back to Kenya in the twenty-firstcentury.Inthedistance,theysawthreewomenpoundingthegroundwithgiantsticks.TheywereMutiso’swifeandtwodaughters,beatingapileofdriedbeanpods to husk the beans.ReverendMwanzia led theway across a grassy field,

warily stepping past two Zebu bulls, African humpbacked oxen that pulledMutiso’splow.Theretentionpondwasstillfullwithwatertwomonthsaftertherainsstopped.

Thewomen flailing at the beans spotted ReverendMwanzia and put downtheirsticks.Mutiso’swifeapproachedherguestsandescortedthemtothefields.It was just like Mutiso had described: row after row of peppers stretchingwestward to the end of the clearing. Mango, papaya, and orange treesembroidered the edges of the field. It was a lush oasis amid the sunbaked,tangledbrushoftheAfricanbush.

The irrigation system had changed—no, had saved!—their lives, Mutiso’swifesaid.ReverendMwanziatoldherthattheRufenachtsandtheirneighborsontheothersideoftheworldhadmadeitallpossible.Sheclappedherhands.“Weweredependentonfoodaiduntilwegotthewater,”shesaid.“Thankyou.”

Rufenacht,wading through thechilis andothervegetables, struggled for therightwords.“Awesome,”hesaid.

Back in the van, the FRB party headed to the village of Ngangeni andReverend Mwanzia’s church. The dirt roads of Machakos were brutally bad,subjecting the travelers to miles of bouncing over washboard terrain. On onenarrowpathway,thevanslippedintoarutandtiltedsofartoonesidethedoorwouldn’tslideopen;everybodycrawledoutthroughawindowandthenleanedtogetheronthebackbumpertopushthevanfree.

AsNgangenidrewnearer, thebouncing suddenly stopped.The ridebecamestunninglysmooth.Thedirthadn’tmagicallybecomepavement.Itwasstilldirt,butnowitwasleveleddirt.“Becausethefarmersdon’thavetowalksofarforwater anymore, they havemore time to do other things,” ReverendMwanziaexplained. “So now they volunteer one day a week to improve the roads.”Villagestookturnsremovingrocks,fillinginpotholes,clearingawaybrush.

Thepoor roadshadbeenpreventing farmers frombringing their produce tomarket, from going to health clinics, from visiting relatives. As the roadconditionsworsened, as each rainy seasonbroughtdeepergullies and ruts, thevillages becamemore andmore isolated.With the improved roads, commerceflourished.Abikeride—themainmodeoftransportation—thatoncetookmorethan twohourswasnowdownto thirtyminutes.And thepriceof rentingbiketransportation to haul farmproduce over that route had fallen in half, to threedollars. “Youcan imaginewhat that savingsmeans,”ReverendMwanzia said.

“Threedollarsisalotofmoneyhere.”

When the bumps returned, the pastor quickly noted that it was by design.Farmershadbuiltupaseriesofsmallridgesintheroad.Theridgeswouldcatchthe rainfall and guide it to a trench, which in turn channeled the water to aretention pond. If a villageworked together,ReverendMwanzia said, it couldcreatethiswater-catchmentsysteminfourorfivedays.

InNgangeni,severalchairsandbenchesawaitedthevisitorsintheshadeofanacaciatree,theflat-topped,thornyiconoftheAfricanbush.Asacoolingbreezestirred,ReverendMwanziadescribedhowthewaterprojectshadevenrefreshedhischurch:“Duringtheyearsofdrought,mypeoplewerecomingtochurchlate,theywere coming at noon. I’mwaiting at the pulpit to preach, but the peoplespentthecoolermorninghoursgettingwater.Nowthattheycandrawwaterverynear to their houses, they come to church on time to hear me preach.” And,feelingmoreprosperous, theyputmoremoney in thecollectionplate. “Beforethewater,”thepastorsaidwithagiantsmile,“Icouldn’taffordatie.Nowlook.”Hepuffedouthischest.Hangingdownoverhisamplebelly,ablue-and-yellownecktie clashed gloriouslywith a red-and-black-checkered shirt. “We pray foryou,”hetoldhisvisitors.“TellthefarmersofAmericawelovethem.”

“It’s very difficult to help people you haven’t seen,” Edwin Onyancha ofDorcasAidsaid.“Sometimesyouwonder,amImakingadifference?Butthenyouseechange,andyousee thatyouaremakingadifference. Ifyourcountrygotdeveloped,Iamsurepeoplelikeuscanmakeit,too.”

Yes, you can, urgedFRB’sMarvBaldwin. “Whatwe have seen today,” hesaid,“isthatalotoflittlethingstogethermakeabigthing.”

JimRufenacht, a rugged six-footer, rose to speakunder the acacia tree.Hiseyeswatered.“Bearwithme,”hesaid.Hisvoicetrembled.Hebowedhisheadtocomposehimself.“Thisisoneofthebestdaysofmylife,”hebeganslowly.“Weneedtorecognizeweareequal,weareonthesameplaneasyou,wewantto be a part of you.”He removed his sunglasses andwiped his eyes. “We, asfarmers,we raise cattle tomakemoney. It’s nothing special, it’swhatwe do.Youareveryvaluabletous.”

Nowhiswife,Linda,wasdabbinghereyes,too.

“Iwish I could have brought all the peoplewho helped us, 2,000 to 3,000people,” Jim said. “Theyhave no ideawhat you’re doinghere. It’s super. It’s

great,guys.It’swortheverything.”

Back in Archbold, the Rufenachts gathered with hundreds of their neighborsunderthemapleandoaktreesinRuihleyParkfortheannualcommunityBurgerBash.AstonishedatthetalesofAfricatoldbytheRufenachtssincetheirreturn,enthusiasmwashighforanotheryearofcattleraising.

“It’sacompletecycle,”saidJonLugbill,theproprietorofBrookviewFarm,acountry storeandbutcher shop inArchboldwith the slogan“LetUsBarbecuefor You.” “What’s neat about this project is it’s giving independence to thepeopleoverthereinAfrica.Independencefromhavingtowalksofarforwater,independencetospendmoretimeontheirfarming.”

Lugbillwasabusinessmanwhoclearlyappreciated time-saving innovations.Ashespoke,hewasloadingsevenhundredhamburgersonagiantrotatinggrillset inachromeoven—aFerriswheel forburgers.Afterseveralminutesridingaroundthecontraption,theburgersweregrilledtoperfection.

“What’sexcitingandencouraging,”LugbillsaidabouttheAfricaproject,“isyoucanseethebenefits.Sometimes,sittinghere,youwonderwhataidmoneyisbeingusedfor.”

Cork Rufenacht’s Sunday-school class set up the long tables in the park’spavilion.TheLutheransmannedone serving line, theCatholics theother.TheReformation wouldn’t stand in the way of dishing out the baked beans andcoleslaw. Harold Plassman, the town’s veteran attorney, kept an eye on thecollectionboxandhandedouttheicecreamtickets.Theguestsarrivedinwavesas theSunday church services let out: first theMethodists, then theCatholics,the Lutherans, and finally the Mennonites. Shouts of “Hi, neighbor!” echoedaroundthepavilion.

“Isn’tthisterrific?”Haroldsaid.“It’sarealsignofthiscommunity.”

John Poulson, after cooking the baked beans, finished calculating proceedsfrom the previous year’s steer sales, Burger Bash, and other donations andwaveda check for$29,493. Itwaspresented toMarvBaldwin,whopromisedthemoneywouldsoonbeonitswaytoAfrica.

Before the crowds arrived, Cecily Rohrs had arranged dishes of ketchup,mustard, pickle relish, and onions on all the tables. She also placed a yellow

half-sheet of paper every couple of chairs. It was a thank-you note, and asummaryofwhattheRufenachtssawinMachakos.ItquotedJim:“It’snotwhatwehavedoneforthem.It’swhatwecandotogether.Theyarejustinadifferentplaceon thedevelopmentcycle.Wecan learnsomuch fromeachother.Theylivewithverylittleofwhatweconsidernecessity!”

Archbold mayor JimWyse picked up the paper, stained with ketchup, andreaditwithrelishwhilefinishinghishamburger.“Alotofpeoplemaynotknowexactlywhatwe’reraisingmoneyforhere,buttheyknowit’shelpingothersandthat’s all they need to know to contribute,” he said. “We were raised with acultureofservice.It’sbeenthatwayforgenerations.”

For threegenerations, theSauder familyhadoperatedSauderWoodworkingCompany,thecountry’slargestmanufacturerofready-to-assemblefurniture,andSauderManufacturing, a leadingmanufacturer of church furniture, like pews.Thefamily’snamewasalloverArchbold,includingtheSauderVillage,aliving-historyexperience thatharksback toArchbold’sbeginnings.MaynardSauder,the current woodworking chairman, nevermissed a Burger Bash. “I liked theconceptofthisprojectrightfromthestart.There’sadirectconnectionbetweenthegiverandreceiver,”hesaid.“Everyonewantstofeedthehungryandgiveadrink to a thirsty person.But how do you know it’s happening?Well, in thisproject,we know.” Sauder turned to theman sitting next to him at the picnictable.“Vernon,”hesaid,“thisisagreatthingyougotstarted.”

VernonSloanandhiswife,Carol,stalwartMethodists,wereamongagroupof representatives from seven church-related agencieswho founded the FoodsResourceBank in1999.Concernedabouthunger in thedevelopingworld, theSloanssetasidesomeofthecornharvestfromtheirfieldsinStryker,Ohio,justdowntheroadfromArchbold,forthoseinneedabroad.Itbecamethemodelforthemanygrowingprojectstoday.

Astheparkbenchesfilled,Vernonsaidhefinallydiscoveredwhathewasputontheearthtodo.Eventsthathethoughtwererandomstrokesofluckhenowinterpretedasdestiny,likethedayhebrokehiscollarboneinafootballgamein1944.“Iwassupposedtogotothewarthatyear,”hesaid.“Thatprobablysavedmefrom theBattleof theBulge,”where thousandsofAmericansoldiersdied.He did enter the army the next year, and was dispatched to the Philippines,wherehesurvivedthefiercefightinginthePacifictheater.“Alotofboysdidn’tgettocomeback,”hesaid.“Igottocomeback.”

Vernon,inhiseighthdecadenow,begantoweepsoftly.Throughwateryeyeshe looked around the park pavilion, at Jim andCorkRufenacht and at all hisfriendsandneighborswhocametohelphungryfarmersinAfrica.“IknowwhyIgottocomeback,”hesaid.“Igottocomebackforthis.”

FrancisPelekamoyowasalsofindinghislife’smeaninginsmallactsthatwerehavingbigconsequencesforAfrica’sfarmers.

Forsixyears,PelekamoyohadbeenMalawi’scentralreservebankgovernor.He controlled his country’s purse strings, monitored the ebb and flow ofpreciousforeigncurrency,andmodulatedinflationandinterestrates.Hetraveledin the pinstriped circle of the world’s central bankers. When he retired, heretreatedtohisfarmoutsidethecapital,Lilongwe.Hekeptbusybyoverseeingthesmallnationalairline.Butherebuffedallotheroverturestogethimbackintopinstripes.

Oneday,anAmericanbusinessmannamedLarryReedcamecallingwithanoffer:Would he join an outfit called Opportunity International, a provider offinancial services to entrepreneurs and farmers in the developing world, andopenamicrofinanceoperationforthepoorinMalawi?

Pelekamoyochuckled.Hehadjustturneddownpoliticalsuitorspressinghimto become financeminister.Whywould he do anythingmicro after doing somanythingsmacro?Whylendpennieswhenhehadoncecontrolledbillions?

Hepolitely saidhewould thinkabout it, thoughhewasn’t really interested.But the idea seemed to have a life of its own. It nagged him relentlessly,particularly during his regular Bible readings. Pelekamoyo, a devoutPresbyterian, found himself returning over and over again to the Gospel ofMatthew, chapter 25, where Jesus spoke of the Last Judgment: “For I washungry and you gaveme food, Iwas thirsty and you gaveme drink, Iwas astrangerandyouwelcomedmein.Iwasnakedandyouclothedme,Iwassickandyouvisitedme....‘TrulyIsaytoyou,asyoudidittooneoftheleastofthesemybrethren,youdidittome.’”

Psalm116wasalsoworkingonhismind:“WhatshallIrenderuntotheLordforallHisbenefits towardme?”Pelekamoyo’sponderingwent intooverdrive.“God looked after me,” he thought. “I had a good life, I was central bankgovernor.WhatdoIdoafterthat,togiveback?”

Feedthehungry?Clothethenaked?Buthow,asabanker?

Asalendertothepoor.“Thiswork,transformingpeople’slives,issomethingIcando,”Pelekamoyotoldhimself.

HecalledLarryReedatOpportunity International. “OK,”Pelekamoyo said,“I’llgiveitatry.”

Withinthreemonths,leaningonhisoldcentralbankcolleagues,Pelekamoyohadobtainedalicensetoopenanewbank.Hedraftedabusinessplan.Hehiredstaff. He found an office, a nondescript curbside cubbyhole looking out on aparkinglotfilledwithraggedvendorshawkingwoodencarvings.InMay2003,he opened themicrofinance bank,Malawi’s first for the poor, specializing inloansofaslittleas$50or$100—enoughinAfricatostockasmallshoporbuybetterseedsandfertilizer—thatotherbankswouldn’tbotherwith.

The client lines started forming the first day—farmers, teachers,entrepreneurs, anybody with a dream to improve their income—and haven’tdiminishedsince.Bytheendof2008,OpportunityInternationalBankofMalawihadopened195,007savingsaccountswithanaveragebalanceofabout$128andtotaling about $25million, had 33,835 active loanswith a value of about $22million, and had extended crop insurance tomore than 2,500 peanut and cornfarmers. And Pelekamoyo himself had become chairman of OpportunityInternational’s operations inMalawi,Mozambique, and Rwanda, all of whichwerebringingcapitaltoagriculturalprojectsandtofarmerswhohadlongbeenstarvedoffinancingand,therefore,starvedoffood.ThroughoutAfrica,neartheend of 2008, the agency had opened 285,604 savings accounts totaling nearly$40millionandhadmade306,714activeloansforabout$138million.

“When you see the economic growth of our clients, the first thing you seethem buy is food. You see them eating better, looking better nourished,”Pelekamoyosaidfromhislittleoffice.Aphotofromarecentnewspaper,tackedto the wall, captured his transformation. Once regularly pictured inMalawi’snewspapers shaking hands with heads of state and government ministers,Pelekamoyowasnowphotographedsmilingbroadlywhilehehandedoutbagsoffertilizertowinnersofoneofthebank’sregularsavingscontests.Toachievetrue success, he confessed, “I had to remove my necktie and go to the poorpeople.”

Pelekamoyo’s journeyfromcentralbanker tomicrobankerwasa trademarkodyssey of Opportunity International employees. Since the dawn of the

millennium, the nondenominational Christian microfinance organization hadbecomeamagnetforbaby-boomerbusinessprofessionalsfrommanycountriesand many pedigrees who had achieved dazzling career success and amassedstaggeringfortunesonlytofindtruesignificancebyputtingtheirtalentstoworkfortheirfaith.Neartheendof2008,Opportunitywasservicing1millionactiveloans to entrepreneurs and farmers and was covering 3.5 million lives withmicroinsurance.Itsambitiousgoal:touching100millionlivesby2015.

“Weareatasignificantturningpointinhistory,”DaleDawson,agregariousTexan,toldhisfellowOpportunityInternationalboardmembersanddonorsatameetinginBonitaSprings,Florida,inearly2007.Ashespoke,hewavedasmallbook, William Wilberforce: A Man Who Changed His Times, about thenineteenth-centuryslaveryabolitionist inEnglandwhohadinspiredtheJubilee2000debt-cancellationcampaigners.“Withaffluence,technology,andextendedlife expectancy, our boomer generation is uniquely positioned to change theworld,”Dawsonsaid.“Inincreasingnumbers,ourgenerationisbeginningtoaskthequestion:‘Towhatend?’Wewantourlivestomakeadifference.Wewantthemtohavemeaning,purpose,andsignificance.OvermycareerIhaveknownmanywhoarerichandsuccessfulandonetruththatIhavelearnedis that it iseasiertomakeafortunethantomakeadifference.”

Andfortuneshehadmade.Dawsonhadbeenadealmakerandentrepreneurallhislife.HewasapartnerandnationaldirectorattheglobalaccountingfirmKPMG,andthenbecameheadofinvestmentbankingatStephens,Inc.,inLittleRock,Arkansas.Hethensetoutonhisown,rollingtogetheranumberoftruck-parts companies into TruckPro.When that company became the largest of itskindintheUnitedStates,rackingupannualsalesofabout$150million,DawsonsoldittoAutoZonein1998.Thesalespricewasn’tdisclosed,butitwasenoughforDawsontoretire.Hewasforty-six.

His retirement didn’t last long.Through friends,DawsonhadmetRwandanAnglican bishop John Rucyahana, who told him of the desperate need forbusiness skills to help rebuild the country devastated by genocidal warfare.OtherfriendsintroducedhimtoOpportunityInternational,andhebeganlearningallhecouldaboutmicrolending,afinancialinstrumentforthepoorpopularizedbyMuhammadYunus,whofoundedtheGrameenBankinBangladeshandwasawardedthe2006NobelPeacePrize.“It’sadivinecalling,”Dawsonconcluded.LikePelekamoyo,hehadcometobelievethatbigadvancesagainsthungerandpovertycouldcomewiththesmallestactions.

He told Opportunity President and Chief Executive Chris Crane that hewantedtobuildabankinRwanda.Crane,himselfaHarvardMBAwhocashedoutanInternetventureatforty-eightandthenjoinedOpportunityInternational,saiditwouldtakeabout$5milliontobeginoperations.Thedealmakergotbusy.Infourmonths,workingwithOpportunityfund-raisers,hehadcommitmentsfortheentireamount.

Dawson headed to Rwanda and in August 2007 opened the UrwegoOpportunity Microfinance Bank of Rwanda. People could start a savingsaccount,theirfirstever,withaslittleas$2,orgetaloanof$50.Urwegomeans“providealadder.”

Meanwhile, in Malawi, thousands of farmers were using Pelekamoyo’sbankingladdertoclimboutofthechronichungerthathadplaguedthecountryintheearlyyearsofthemillennium.

“Thechildrenandoldpeopleweredying,”rememberedGelesomChimpopi,apeanut and corn farmer inMalawi’sMchinji districtwest of Lilongwe on theroadtoZambia.“Ilostagrandparent.”

“I lost two children,” volunteered farmerHenryKangwelema,who joined aconversationatapeanut-sortingwarehouse.“Theywerefourandten.”

“Ilostmyfour-year-oldchildandmygrandmother,”addedGeraldAbudu,athirdfarmer.

The farmersdidn’thaveenough to feed their families, letaloneasurplus toselltopayofftheirdebts.Amidthedying,thecreditors—theseedandfertilizersuppliers and the government-owned credit agency—came around and starteddismantlinghouses.“They took the ironsheets frommyroof,”saidChimpopi.“They even tookmykitchenutensils, andmyblanket!”He flashed amacabresmile,showingnothingbutgumswherehisfront teethonboththetopandthebottomshouldbe.

That’swhenOpportunityknockedon their doors, orwhatwas left of them.Loans of $50 or so enabled the farmers to buy hybrid, drought-resistant seedand,combinedwithnewgovernmentsubsidies,morebagsoffertilizer.Tolessentherisktofarmers,thebankalsolenttocommoditiesfirmssotheycouldbuythefarmers’harvest.Thisensuredamarketforthefarmers,whowouldhavemoneytopayofftheirloans.And,forfurtherprotection,thebankbeganofferingcropinsurance,afirstforMalawi.Peggedtorainlevelsrecordedatanearbyweather

station,theinsurancewouldprotecttheMchinjifarmersfromlosingeverythingintheeventofanotherdrought.

Thisinjectionofcreditintothecountrysideacceleratedthefarmers’recovery.“Weplantedthebestseed,weappliedfertilizerandtherainsweregood,”saidKangwelema.Harvestsofpeanutsandcorndoubledandtripled.Surplusesweresold; profits were reaped. Mchinji’s farmers opened their first-ever savingsaccountswhenOpportunity’smobilebankcametotown.Theyreturnedtothreemealsaday.

“Weareabletobuymeatforthefirsttimeinalongwhile,”Kangwelemasaidatthewarehouse.Heraisedhisarmsand,likeapreeningbodybuilder,showedoffhismuscles.“Wearedoingfine.”Everyonelaughed,anemotionthathadallbutvanishedduringtheyearsofhunger.

BackinLilongwe,inhiscubbyholeofanoffice,FrancisPelekamoyosmiledtoo, as his loan officers told him about the three ever-more-robust farmers.Rarelyhadhereceivedsuchajoyousprogressreportwhenhewascentralbankgovernor.ThenewsfromMchinjiwasMatthew25cometolife.Theleastofhisbrethrenwerenolongersohungry.

CHAPTER17

“WeMustNotFailThem”

WASHINGTON,D.C.

Lateoneevening in a timeofworldcrisis, thepresident addressed thenation:“HungrypeopleinothercountrieslooktotheUnitedStatesforhelp.Iknowthattheywillbe strengthenedandencouragedby thisevidenceofour friendship. Iknowthattheywillbewaitingwithhopeintheirheartsandaferventprayerontheirlipsfortheresponseofourpeople....Wemustnotfailthem.”

That was Harry Truman, speaking on October 5, 1947, in the first-evertelevisedspeech from theWhiteHouse.The traumaofWorldWar IIwasstillfresh.Economiesandsocietieswereinruins.ThepeaceinEuropewasfragile.Fascism had been vanquished, but now hunger loomed as a major threat todemocracy.Truman’sspeechsetthetablefortheMarshallPlan,ablueprintfortherecoveryandreconstructionofEuropethatwouldbeginthefollowingyear.

Sixty-twoyearslater,inanothertimeofworldcrisis,anotherpresidentspoke:“Tothepeopleofpoornations,wepledgetoworkalongsideyoutomakeyourfarms flourish and let clean waters flow, to nourish starved bodies and feedhungryminds.Andtothosenationslikeoursthatenjoyrelativeplenty,wesaywecannolongeraffordindifferencetothesufferingoutsideourborders,norcanweconsumetheworld’sresourceswithoutregardtoeffect.”

That was Barack Obama, speaking just after noon on January 20, 2009,shortly after being sworn into office. Prosperity was threatened by a worldeconomyindeepeningrecession;peacewasunderassaultfrom“afar-reaching

networkofviolenceandhatred,”asthepresidentputit.“Thetimehascome,”heurgedhisfellowAmericans,“toreaffirmourenduringspirit,tochooseourbetterhistory.”

OneofthebestepisodesofAmericanhistorywastheMarshallPlan,withitscornerstone of feeding desperateWestern Europeans.Now it is the hungry ofAfrica who are longing for a bold plan, a new Green Revolution uniquelytailored to the conditions of that continent andmindful of themistakes of thepast, thatcould indeedhelp their farmsflourish.Substitute thewordAfrica forEurope in President Truman’s speech, and President Obama would have aringingcalltoactionforthetwenty-firstcentury:

ThesituationinEuropeisgrimandforbiddingaswinterapproaches.DespitethevigorouseffortsoftheEuropeanpeople,theircropshavesufferedsobadlyfromdroughts,floods,andcoldthatthetragedyofhungerisastarkreality.

ThenationsofWesternEuropewillsoonbescrapingthebottomofthefoodbarrel. They cannot get through the comingwinter and springwithout help—generous help—from the United States and from other countries which havefoodtospare.

I know every American feels in his heart that we must help to preventstarvationanddistressamongourfellowmeninothercountries.

. . .Wehavededicatedourselves to the taskofsecuringa justanda lastingpeace.Nomatter how long and hard theway,we cannot turn aside from thatgoal.Anessentialrequirementoflastingpeaceistherestorationofthecountriesof Western Europe as free self-supporting democracies. There is reason tobelievethatthosecountrieswillaccomplishthattaskifweaidthemthroughthiscriticalwinter andhelp themgetbackon their feetduring thenext fewyears.Theymustdomostofthejobthemselves.Theycannotdoitifthousandsoftheirpeoplestarve.Webelievetheycan—andwill—dothejobifweextendtothemthatmeasure of friendly aid whichmarks the difference between success andfailure.

Theirmosturgentneedisfood.Ifthepeaceshouldbelostbecausewefailedtoshareourfoodwithhungrypeopletherewouldbenomoretragicexampleinallhistoryofapeaceneedlesslylost.

If sufficient food was deemed to be the most elemental need for thedevelopmentandpoliticalstabilityofWesternEuropein1947,surelyit isalso

soforAfrica,andtheotherhungryareasoftheworld,today.AfterWorldWarII, eliminating hungerwas seen to be a bulwark against the extremism of theday: internationalcommunism.Today,eliminatinghungerwouldbeabulwarkagainsttheextremismofthetwenty-firstcentury:globalterrorism.

“Hunger,” said another former president, Herbert Hoover, as he helped tobring relief to Europe after World War II, “brings not alone suffering andsorrow,butfearandterror.Hecarriesdisorderandtheparalysisofgovernment,andevenitsdownfall.Heismoredestructivethanarmies,notonlyinhumanlifebut inmorals.All of the values of right livingmelt before his invasions, andevery gain of civilization crumbles. But we can save these people from theworst,ifwewill.”

AsTruman recognized,America itself hadmuch to gain—“a battle to saveour ownprosperity,” he said—inheading the effort to conquer hunger. ItwastrueasAmericasoughttoleadadividedworldafterWorldWarII,anditwouldbetruetodayinaworldfracturedalongideologicalandreligiouslines.RallyingadividedworldtodefeathungerwouldhelptorestoreAmerica’smoralstandingandleadershipafteraperiodofgo-it-alonepoliciesinthewaronterrorbatteredits image abroad. Itwould unite a grassrootsmovement that has been gainingmomentumindisparatepointsacrosstheglobe.

For Americans, such a campaign would be the grand gesture suggested byObama’s inaugural call to “reaffirm the greatness of our nation,” and by hisexhortationsforindividualstoembraceacausegreaterthanthemselves.“Whatisrequiredofusnowisaneweraofresponsibility,”hesaid,“arecognitiononthepartofeveryAmericanthatwehavedutiestoourselves,ournation,andtheworld.”

As the new administration took office, Americans were poised to act onhunger.Momentumhadbeengathering inchurches,universities,charities,andindiscussionsaroundfamilydinner tables.More than100,000membersof theONECampaign,whichgrewoutofthegrassrootsdebtreliefandAIDSefforts,signedapetitiontoObamaaskinghimtomakeastrongstatementaboutglobalpovertyinhisinauguraladdress;oncehedid,theyfloodedtheWhiteHousewithencouragementtomakegoodonthatstatement.

PollscommissionedbytheAlliancetoEndHunger,anoffspringofBreadfortheWorld, during the 2008 election campaign indicated that the country wasawaitingactiononhungerbytheirpoliticians.Theresearchwasledbypollsters

Thomas Freedman,who served as a senior adviser to PresidentClinton and aconsultant to Democratic elected officials, and Jim McLaughlin, who hasworked for the national Republican senatorial and congressional committees.They battled against each other in the 1996 presidential campaign—Freedmanfor Clinton,McLaughlin for Bob Dole—but they have joined forces to showeachpartyhowimportant,andripe,thehungerissueis.

Freedman-McLaughlinchartedtheemergenceofaconstituencytheycallDoRight voters, who urgently want policies enacted to help solve problems likepovertyandhunger.TheyalsoidentifiedacategoryofFed-Upvoterswhocarestrongly about issues of helping the least fortunate but are skeptical of thegovernment’s ability to solve them. And they found wide support in theelectorateforareorderingofAmerica’smoralpriorities.

Thepollstersaskedthequestion,“Whichoneofthefollowingdoyouthinkisthebiggestmoral issue?”Fightinghungerandpoverty registered41.8percent;protecttheenvironment,23.1percent;abortion,16.7percent;gaymarriage,12.8percent.AmongRepublicans, hungerwas in a statistical tiewith abortion andsubstantiallyexceededgaymarriage.Democraticvoterschose fightingpovertyand hunger (48 percent) as the biggest moral issue over protecting theenvironment(30percent).

In another poll conducted on the nightObamawon the election,Freedman-McLaughlinfoundthat60percentofsurveyedvoterswantedtohearmorefromthepresidentialcandidatesaboutreducinghunger,and69percentsupportedtheUnited States spending an additional 1 percent of the federal budget in aid toaddresstheneedsoftheworld’spoorestpeople.Onaquestionthepollstershavebeen tracking over time, those who said the United States spent too little toreduceworldhunger increased to44percent in2007from27percent in2003.Thepollstersconcludedattheoutsetoftheelectioncampaign:“Thecountryismissinganopportunitytoturnanemergingconsensusaboutpovertyandhungerintopoliticalaction.Nowisthetimetoact.”

NormanBorlaug,alioninwinter,hadprimedWashingtonforactiononanewMarshallPlanwhenhereceivedtheCongressionalGoldMedalinthesummerof2007. His warning from thirty-seven years earlier at the Nobel Peace Prizeceremonyhadcometopass; itwashigh time,hesaid, for theUnitedStates toreversetheworld’sneglectofthehungry:

Myplea today to themembers ofCongress and to the administration is to re-

commit theUnited States tomore dynamic and generous programs of officialdevelopment assistance in agriculture forThirdWorldnations, aswasdone inthe 1960s and 1970s. Ever-shrinking foreign aid budgets in support ofsmallholder agriculture . . . are not in our nation’s best interest, nor do theyrepresentourfinesttraditions.

As you chart the course of this great nation for the future benefit of ourchildren,grandchildren,andgreat-grandchildren,IaskyoutothinkmoreboldlyandhumanelyabouttheThirdWorldanddevelopanewversionoftheMarshallPlan,thistimenottorescueawar-tornEurope,butnowtohelpthenearlyonebillion,mostlyruralpoorpeoplestilltrappedinhungerandmisery.ItiswithinAmerica’s technical and financial power to help end this human tragedy andinjustice,ifwesetourheartsandmindstothetask.

Inthattask,theUnitedStateswouldenjoythesupportofmanygovernments,particularlyIreland.IncontrasttotheUnitedStates,whereactionagainsthungerwould connect back to an era of greatness, Ireland’s inspiration flows from atimeoftragedy.“Becauseofourhistory,Irelandcanrightlyclaimtoempathizewiththosewhoaresufferingfromdisease,poverty,andhungereverydayaroundthe globe,” said Bertie Ahern, the Irish taoiseach, or primeminister, in 2006whenheunveiledagovernmentwhitepaperonthefutureofIrishoverseasaid.“Butempathyisnotenough,”hecontinued.“Ouractionsmustspeaklouderthanourwords.”

Thewhitepaper led to the formation in2007of ahunger task force,whichwenttoworkcarvingoutaleadingroleforIrelandinaglobalassaultonhunger.From the outset, its ambitions were immense. “Ireland should aim to be theNorwayofHunger,” insistedTomArnold,amemberof the task forceand thechief executive ofConcern, the Irish aid organization.Norway, he noted,wasalso a small country that had assumed an outsized role in peace building andconflictresolutionaroundtheworld.BrokeringpeacehadbecomeapriorityofNorway’s foreign policy and an area of expertise in its universities andinstitutions.Oslohadhostednumerouspeacesummitsbetweenwarringfactions.The country’s diplomats led peace delegations to trouble spots. It hosted theawardingoftheNobelPeacePrize.Ireland,hesaid,woulddoforhungerwhatNorwayhaddoneforpeace.

In September 2008, the task force recommended that Ireland target itsinternational development aid and diplomacy in three areas: increasing the

productivity of Africa’s small farmers, reducing maternal and infantmalnutrition,andproddinggovernmentsinAfricaandbeyondtodeliverontheircommitmentstoreducehunger.ItsuggestedtheappointmentofahungerenvoytocoordinateandspreadIrishknow-how:agriculturalexpertssharingpracticesfrom Ireland’s transformation from famine to surplus, universities becomingcenters of agricultural and nutrition research, food corporations tailoringproductsforthemalnourished,Irishpoliticiansrallyingtheinternationalpoliticalwilltoconquerhungerthathasn’texistedsincetheGreenRevolution.Aboveall,Irelandwould keep alive the ancient emotion of hunger,making sure the richworldwouldn’tforgettheawfulnessofstarvingtodeath,whichIrelandhasfeltsodeeply.

Arnoldnotedthatacampaignagainsthungerwouldcreatecommoncausenotonly between the Irish people so long riven by sectarian violence, but alsoamongthepeoplesoftheentireworld.Endinghungerisbothamoralissueheldsacredbyallthemajorreligionsaswellasamatterofinternationalsecurity—toalleviatetensionsbetweenrichandpoorandtostabilizeeconomicdisruptions.

The scramble to feed the hungry during the food crisis of 2008 proved theunifyingpotentialofanend-hungercampaign.Astherisingfoodpricesrippedahuge hole in the World Food Program’s budget, Executive Director JosetteSheeran traveled theglobe to roundup$755million indonations.Everywhereshewent—theWhiteHouse,Congress,parliaments incountriesbigandsmall,theChicagoBoardofTrade,Oprah—Sheeranheldoutalittleredplasticcup,thesymboloftheWFP’sschoolfeedingprograms.Withinafewmonths,thirty-onecountriescontributedtofill thecup.ThebiggestdonationofallcamefromtheKingdomofSaudiArabia—$500million.TheSaudis,whotraditionallyhadn’tdonatedlargeamountstoUNoperationalorganizations,suddenlybecameoneoftheWFP’sbiggestpatrons. “This is anexampleofwhathumanitariansaroundtheworldcandowhenwecometogethertoaddressproblemsthataffectusall,”Sheeransaid.

Thatrisinghungerisacollectivefailureinneedofacollectivesolutionwasone of the lessons of the 2003 famine and then the 2008 food crisis.Anotherlessonwasthis:TheworldneedsAfricatoproduceasmuchfoodaspossible.In2008, food prices soared, triggering riots and economic distress in more thanone-quarteroftheworld’scountries,becausetheworld’sfarmerscouldn’tkeepupwiththedemandforfood,beitfromtheburgeoningmiddleclassinnationslike China and India or from rich nations mandating the use of crop-derived

alternative fuels.Theglobal economic slowdown curbed someof this demandandbroughtdowncommodityprices in late2008.Butwhen theeconomiesoftheworld recover, the crisiswill reappear. Only next time therewill be evenmoremouths to feed.Africa is theworld’s final frontier of agriculture, a rareplacewithroomtodramaticallyincreaseproductionandmeettherisingdemand.IftheneglectofAfrica’sfarmerscontinues,weallwillsuffer.

Itiseasytolookatthehungercrisisandbeoverwhelmed.Butthevastscopeofthehungerproblemisequaledbythevastpossibilityforsolution—andthevastopportunitiestojumpinandhelp,beitgovernments,corporations,universities,philanthropists, or concerned individuals. To conquer hunger and carry out arevolution inAfrican agriculture, there are some things thatmust be done, asaddressedinthefollowingsections.

KeepPromisestoExpandDevelopmentAid

Theglobalfinancialmeltdownat theendof2008plungedmanycountries intodeepbudget crises.And as richer governments introducedbailout plans to aidtheirdistressedeconomies,anewmoralcalculusemerged.Ifthesecountriescancomeupwithhundredsofbillionsofdollarstotakecareofthosewhohadthemost(andlostit),surelytheycancomeupwithatinyfractionofthatforthosewhohavetheleast.

Even before the financial crisis hit, the G8 countries—the United States,United Kingdom, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and Russia—hadfallenwoefullybehindon theircommitmentat the2005Gleneaglessummit toincreasetheirannualdevelopmentassistancetoAfricaby$25billionby2010.In2008,DATA, thewatchdoggroup closely tracking the promises, reported thatthe countries had delivered only an additional $3 billion through the halfwaypoint.TheU.S.commitmentwouldincreaseitsaidtoAfricaby$4billion(toatotal of $8.8 billion) over those five years.At halftime, the increasewas only$581million.

How much would an African agricultural revolution cost? The Gates

Foundation estimates that currently about $9 billion annually flows toagricultural development on the continent fromAfrican government spending,foreigngovernmentaid,private-sectorinvestment,andphilanthropicdonations.The foundationcalculates itwill takeanadditional$9billion to$12billionofannualspendingfromallsourcestotripletheincomesof60millionhouseholdsinsub-SaharanAfrica—foratotalcostofabout$20billionayear.

Thissoundslikealotofmoney,butwhenplacedonthenewmoralscaleoftheworldfinancialcrisis,theseeffortsbecomeagreatbargain,andtheargumentthat there’s not enough money vanishes. The Gates amount is less than thebailoutofCitigroup,Inc.The$4billionneededtomeettheU.S.commitmentatGleneagles is a trifle compared to the rescue of the auto industry. And thenthere’s this comparison from America’s obesity front: The Gates estimate toeliminate hunger in 60 million African households is just over half of whatAmericans spend to counter their overeating. The market for weight-losstreatmentsintheUnitedStates,includingdietprogramsandherbalproducts,hasbeenestimatedtobeworthsome$33billionayear.

CreateaGlobalFundtoAidSmallFarmersinAfrica

Just as the Global Fund to combat AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis funneledbillionsintotheassaultonAfrica’smostserioushealthproblems,aglobalfundfor agriculturewould channel these increases in aid toAfrica’s small farmers,whomake up a largemajority of the continent’s population.As organizationsfromtheUNMillenniumVillagestotheFoodsResourceBankhavediscovered,themostefficientwaytofighthungerandboostruraleconomiesisfirsttohelpthesepoorfarmersgrowenoughtofeedthemselves.Formanyofthem,itcanbeaccomplished with simple investments that raise their yields: harvestingrainwater with small dams and ponds, conserving that water with no-tillpractices that keep themoisture in the ground, plantingwith better seeds thatbettercopewiththeelementsandsmalldabsoffertilizer.Thenextstepistohelpthemgrowsurplusesthatcanfeedtheircountries—andhelpmeettheincreasingglobaldemandforfood.

InvestinInfrastructure

Afteryearsofretreat,internationalinstitutionssuchastheWorldBankandtheAfricanDevelopmentBankshouldexpandtheirfinancingoflarge-scaleprojectsto improve Africa’s agricultural infrastructure, such as roads, ruralelectrification,andirrigation.Theneedsarevast,andshameful.Onlyone-thirdofsub-SaharanAfrica’s ruralpopulation liveswithinoneandahalfmilesofapavedroad,lessthan4percentofitscroplandisirrigated,andonly8percentofrural households have access to electricity, according to a report oninfrastructureinvestingbyMichaelTaylorofthePartnershiptoCutHungerandPovertyinAfrica,aWashington,D.C.-basedadvocacygroup.

In particular, the continent’s great water resources, such as the Nile Riverbasin in theEast(includingEthiopia’sBlueNile)andtheNigerRiverbasin intheWest,arecryingout tobeharnessedsoAfrica’s fieldscanblossom.WhenWorldBankPresidentRobertZoellicktraveledtoAddisAbabainearly2008forasummitmeetingofAfricanheadsofstate,hebroughtapledge todouble thebank’s spending on African agriculture, to $800 million a year. He wasbombardedwith requests from theAfrican leaders to finance everything fromtractorfactoriestoportrehabilitation.

There is also plenty of opportunity for corporate investment. Chinesecompanies are thickon theground,particularlybuilding roads to transport therawmaterials needed to fuel their factories back home.But those same roadsshould bemaintained to also benefit farmersmoving their produce tomarket.Europeanhorticulturalcompaniesareerectinggreenhouses togrowflowersforexport and also establishing irrigation links; phone companies have beenexpandingcommunicationnetworks,whichhelpfarmersgatherpriceandmarketinformation. Norway’s Yara International ASA, a leading supplier of mineralfertilizers, is widening its distribution network in Africa. U.S. companies likeCargill andDunavant have been investing inAfrican cotton operations.Theseactions are only the tip of what should be a far bigger movement involvingcompanies big and small.Venture capitalists should back social entrepreneurseagertobringsimple,affordabletechnologytoAfrica,likethemanualirrigationpumps.Andrepresentativesfromtheworld’scommodityexchangesshouldlenda hand to budding Eleni’s across the continent to foster more orderly marketconditionsforAfricanfarmers.

Fortheirpart,Africangovernmentsarewaryofanewcolonization,thistimeatthehandsofmultinationalcorporations.Andrightlyso,giventhetrackrecordofsomemultinationaloilandminingcompaniesthathaveextractedrawmaterialandleftlittlebenefitbehind.Governmentsshouldworkwithfarmerassociationsthat are gaining strength in many countries to protect farmers’ rights and toensure the sanctity of contracts. The foreign investors should adhere to theprinciples of social responsibility first established in South Africa, so that apercentage of profits are reinvested in their host communities. Civil societyorganizations in the countries must hold the companies accountable for theirbehavior.

AfricaTakesResponsibility

Africangovernmentsneedtoholdtruetotheirpromises,too.OfAfrica’sfifty-threenations,only sevenhad reached thegoalof investing10percentof theirnational budgets in agriculture by 2008: Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Chad,Ethiopia, Mali, Malawi, and Niger. Another thirty had managed to spendbetween 5 percent and 10 percent, according to the scorecard of the NewPartnershipforAfrica’sDevelopment.Topprioritiesforthespendingshouldbescientific research, extension services to get the latest technology out to thefarmers,andincentivestohelpthemgrowasmuchaspossible.

Africangovernmentsalsoneedtoallowmorelandtobeprivatelyowned.Inmanycountries,mostofthelandiscontrolledbysomelevelofadministration,be it the national government or a tribal chief; one reason often cited is thatpublicownershipkeepsbiggerinterestsfrombuyingupallthelandfrompeasantfarmers, whowould be forced into the cities. But this prevents small farmersfromusingtheirlandtosecurecredit,whichisthelifebloodoffarmerstheworldover. Outright ownership, or at least ninety-nine-year leases, would also givefarmers the confidence to make improvements to their property, such asirrigationsystems.

Above all, the continent’s wars need to stop. Two of Africa’s largest andpotentiallymost fertile countries—Sudan and the Democratic Republic of theCongo—have been tortured by years of conflict, and farming has become toodangerous over vast stretches. Rather than devouring a large amount of

international food aid every year, these two countries—alongwithZimbabwe,onceabreadbasketofsouthernAfrica—shouldbefeedingthemselves,andevenexportingfood.

PlantNewSeedTechnology

Thedispute between theUnitedStates andEuropeover the use of geneticallymodified (GM) seeds has largely kept that technology out of Africa, at leastnorthofSouthAfrica.Africancountries fear that if theyuse these seeds, thenmarkets may close to them in Europe, which has resisted acceptance ofgenetically modified food that is widespread in U.S. supermarkets. AfricangovernmentsshouldengageinvigorousdebateanddecideforthemselvesbasedontheirdomesticneedswhethertoembracecertainGMcrops.Iftheydo,theyshould develop rigorous regulation for policing the testing and safety of thosecrops. And if they do, they should focus on crops that are specificallybioengineeredtobemorenutritiousandeasierforsmallfarmerstogrow—cropsthatarebug resistant, tolerantofweedkiller,orbetterable toefficientlyminenutrientsfromthesoil.Ugandanresearchershavealreadydevelopedastrainofbanana plant that is resistant to a deadly leaf disease; in some quarters, it isviewedasamatterofnationalsecurity,sinceUgandanseatmorebananasthanany other people in theworld.But the dispute between theUnited States andEurope over GM technology has made some Ugandan officials nervous anddelayed the deployment of the new banana plant. In Kenya, a roundtable offarmers assembled by theWorld Food Program to discuss the role ofAfricanfarmers infoodaidsoon led toclamoringforGMseeds.Mostbeneficial foranumber of African countries, including Kenya, would be the development ofnewdrought-tolerantcrops.

The United States, European Union,World Bank, and other donors shouldincrease funding of the Consultative Group on International AgriculturalResearch,andthefundsshouldbeunrestrictedsothescientistscandevelopwhatthey think would be most beneficial for peasant farmers. These researchinstitutesaregeared towardpoorsmallholderfarmersandwere instrumental inthe success of the original Green Revolution. In the past, even U.S. farmersdependedheavilyonbreedersworkingatpublicuniversitiestoprovidenewcrop

varieties, such as wheat. But in recent years public researchers have fallenbehind as companies with seed operations, such as Monsanto, DuPont, andSyngenta, race ahead to patent genes as well as the steps in the process oftransplanting those genes. Conducting cutting-edge research has becomeincreasingly expensive; Monsanto, for instance, spends $2 million a day onresearchanddevelopment.(Thatcostpropelsthemtoprotecttheirrighttopatenttheirproducts;withoutit,theyargue,therewouldn’tbeanyincentivetopursuethe research.) Western biotech companies should see it is in their interest tosharetheirbreakthroughswithpoorfarmersonaroyalty-freebasis.Somehavealreadybegunsharingtheirdrought-resistantgenes.Iftheseseedshelpmillionsoffarmerslessentheirpoverty,thosefarmerswilleventuallybecomecustomerswho can afford to pay for commercial seed. This technology will also beimportantinhelpingAfricaadapttotheimpactofclimatechangebyuncoveringstrainsabletoflourishindrier,hotterregions.

Separatefromthegenetransplanting,Africashouldjumponboardthenewestbranchofcropbiotechnologycalledmolecularbreeding.Inthisfield,scientistsarediscovering important traits theydidn’tknowexisted incertainplants, andoftenhadtolookforinotherspecies.Ratherthantransplantagenefromanothersource,molecularbreedingfindstraitsinaplant’sownDNAthathadbeenlostover time or ignored by crop breeders who had focused on other traits.Molecular breeding is cheaper and quicker, and, since it doesn’t involve genetransplants, itavoidsmanyof theemotional issuessurroundingcurrentbiotechefforts.

FindanAlternativetoTurningFoodintoFuel

Notonlyaretheeconomicbenefitsofturningfoodintofuelindoubt,aswehaveshown,butithasignitedmoralconsternationatatimeofgrowingglobalhunger.Iftherearenootheralternativestopetroleum-poweredenginesathand,thenthegovernmentshouldlaunchanefforttomakebiofuelfromplantswedon’teat,orthe parts of plants we throw away. In India and Africa, biofuel efforts arefocusingonaplantcalledjatropha,whichgrowslikeaweedandisinedibleforbothhumansandanimals.IntheUnitedStates,researchersarealreadyworkingonmakingbiofuelfromthecelluloseineverythingfromswitchgrassandwood

to the inedible parts of corn plants. Some entrepreneurs are even trying tocultivateoil-makingalgae.

ConsideranInternationalGrainReserve

It’stimetoseriouslyexploretheideaofsettingupaninternationalgrainreserve,whichwould have food at the ready tomeet hunger emergencies. In 2008, itcould have alleviated the food shortages that shookmany countries when theprices for staple commodities such as corn, wheat, soybeans, and riceskyrocketed.Attimes,theWorldFoodProgramcouldn’tfindavailablefoodforpurchase as countries raised protectionist barriers to preserve their strategicstockpiles.

Theideaofagrainreservehasbeenshotdowninthepastforseveralreasons:Wealthy countrieswant tobe seen as risingup to feed thehungry in timesofcrisis by summoning emergency donations, storage costs would mount, andexportersfearthatfoodinthereservecouldinterferewithmarkets.Butthefoodinthereservewouldbeforemergencyuseonly,andnotforcommercialsaleorpricestabilization.ItcouldbestoredinplacessuchastheWFP’sprepositioningdepotsinItaly,Ghana,andDubai.Andwealthycountriescouldrallytocrisesbyrestockingthereserve.

LevelthePlowingFields

Justas farmsubsidieswerevital for thedevelopmentofmodernagriculture inthe United States and Europe in the last century, so are they crucial for thesuccessful development ofAfrican agriculture in this century. AsMalawi hasshown,smartsubsidiestargetedtohelpfarmersobtainseedsandfertilizer,whilealsoboostingthebusinessofprivate-sectortraderswhocarrythoseitems,haveledtovastimprovementinproductionandencouragedthedevelopmentofself-sufficient agriculture. Producing food is a matter of national security; eachcountry should be able to feed its own people. And subsidies have been ahistoricallyimportanttoolinachievingthatobjective.

Theissueishowtosubsidizefarmers.Whenmostofacountry’sfarmersarepoor, itmakessensetosubsidizeproductionbythebushelorwithcheapseedsandfertilizer. It’sa relativelyeasyformula foragovernment to impose,and itencourages the production ofmuch-needed food. In nationswhere agriculturehasmodernized,however,subsidizingproductionputsmoneyintothehandsofpeoplewhodon’tneedit.

The subsidies of one country shouldn’t hurt farmers elsewhere. When acountry produces more food than it needs, it should change the way that itsubsidizes its farmers so that its financial support doesn’t encourage theproductionofprice-depressinggluts that thenmustbedumpedonto theglobalmarkets.While cheap food is good for the urban poor, their food security isunderminediftheircountry’sfarmerslosetheincentivetogrowasmuchastheycan.Thus,U.S.andEuropeansubsidiesshouldbedecoupledfromproductionasmuch as possible. If taxpayers want to continue to subsidize agriculture, theincomes of farmers could be supplemented with government payments forfollowing environmental practices that maintain green spaces for society,preventerosion,encouragewildlifehabitat,andconservewater.

AnalternativewouldbetoofferabuyouttogrowersofcropsthattheUnitedStates already produces in excess: a onetime payment in exchange forpermanently withdrawing land from the subsidy program. Washington’sdecisiontoscraptobaccosubsidiesin2004showsthatretiringacropfromthesubsidyprogramcanbedonewithoutdestabilizingaregionaleconomy.

IferadicatingfarmpovertyisstillWashington’sgoal,thesolutionissimple.Agroundbreaking study conducted in themid-1990s found thatwhat theUnitedStatestypicallyspendsoncropsubsidiesisjustaboutwhatitwouldtaketoonceagaindirectlyattackpovertyon the farm.The federalgovernment spent$43.4billiononfarmsubsidiesbetween1993and1997.Asitturnsout,thatamountisalittlebitmorethanitwouldhavecostthefederalgovernmenttogivepoorfarmfamiliesenoughmoneytoensureaminimumstandardofliving.AccordingtoanOctober2000studyissuedbytheUSDA,itwouldhavecost$42billiontoraisetheincomesofabout530,000farmhouseholdsto185percentofthepovertylineduringthatperiod.(Atthetime,theUSDA’sschoollunchprogramwastargetedatfamilieswithincomesbelow185percentofthepovertyline.)Underasafety-netapproach,a farmfamilyof fourwouldhavebeenguaranteedan incomeof$30,040atthattime.UndertheprevailingU.S.system,subsidiesaredoingmoreharmthangoodathomeandabroad.

GiveU.S.FoodAidtheFlexibilityforLocalPurchase

TheUnitedStatesshoulduseupto50percentofitsfood-aidbudgettobuycropsin the regionsclosest to thehunger areas rather thanonly sendingU.S.-grownfood.Or increase the food-aid budget by at least 50 percent and use the newfundingfor localpurchase.Notonlywill thefoodarriveto thehungryquickerand cheaper—transportation time and costswill be greatly diminished—but itwillalsocreateanothermarketforAfrican-grownfood.Still,itisalwaysgoodtohaveAmericangrain ready to be shippedout,which iswhy theUnitedStatesshouldn’tgotoallcash,astheEuropeanshavedone.

It is time toput tobed theoldargumentof the IronTriangleofagriculturalinterests that Americans support food aid only because the money stays inAmerica. In the new millennium, the most forceful argument for a cashcomponentoffoodaidisalsothesimplest:It’stherightthingtodo.

GetInvolved

Follow the examples of Pat and Elaine in Alabama, the Rufenachts in Ohio,GregoryWayongoandDr.MamlininKenya,thestudentsatWheatonCollege,Eleni in Ethiopia, Francis Pelekamoyo in Malawi, Peter Bakker in Holland.Enlistinthewaronhunger—whereindividualscanmakeabigdifference—atachurchoracharityorauniversityorabusiness.NormanBorlaugwantsyou.

Atninety-three,thefatheroftheGreenRevolutionwasstillatit,returningtothefields ofCiudadObregón,Mexico,where it all began andwhere new recruitsawaited.Onunsteadylegs,hegingerlywadedintoanoceanofwaist-highwheat,the descendants of the plants he had designed by hand nearly a half-centuryearlier.AbreezefromtheGulfofCaliforniarippledthegoldenstalksandliftedafewstrandsofhissnow-whitehair.Squintingthroughthickglasses,hecouldsee theSierraMadreshimmering in thedistance.“This ismyfavoriteplace intheworld,”hesaid,savoringitallwithadeepbreath.“HereIcanseehowmuchcan change, and it gives me hope. It even gives me optimism about feeding

Africa.”

Borlaugcouldseehislegacyallaroundhimreflectedintheagriculture-basedprosperity he had initiated. New pickup trucks sped over blacktop roads pastgrainsilospokingintothesky.BillboardstoutedthelatestinAmericantractors.Atnight,teenagersintheircarscruisedthefour-laneboulevardnamedforhim.Hisarrivalfromhismodesttwo-bedroomhomeinDallasonthecorporatejetofanAmerican admirerwas front-page news in the local paper.At an elaboratebarbecue,anelderlyfarmerofferedatoastandcomparedBorlaug’sgooddeedstothoseofthePope,makingtheguestofhonorblush.

Inthecityhall,amuralwrappedaroundastairwelldepictedhighlightsoftheregion’s history.Alongside scenes ofmarching peasants and a dam supplyingwater for crops, awell-tannedBorlaug appearswithin a halo of goldenwheatstalksashescribblesnotes inacrop-breedingbook,amicroscopebyhis side.TheinscriptionborrowsalinefromhisNobelPeacePrizelecture:“Ifyoudesirepeace,cultivatejustice,butatthesametimecultivatethefieldstoproducemorebread,otherwisetherewillbenopeace.”

Borlaughimselfwasnotatpeace,forin2007therewasstillmuchworktobedone. Global hunger was on the rise again. There was a new generation ofdisciples to inspire. Cancer had begun to bend and hollow his body. Yet hispassionanddeterminationwereundiminishedashetalkedwithcolleaguesoverdinnerinamotelrestaurant.“It’scriminalwhatishappening.TheWestjustisn’tdoingenoughtofighthunger,”Borlaugsaid.“IamnotsatisfiedwithhowfartheGreenRevolutionhasgone.”

Suddenly,bloodspurtedfromhisnose,asideeffectofhiscancer treatment.Borlaug was so caught up in conversation that he wasn’t aware of the bloodsoaking the front of his plaid shirt until he noticed the startled looks of hiscompanions.He snatchedpapernapkins from the table anddabbed.A lookoffearandthenangerflickeredacrosshisblueeyesashecursedhiscancer.“Thisdamnthing.Idon’thavetimeforit,”hesaidashestoodupfromthetableandwalkedtohisroom.

At dawn, though, Borlaug was back pacing in the motel lobby. He wasanxious for a ride to his old research station to see the latest experiments andencourage the newest crop of researchers.AngelaDennett, a petiteAustraliancollegestudentinjeansandaT-shirt,stoodshylytothesideasBorlaugwalkedslowly through her plot of grain, peering closely at individual plants. “It’s

amazingwhatonepersoncando,”shesaid.

Sensing a teaching moment, an instructor began to tell the story of howBorlaug had invented a new way of breeding wheat in these fields. Borlaugturnedaround,chuckling.“Permitmetointerject,”hesaid.“Perhapsyoudon’tknowIwasworriedIcouldgetfiredifIdidn’tcomeupwithsomethingfast.”

Itwouldhavetobefastnow,ifheweretoseeit.Ashelefthisfields,Borlaugdidn’tknowifhewouldeverreturn.Hewaspreparingfortheendofhisdays.Butthatdidn’tmeanhisdreamhadtodie,too.“Hungerisn’taninsurmountableproblem,” he said as he stared out the window of the airplane, watching thefieldsoftheverdantYaquíValleygrowsmallerandsmaller.“Ihavebigfaithinthejudgmentofcommonpeopleiftheygetthefacts.Whenchangecomes,itcancomequickly.”

ACKNOWLEDGMENTSToall those inAfricawhowelcomedus into theirhomes, their fields,and theshadeoftheirtreesandtoldustheirstories,thankyou.Thisbookwouldn’thavebeenpossiblewithoutthenarrativesoftheirlivesinthehollowofplenty.Manyoftheirstoriesareinthesepages;wehopewehavedonethemjustice.

TheAfrican reportingwashelped immenselyby amultitudeof peoplewhopointed the way, and then helped us get there. Government ministers, aidworkers,fellowjournalists,drivers, interpreters,bartenders.Andinthecapitalsof Europe and many points in the United States, there have been countlessexperts on international agriculture and the hunger issue who shared theiranalysis, facts, documentation, and passion. Thank you in particular to ChrisDowswell,NormanBolaug’saide-de-camp;JulieHowardat thePartnership toCutHungerandPovertyinAfrica;MaxFinbergoftheAlliancetoEndHunger;GaryToenniessenat theRockefellerFoundation;AnnTutwiler at theWilliamandFloraHewlettFoundation;andMarshallBoutonoftheChicagoCouncilonGlobalAffairs.ManyoftheepisodesinthisbookbeganasstoriesinTheWallStreetJournal,

so we are grateful to our past and present colleagues who supported ourreportingsojournsaroundtheworld,amongthem:BryanGruley,LeeLescaze,KarenHouse,FredKempe,PaulSteiger,KenWells,JohnBrecher,MikeMiller,MarcusBrauchli,andKevinHelliker.Therehasbeenabattalionofeditorswhosharpenedourcopy,anda legionofreporterswhoshared theirknowledgeandopenedtheirnotebookstous.Ourthanksandappreciationtoallofthem.Weareparticularlygrateful to our current colleagues in theJournal’sChicagobureauwhocheeredustothefinishline.ItwasKenWells, an ace foreign correspondent, editor, and author himself,

whohelpedushatchtheideaforthisbook.FromhispostoverseeingtheJournal’s book division, he shepherded our proposal to PublicAffairs, where it wasembracedbyfounderPeterOsnos,publisherSusanWeinberg,andsenioreditorandmarketingdirectorLisaKaufman.Lisasharedourvisionforthebookfromtheoutsetandprovidedinvaluableadvice.MeredithSmithandAnnetteWendadeftlyguidedtheproductionandediting.AndpublicitydirectorWhitneyPeelinghasspreadtheword.RoseEllenD’Angelo,directoroftheJournal’sbooksand

special projects realm, kept the faith and the good humor. Anne Thurow andPatriciaCallahanreadmanydraftsofthisbookanddetectedwaywardpassagesbigandsmall.Above all, our deepest gratitude goes to our families for their love,

encouragement,andsteadfastbeliefinourwork.

NOTES

Preface

Preciselycalculatingthenumberofhungrypeopleintheworldisdifficult.

Expertsdisagreeoverhowtodefineundernourishment.Oneroughmeasureistocountpeoplewhoconsume less than2,100caloriesdaily,but theminimumnutritional requirement of people varies by their age and howmuch physicallabortheydo.TheUnitedStatesisn’tnearlyasstrictwhentryingtogaugefoodinsecuritywithinitsownborders.TheU.S.governmentcountshouseholdsthatdon’thaveenoughmoneyorresourcestogetadequatefoodattimesduringtheyear.Estimates of the undernourished population are generated by the United

Nations’FoodandAgricultureOrganization(FAO),whichpublishesTheStateof Food Insecurity in the World. In December 2008, the FAO released apreliminary estimate of 963 million undernourished people. The U.S.DepartmentofAgricultureissuesanannualFoodSecurityAssessment.The2007edition,whichwasissuedinJuly2008,putthenumberoffood-insecurepeopleinseventypoornationsat982million.Another way to look at hunger was developed by the International Food

PolicyResearchInstituteinWashington,D.C.ItsGlobalHungerIndexisbasedon the proportion of the undernourished population, the prevalence ofunderweight children under the age of five, and themortality rate of childrenundertheageoffive.TheresultsreleasedinOctober2008werebasedondatathat ended in 2006, at which time nine of the ten countries with the highesthungerindexwereinsub-SaharanAfrica.

Chapter1

This chapter is based on interviews with Norman Borlaug, his family andcolleagues,andwithfarmersandscientistsintheYaquíValley,wherehestartedtheresearchstationthatoperatesstill.BorlaugasayoungmanandthesceneinwhichhelearnshewontheNobelPeacePrizeareportrayedinLeonHesser’s,TheManWhoFedtheWorld:NobelPeacePrizeLaureateNormanBorlaugandHis Battle to End World Hunger (Dallas: Durban House Publishing, 2006).SomematerialwasalsocollectedfromDr.Borlaug’sspeechesandessays.

Information on HenryWallace came from John C. Culver and John Hyde,American Dreamer: A Life of Henry A. Wallace (New York:W.W. Norton,2000.)We also used archival material fromWallaces’ Farmer of Urbandale,Iowa,andPioneerHi-BredInternationalInc.,nowaunitofDuPontCo.InformationontheRockefellerFoundation’sagriculturalworkinMexicowas

gleaned from E. C. Stakman, Richard Bradfield, and Paul C. Mangelsdorf,Campaigns against Hunger (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, BelknapPress,1967),aswellasmaterialfromthefoundation.

Chapter2

TheSovietUnion’spurchasesofU.S.wheatisdescribedinCliftonB.Luttrell,TheRussianWheatDeal:Hindsight vs. Foresight (St. Louis: FederalReserveBank,October1973).

The impact of the Soviet purchases onU.S. consumers is explained inDanMorgan,MerchantsofGrain(NewYork:VikingPress,1979),39.Theearly1970sfoodcrisisandthepositionoftheFordadministrationatthe

1974WorldFoodConferenceisdescribedbyD.JohnShawinchapters10and11 of World Food Security: A History since 1945 (New York: PalgraveMacmillan,2007).ThecommentbyJohnBlock,theU.S.agriculturesecretaryduringtheReagan

administration, isfrom“CakesandCaviar:TheDunkelDraftandThirdWorldAgriculture,”Ecologist(November-December1993):220.The impactof the structural adjustmentpolicy isdescribed inMaxLawson,

Death on the Doorstep of the Summit, an Oxfam briefing paper published inAugust2002.The quote by formerHaitian agriculturalminister PhilippeMathieu is from

JoelMillman andRogerThurow, “FoodCrisis ForcesNewLook at Farming:PoorNations, andTheirDonors,NowRethinkEmphasis onFreeTrade,”TheWallStreetJournal,June10,2008,A1.The decline in development assistance for agriculture is charted inWorld

DevelopmentReport2008:AgricultureforDevelopment,41.Thereport,whichwasissuedbytheWorldBankinOctober2007,waspreparedbyateamdirectedbyDerekByerleeandAlaindeJanvry.The drop in U.S. bilateral aid for agricultural development is detailed in

chapter12ofAgriculturalR&DintheDevelopingWorld:TooLittle,TooLate?EditedbyPhilipG.Pardey,JulianM.Alston,andRoleyR.Piggott, the reportwas published in 2006 by the International Food Policy Research Institute, aresearchcenterprimarilysupportedby theConsultativeGrouponInternationalAgriculturalResearch.

Chapter3

Part of this chapter expands on an article in The Wall Street Journal by theauthors about Borlaug’s work in Africa: “Diminishing Returns: Africa CouldGrowEnoughtoFeedItself;ShouldIt?—IssuePitsRichDonorNationsagainstManWhoSowedGreenRevolutioninAsia—InGhana,aLegendaryHarvest,”December3,2002,A1.

Africa’searlyfoodproductionisdescribedintheNationalResearchCouncilreport Lost Crops of Africa. Vol. 1, Grains (Washington, D.C.: NationalAcademyPress,1996).EvolutionarybiologistJaredDiamondexplainswhyagriculturearoseinAsia

and Europe before Africa in “The Shape of Africa,” National Geographic,September2005.

Chapter4

PartsofthischapterexpandontheseWallStreetJournalarticles:“HangingbyaThread:InU.S.,CottonFarmersThrive;inAfricaTheyFighttoSurvive,”bytheauthors,June26,2002,A1;“Bittersweet:HowanAddictiontoSugarSubsidiesHurts Development,” by Roger Thurow and GeoffWinestock, September 16,2002,A1.

The comments fromPresidentBush atMonterrey come from theNewYorkTimes: “Bush, inMonterrey, Speaks ofConditionalGlobalAid,” byElisabethBumiller,March23,2002;“MoreAid,MoreNeed:PledgesStillFallingShort”byTimWeiner,March24,2002.

Chapter5

Partsof thischapterexpandonanarticle inTheWallStreetJournalbyRogerThurow: “Road to Hunger—Behind the Famine in Ethiopia: Glut and AidPoliciesGoneBad—Fledgling FreeMarket Failed as SurplusBattered Prices;FarmersSlashedPlanting—ThentheDroughtTookOver,”July1,2003,A1.

Chapter6

Part of this chapter expands on an article in The Wall Street Journal by theauthorsaboutfoodaid:“SeedsofDiscord:AsU.S.FoodAidEnrichesFarmers,Poor Nations Cry Foul—Sending Crops, Not Cash, Eases American Gluts,IgnoresLocalSurpluses—APitchfromRaisinGrowers,”September11,2003,A1.

Chapter7

Part of this chapter expands on a story in TheWall Street Journal by RogerThurow: “Changing Course: Ravaged by Famine, Ethiopia Finally Gets HelpfromtheNile—ForGenerations,PoliticsKeptTributariesFlowingby,BringingBountytoEgypt—ParchedCorn,RushingWater,”November26,2003,A1.

Chapter8

PartsofthischapterexpandonthefollowingstoriesinTheWallStreetJournalbyRogerThurow:“EmptyFields:InAfrica,AIDSandFamineNowGoHandinHand—AsFarmersDie inSwaziland,TheirPlotsLieFallow;BushVisits theContinent—Five Orphans in a Mud Shack,” July 9, 2003, A1; and “RapidReversal: Once a Breadbasket, Zimbabwe Today Can’t Feed Itself—Politics,Drought, AIDS Bring a Severe Food Shortage; Aid Is Coming Up Short—CaterpillarsBecomeaStaple,”December24,2003,A1.

Chapter9

Information on Ireland’s agricultural history comes from “Europe and theRevolutioninIrishAgriculture,”byTomArnoldofConcernWorldwide.

InformationonBono’searlymusical influencescomes froman interview inRollingStone,November3,2005.

Chapter10

Information on the Gates family conversations on global health and theFoundation’s philosophy come from the Foundation’s Web site,www.gatesfoundation.org.

The Bill Gates Sr. comment regarding IAVI comes from “From Rags toRiches,”byAmandaRipley,Time,December26,2005,83.

Chapter11

Parts of this chapter expand on a story in TheWall Street Journal by RogerThurow:“FullTreatment: InKenya,AIDSTherapy IncludesFreshVegetables—Indiana’s Dr. Mamlin Prescribes Food, Drugs; Patients Learn to Farm,”March28,2007,A1.

Stephen Lewis’ comments are from his forward to Poverty, AIDS, andHunger:BreakingthePovertyTrapinMalawibyAnneC.Conroy,MalcolmJ.Blackie,AlanWhiteside,JustinC.Malewezi,andJeffreyD.Sachs(NewYork:PalgraveMacmillan,2006).

Chapter12

Information on Liberia’s president growing rice came from Natalie ObikoPearson, “Africa Looks for Silver Lining in Food Crisis—International Aid,OtherResourcesFlowtoAilingFarmSector,”TheWallStreetJournalEurope,June20,2008.

Much of the section on food aid expands on articles in The Wall StreetJournalbytheauthors,including:“PorkChops:InFightagainstFarmSubsidies,EvenFarmersAre Joining Foes—ASnowballingMovementDrawsChurches,CEOS;HugeHurdles inCongress—ABolster toWTOPressures,”March 14,2006,A1; and“MealTicket:Farmers,Charities JoinForces toBlockFamine-ReliefRevamp—BushAdministrationWantstoPurchaseAfricanFood;LobbySaysBuyAmerican—ProposalIsStuckinCongress,”October26,2005,A1.Informationon fertilizerconsumptionbymajorU.S.cropscame fromKeith

Wiebe and Noel Gollehon, eds., Agricultural Resources and EnvironmentalIndicators, Economic Information Bulletin No. 16 (Washington, D.C.: U.S.DepartmentofAgriculture,EconomicResearchService,July2006).Information on subsidy payments toU.S. farmers came fromRonL.Durst,

EffectsofReducingtheIncomeCaponEligibilityforFarmProgramPayments,EconomicInformationBulletinNo.27(Washington,D.C.:U.S.DepartmentofAgriculture,EconomicResearchService,September2007);U.S.DepartmentofAgricultureEconomicResearchServiceWebsite,“FarmandCommodityPolicyBriefing Room: Government Payments and the Farm Sector,”www.ers.usda.gov/Briefing/FarmPolicy/Gov-Pay.htm;andEdwinYoung,VictorOliveira, and Roger Claassen, 2008 Farm Act: Where Will the Money Go?(Washington,D.C.:AmberWaves,U.S.DepartmentofAgriculture,EconomicResearchService,November2008).Information on the financial condition of U.S. farmers came from Craig

Gundersen and others, A Safety Net for Farm Households, AgriculturalEconomicReportNo.788(Washington,D.C.:U.S.DepartmentofAgriculture,EconomicResearchService,October 2000);Agricultural IncomeandFinanceOutlook (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Agriculture, EconomicResearch Service AIS-86, December 2008); as well as updated estimatesreleasedbytheUSDAinFebruary2009.

InformationonthepermanentU.S.farmsubsidylegislationcamefrom“TheEffects of Failure to Enact a New Farm Bill: Permanent Law Support forCommodities and Lapse of Other USDA Programs” (March 2008), amiscellaneous report for the farmpolicybriefingWebpagemaintainedby theU.S.DepartmentofAgriculture,EconomicResearchService.Information on ethanol’s share of the U.S. motor fuel market came from

MonthlyEnergyReview(Washington,D.C.:U.S.DepartmentofEnergy,EnergyInformationAdministration,January2009).Information on the amount of U.S corn used to make ethanol came from

WorldAgriculturalSupplyandDemandEstimates, amonthly report issuedbytheWorldAgriculturalOutlookBoard (Washington,D.C.:U.S.DepartmentofAgriculture).InformationonthecornusetofillanSUVgastankcamefromaninterview

with Robbin Johnson, a University of Minnesota lecturer and retired Cargill,Inc.,executive.

Chapter13

WarrenBuffett’sphilosophyaboutpassingonwealthtodescendantsisdescribedin Roger Lowenstein, Buffett: The Making of an American Capitalist (NewYork: Random House, 1995), and Alice Schroeder, The Snowball: WarrenBuffettandtheBusinessofLife(NewYork:BantamBooks,2008).

Chapter14

Part of this chapter expands on a story in TheWall Street Journal by RogerThurow:“EthiopiaTapsGrainExchangeinItsBattleonHunger,”February27,2008,A1.

Chapter15

Part of this chapter expands on a story in TheWall Street Journal by RogerThurow: “Famine Relief: In Battling Hunger, a New Advance: Peanut-ButterPaste—Plumpy’nut Doesn’t Use Water and Is Easily Distributed; BigDeploymentinDarfur—BalancingProfitswithAid,”April12,2005,A1.

Chapter16

Part of this chapter expands on a story in TheWall Street Journal by RogerThurow: “A Dam Connects Machakos, Kenya, to Archbold, Ohio—AsDevelopmentAidinRuralAfricaDwindles,AmericanFarmersPitchIn,”April23,2007,A1.

Chapter17

PresidentTruman’sspeechcanbefoundinitsentiretyonline:JohnWolleyandGerhardPeters,“TheAmericanPresidencyProject,”www.presidency.ucsb.edu.

Information regarding the market for weight-loss treatments in the UnitedStatescamefrom“InsideDrugmakers’WaronFat,”BusinessWeek,March17,2008,41.

INDEX

Abdall,MatairAbd-Elsalam,MohamedAbduAwolAbudu,GeraldAcademic Model for Prevention and Treatment of HIV/AIDS (AMPATH)AcceleratedDevelopmentinSub-SaharanAfrica(Berg)AfricaagriculturaldevelopmentassistanceandAIDSepidemicBigMenofdevelopment of agriculture in effect of conflict on agriculture efforts to endhunger in Green Revolution and structural adjustment programs effect onagriculture African Development Bank AGMARK. See Agricultural MarketDevelopment Trust AGRA. See Alliance for a Green Revolution in AfricaAgriculturaldevelopmentAgriculturalMarketDevelopmentTrust (AGMARK)Ahern,BertieAIDSepidemicinAfricaAIDS-inducedfamineal-Bashir,OmarAlemuAsfawAlliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) Alliance for SensibleAgriculture Policies Alliance to End Hunger Al Tarabeely, Abbas Al-Wafd(newspaper)AmericanSoybeanAssociationAmezah,KwameAminAmnesty International AMPATH. See Academic Model for Prevention andTreatmentofHIV/AIDSAndreas, DwayneAn Essay on the Principle of Population (Malthus) Annan,KofiAphane,JanetAppiah-Asante,BenedictaArchbold(Ohio)Arnold,TomAshagg,AshaAsia“AssuringFoodandNutritionSecurityinAfricaby2020,”

Bachus,SpencerBakker,PeterBaldwin,Marv

BashadaIffaBeck,CharlieBeckmann,DavidBelayEjiguBerg,ElliotBiafrafamineBillandMelindaGatesFoundationBiofuelsBiomassfuelsBlair,TonyBlock,JohnBlueNileBlum,JonathanBoa,KofiBoateng,EmmanuelBonoAIDScampaignDATAanddebt relief campaignBorlaug,Margaret (Gibson)Borlaug,Norman onAsianagriculturalmarketsattacksoncomplacencyabouthungerbiographyCongressionalGoldMedalasfatherofGreenRevolutionintroducingMexicanwheatinIndialegacyofasNobelPeacelaureateSasakawaAfricaandonU.S.FarmBillwheatbreedingin Mexico World Economic Forum and Boston Consulting Group Bradfield,RichardBreadfortheWorldBriend,AndréBuffett,HowardBuffett,SusanBuffett,WarrenBulbulaTulleBumpers,DaleBurke,DeltaBurkinaFasoBush,GeorgeW.

Calles,DonRodolfoElíasCalles,PlutárcoElíasCalles,RodolfoElíasCamacho,ManuelÁvilaCAP.SeeCommonAgriculturalPolicyCapeVerdeCARECargill,Inc.CaritasInternationalCarter,JimmyCarterCenter

Carucci,VolliCarver, George Washington Catholic Agency for Overseas DevelopmentCatholicBishopsConferenceCatholicFundforOverseasDevelopmentCatholic Relief Services CGIAR. See Consultative Group on InternationalAgriculturalResearchChadChicagoBoard ofTradeChildren, hunger andChimpopi,GelesomChiwanda,MisheckChombeSeyoumChristianAidChristianReformedWorldReliefCommitteeClausen,A.W.Cleaver,KevinClinton,BillColao,VittorioCollins,SteveCommission for Africa Commodities exchanges Common Agricultural Policy(CAP)ComparativeadvantageConcernAfricaConcern (agency) Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research(CGIAR)CornCorporatesocialresponsibilityCosta,EusebioCottonfarminginMaliU.S.subsidiesandCoulibaly,DiambaCox,CraigCrane,ChrisDarfurDATADawson,DaleDebtreliefcampaignDemereDemissieDemocraticRepublicofCongoDennett,AngelaDevelopmentaid,farmsubsidiesandDeVries,JoeDiallo,ModyDiamond,JaredDoctorsWithoutBordersDomkoh,FranklinDorcasAidInternationalDoTheyKnowIt’sChristmas?(song)Dove,RichardDrummond,JamieDSMDuarte,RosaSozinhoDunavantDuPageGlocalAIDSActionNetworkDuPontCo.

Egypt,NilewatersandEhrlich,PaulR.

EleniGabre-MadhinEmergencyPlanforAIDSReliefEmmanuelOtoroEnergy Independence and Security Act (2007) Energy Policy Act (2005)Environmentalists, Green Revolution and Environmental Working GroupErhard,WernerEsmail,SaleemEthanolindustryEthiopiaagricultural investment in agricultural market volatility in agriculturalproductioninannualdebtobligationsBlueNilecreationofcommoditiesexchange ineffectofAmerican foodaid ineffectofconflictonagricultureinfoodsafetynetgrainmarketsharvests preceding 2003 famine lentil farming in Sasakawa Africa in 2003famineEthiopia Commodity Exchange Ethiopia Network on Food Security EuropeanfarmsubsidiesEuropeanfoodaidEvans,Jim

Falwell,JerryFamineAIDS-inducedBiafraEthiopian(2003)GreenRevolutionandIrishFamineclinicsFamine Early Warning System Network (FEWS NET) Famine Museum(Ireland)FarmsubsidiesAmericancottoncreationofU.S.developmentaidandeffectonAfricanfarmerseffortstoreformU.S.endinghungerandreformofEuropeanMalawistructuraladjustmentandU.S.FarmBillworldgrainpricesandFertilizerFertilizer Use in African Agriculture: Lessons Learned and Good PracticeGuidelines FEWS NET. See Famine EarlyWarning System Network Fievez,DominiqueFijbesma,FeikeFinucane,AengusFisher,MartinFood,universalrighttoFoodaidFood-aidpurchasesFoodandAgricultureOrganizationFoodcrisis2008,Foodfor Peace program Food self-reliance Foods Resource Bank (FRB) Food

summitsFord,GeraldFordFoundationFosdick,RaymondB.France,farmsubsidiesFRB.SeeFoodsResourceBankFreedman,ThomasZ.Futurescontracts

Gandhi,IndiraGastin,TomasGates,BillGates,Bill,Sr.Gates,MelindaG8countriesGeldof,BobGethi,JamesGhanaGlobal Alliance for Improved Nutrition Global Alliance for Vaccines andImmunization Global Call to Action Against Poverty Global Fund to FightAIDS,Tuberculosis,andMalariaGlobalgrainreservesGlyphosateGondwe,GoodallGoodlatte,BobGraham,BillyGrainmarkets,EthiopianGrainpricesGrain reserves, global Grain surpluses Grain Traders Association (Ethiopia)GrameenBankGreen,BobGreenpeaceGreenRevolutionAfricaandAsiaandcriticismofIndiaandMexicoandPakistanandGrey,DavidGroth,JimGrushkin,JonandSharilyn

HaileSelassieHall,TonyHamedSamirHarrar,J.George“Dutch,”HarvestPlusHassan,AhmadAliElHeartofAmericatourHeaton,GaryHelenKellerInternationalHelms,JesseHerbicidesHester,EdHewson,AliHewson, Paul. See Bono Hilina Enriched Food Processing Center Hood,KennethHoover,HerbertHouphouet-Boigny,FelixHumanNeedsandGlobalResources(HNGR)HumanRightsWatchHumanSufferingIndexHumphrey,HubertH.HungerAfricangovernmentroleincombatingbiofuelsandchildrenandcreating global fund to aid African farmers in developing world in 1960sexpansionofdevelopmentaidandfarmsubsidiesandfoodaidandgrowing awareness of problem of infrastructure investment and internationalgrainreserveandman-madenewseedtechnologyandpublicsupportofeffortstoendworldwidestatisticsonSeealsoMalnutritionHungerProjectHungerseasonHybels,BillHydroelectricity

IAVI. See International AIDS Vaccine Initiative IMF. See InternationalMonetaryFundIndiaInfrastructure investment International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI)International Center for Tropical Agriculture International DevelopmentEnterprises InternationalFoodPolicyResearch Institute InternationalFund forAgricultural Development International grain reserve International Maize andWheat Improvement Center International Monetary Fund (IMF) InternationalPotatoCenterIreland,campaigntoendhungerIrishfamine

IronTriangleIR8riceIrrigationprojectsIvoryCoast

Jackson,RobinJanjaweedJatrophaJermanAmenteJohnPaulIIJohns,DebereJohnson,LyndonJohnson-Sirleaf,EllenJoireman,SandraJordan,DwayneJubileedebtcancellation

Kabambe,PatrickKedirGelatoKamau,ElizabethKangwelema,HenryKanini,SusanKenyaKhatKickStartInternationalKinsey,SheilaKissinger,HenryKogaRiverKohl,HelmutKufuor,John

LaaLakamoLaughton,SarahLentilsLeonard,MarkW.Lescanne,MichelLesothoLestingi,JohnLewis,StephenLiberiaLikuniphalaLionaes,AaseLiveAidLive8concertsLugbill,JonLume-AdamaFarmersCooperativeUnion

Maas, JanWillemMaburutse,ZvidzaiMachakosRuralDevelopmentProgramMachel,GracaMadagascarMadich,JimMagnay,JohnMahon,DenisMaiga,ChoguelKokallaMajak,PhilipMalawifarmsubsidiesinmicrofinanceoperationsinschoolfeedingprogramsinMaliMalnutritionAIDStreatmentandtreatmentofworldwide statisticsonSeealsoHungerMalthus,ThomasRobertMalthusianoptimismMamlin,JoeMandela,NelsonMangelsdorf,PaulMarshallPlanMathieu,PhilippeMazonMcGovern,GeorgeMcLaughlin,JimMcNamara,RobertS.MeleseAwokeMelesZenawiMengistuHaileMariamMercyofGodDam(Kenya)MesfinAbebeMetawie,AbdelFattahMexicoMichaque,MatiasMichiganBeanCouncilMick,ThomasB.MicrofinanceMillennium Challenge Corporation Millennium Villages Molecular breedingMonetizationMonsantoMorris,JimMotherTeresaMovingtheWorldMozambiqueMpofu,LahlekileMugabe,RobertMulenga,RobinahMuller,MartinMutharika,BinguwaMutiso,PeterMwanzia,Cosmas

NationalCottonCouncilNationalExtensionIntensificationProgram(Ethiopia)

National Seed Enterprise (Ethiopia) Natsios, Andrew Ncube, SiphatisiweNdlangamandla,DuduNdzima,MandathaneNegaAmbagoNew Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) New York TimesNgwenya,LukePhilipNigerNigeriaNigerRiverNile Basin Initiative Nile waters, geopolitics of Nkhambule, MakhosazaneNkhwangwa,AgustinNkrumah,KwameNorthwestPeaandBeanCompanyNo-tillfarmingNovak,DavidNutrisetSASNyamayarwo,AgnesNyambi,Sam

Obama,BarackOchieng, Daniel O’Driscoll, John OECD. See Organization of EconomicCooperationandDevelopmentOelrich,LudoOfficeofSpecialStudiesOkey,KhamisAdamHassenONECampaignOnyancha,EdwinOpportunityInternationalOrangesweetpotatoesOrganizationofEconomicCooperationandDevelopment(OECD)Ositeni,GraceOsiteni,MargrateOsiteni,TomaidaOwusu,KwakuOxfam

PakistanPartnership to Cut Hunger and Poverty in Africa PASS. See Program forAfrica’sSeedSystemsPelekamoyo,FrancisPelham,PatPioneerHi-BredPlassman,HaroldPL-480lawPlumpy’nutPolasek, Darlene Population Bomb, The (Ehrlich) Population crisis, GreenRevolutionandPopulationCrisisCommitteePoulson,JohnPowell,JohnProgramforAfrica’sSeedSystems(PASS)PurchaseforProgressReady-to-UseTherapeuticFoodsReagan,RonaldReed,LarryRice

RiceCompanyRighttofoodRighttoFoodResolutionRockefellerFoundationRohrs,CecilyRoosevelt,FranklinD.Rotich,SalinaRoundup(glyphosate)Rucyahana,JohnRufenacht,CorkRufenacht,JimRufenacht,LindaRuralcommunities,GreenRevolutionandRwanda

Sachs,JeffreySangarefamilySasakawa,RyoichoSasakawaAfricaAssociationSauder,MaynardSaudiArabiaSauguet, IsabelleSaukila, PatriciaSave theChildrenSchool feeding programsSchroeder,GerhardSchweitzer,AlbertSeedsdistributing to farmers new technology Program for Africa’s Seeds SystemssyntheticSen,AmartyaSeseSeko,MobutuShah,RajivShandu,MonicaSheeran,JosetteShiferawJarsoTedechaShort,LouiseShows,RonnieShriver,BobbySierraLeoneSimon,ArthurSlash-and-burnfarmingSloan,CarolSloan,VernonSmith,AdamSoares,AissaSouthAfricansugarcanegrowersSoylentGreen(film)SpokaneSeedCompanySprinklesStakman, Elvin Charles Starvation. See also Hunger; Malnutrition StrategicOpportunities initiative Structural adjustment Student Global AIDS CampaignSudanSugarsubsidiesSullivan,LeonSullivanPrinciples Summit onFinancing forDevelopment SuperMoneyMaker

water pump Sustainable Agricultural and Environmental RehabilitationCommissionSwazilandSyngentaSyntheticseedTakeleGebreTakeleTarekegnTamiratHaileMariamTanzaniaTaylor,MichaelTEDGlobalconferenceTeferraBeyeneTesfahunBelachewTesfayeHagirsoTesfayeKetemaThatcher,MargaretThompson,BobThompson,Jim’TisaGifttobeSimple(book)TNTTogetherforChildVitalityToure,MadaniTraore,BakaryTruman,Harry

UgandaUNICEF.SeeUnitedNationsChildren’sFundUnileverUnitedNationsUnited Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) United Nations DevelopmentProgramUnitedNationsFoodandAgricultureOrganizationUnitedStatesAIDSreliefplancampaignfordebtreliefFarmBillfarm subsidies food aid program increases in food prices in philanthropiceffortsinAfricapublic support of efforts to end hunger U.S. Agency for InternationalDevelopmentU.S.NationalDryBeanCouncil

ValidInternationalValidNutritionValuechainVanCleave,ElaineVerschuren,PaulusVillageSeventhofSeptemberVodafoneGroupVonWissell,Derek

Wallace,Henry

WallStreetJournal,TheWangia,CalebWater pumps, human-powered Water resources Wayongo, Gregory WanjaraWealthofNations,The(Smith)WerquMekashaWesternSeedCo.,Ltd.WFP.SeeWorldFoodProgramWheatWheatonCollegeWheatrustWientjes,FokkoWiest,MichaelWilberforce, WilliamWilliam Wilberforce: A Man Who Changed His Times(Wilberforce) Winestock, Geoff Wolfensohn, James Wolfowitz, Paul WorldBankagriculturaldevelopmentandBlueNileprojectsandcriticismofimmunization campaign and structural adjustment programs WorldDevelopmentReportWorldEconomicForum(Davos)WorldFoodConference(1974)WorldFoodDayWorldFoodProgram(WFP)corporatepartnershipsfundraisingas grain buyer inAfrica risinggrain prices and school feedingprograms andWorld Health Organization World Hunger Relief Week World Summit onSustainableDevelopmentWorldVisionWyse,Jim

Yacob Wondimkun Yagob, Abdalla Mohemmed Yara International ASAYosephYilakYousif,FatmaYousif,SadiaMohamedYum!BrandsYunus,Muhammad

Zachritz,RobertZambiaZiegler,JeanZimbabweZoellick,Robert

AnneThurow

Patricia Callahan Roger Thurow has been a Wall Street Journal foreigncorrespondent for twenty years. He was based in South Africa from 1986 to1991,anassignmentduringthelast-gaspyearsofapartheidandtheearlydaysofreconciliation that ignited a passion for writing about humanitarian anddevelopment issues.His reporting has taken him tomore than sixty countries,including two dozen in Africa. Scott Kilman has covered agriculture at theJournal formuch of the past two decades, chronicling the actions of theU.S.government and agro-industrial sector that impact farmers and consumersworldwide.Hewritesabouttrade,biotechnology,foodsafety,subsidies,andtheruraleconomy.Overthepastsevenyears,ThurowandKilmanhaveteameduptoproduceastreamofpage1storiesintheJournalthathavebrokennewgroundinourunderstandingoffamineandfoodaid.Theirstoriesonthe2003faminesin Ethiopia and southern Africa were a finalist for the 2004 Pulitzer Prize inInternational Reporting. The series, Anatomy of Famine, was praised by thePulitzerboard for“hauntingstories that shednew lightonstarvation inAfricaandpromptedinternationalagenciestorethinktheirpolicies.”In2005,Thurowand Kilman were honored by the United Nations for their reporting onhumanitariananddevelopmentissues.TheyarebothbasedinChicago.

PublicAffairs is a publishing house founded in 1997. It is a tribute to thestandards, values, and flair of three persons who have served as mentors tocountlessreporters,writers,editors,andbookpeopleofallkinds,includingme.

I.F.STONE,proprietorofI.F.Stone’sWeekly,combinedacommitmenttotheFirstAmendmentwithentrepreneurialzealandreportingskillandbecameoneof thegreat independent journalists inAmericanhistory.At the ageof eighty,IzzypublishedTheTrialofSocrates,whichwasanationalbestseller.HewrotethebookafterhetaughthimselfancientGreek.

BENJAMINC.BRADLEEwasfornearlythirtyyearsthecharismaticeditorialleader ofTheWashington Post. It was Benwho gave thePost the range andcouragetopursuesuchhistoricissuesasWatergate.Hesupportedhisreporterswith a tenacity that made them fearless and it is no accident that so manybecameauthorsofinfluential,bestsellingbooks.

ROBERTL.BERNSTEIN,thechiefexecutiveofRandomHouseformorethanaquartercentury,guidedoneofthenation’spremierpublishinghouses.Bobwaspersonally responsible for many books of political dissent and argument thatchallengedtyrannyaroundtheglobe.HeisalsothefounderandlongtimechairofHumanRightsWatch,oneofthemostrespectedhumanrightsorganizationsintheworld.

For fifty years, the banner of Public Affairs Press was carried by its owner

Morris B. Schnapper, who published Gandhi, Nasser, Toynbee, Truman, andabout1,500otherauthors.In1983,SchnapperwasdescribedbyTheWashingtonPostas“aredoubtablegadfly.”Hislegacywillendureinthebookstocome.

PeterOsnos,FounderandEditor-at-Large

Copyright©2009byRogerThurowandScottKilmanPublishedintheUnitedStatesbyPublicAffairs™,amemberofthePerseusBooksGroup.

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Textsetin11.5pointAdobeGaramond

LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationDataThurow,Roger.Enough:whytheworld’spooreststarveinanageofplenty/RogerThurowandScottKilman.

p.cm.Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.

eISBN:978-0-786-74155-71.Poverty—Africa.2.Poverty—Africa—Prevention.3.Poverty.4.Poverty—Prevention.5.Starvation.6.

Starvation—Prevention.7.Internationalcooperation.I.Kilman,Scott.II.Title.HC800.Z9P62852009

363.8—dc22

2009009638