NITI Aayog signed a Statement of Intent with the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP). The partnership focuses on mainstreaming of millets and supporting India in taking lead globally in knowledge exchange using the opportunity of 2023 as an ‘International Year of Millets’. 

Further, the partnership will aim at building resilient livelihoods for small-holder farmers and adaptation capacities to climate change and transforming food systems.

World Food Programme

• The World Food Programme (WFP) is a UN agency saving lives and changing lives, delivering food assistance in emergencies and working with communities to improve nutrition and build resilience.

• The WFP’s efforts focus on emergency assistance, relief and rehabilitation, development aid and special operations. Two-thirds of its work is in conflict-affected countries where people are three times more likely to be undernourished than those living in countries without conflict.

• The WFP was introduced in 1961 after the 1960 Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Conference, when George McGovern, director of the US Food for Peace Programmes, proposed establishing a multilateral food aid programme. The WFP was formally established in 1963 by the FAO and the UN General Assembly on a three-year experimental basis. In 1965, the programme was extended to a continuing basis.

• It is governed by a 36-member executive board. It works closely with its two Rome-based sister organisations, the FAO of the United Nations and the International Fund for Agricultural Development. 

• The WFP partners with more than 1,000 national and international NGOs to provide food assistance and tackle the underlying causes of hunger.

• It is the largest humanitarian organisation implementing school-feeding programmes worldwide and has been doing so for more than 50 years. Each year, the WFP provides school meals to more than 16 million children in 60 countries, often in the hardest-to-reach areas.

• The WFP purchases 3 million metric tonnes of food every year. At least three quarters of it comes from developing countries.

• Last year, the WFP won the Nobel Peace Prize for its efforts to combat hunger, contribution to bettering conditions for peace in conflict-affected areas and acting as a driving force in efforts to prevent the use of hunger as a weapon of war and conflict. 

Highlights of the partnership with NITI Aayog

• India observed 2018 as the year of millets to encourage and promote millet production. Leading this initiative further, the government spearheaded the UNGA resolution for declaring 2023 as the ‘International Year of Millets’.

• Numerous steps have been taken to promote millets including establishment of Centre for Excellence, integration of nutri-cereals in National Food Security Act and establishment of Millet Mission in multiple states. Despite this, various challenges in terms of production, distribution and adaptability among consumers remain. 

• Under the distribution system, it is time to shift the focus of food distribution programmes from ‘calories fundamentalism’ to providing a more diversified food basket, including coarse grains and millets to improve the nutritional status of pre-school children and women of reproductive age. 

• NITI Aayog and WFP intend to identify and address these challenges in a systematic and effective manner.

• The Statement of Intent focuses on strategic and technical collaboration between NITI Aayog and WFP, to strengthen climate resilient agriculture for enhanced food and nutrition security in India.

Both parties will be working on the following activities:

• Joint development of a compendium of good practices around millets mainstreaming in priority states and development of a scaling up strategy.

• Provide technical support for scaling up of millets mainstreaming through intense engagement in select states with support from state governments, IIMR & other associated institutions. 

• Jointly organise a national consultation for line ministries of the government, concerned departments of state governments, select academic institutions and organisations working in the field of millets mainstreaming.

• Support leveraging India’s expertise to benefit other developing countries for millets mainstreaming by creation of knowledge management platforms and facilitation of knowledge exchange.

The outcome of this partnership will be achieved in following four phases:

Phase I: Development of a best practice compendium around millet mainstreaming and a scale-up strategy.

Phase II: Support scale-up of millet mainstreaming through knowledge sharing and intense engagement with select states.

Phase III: Leverage India’s expertise to support developing countries for millet mainstreaming

Phase IV: Working on building capacities for climate resilient and adaptive livelihood practices.

Manorama Yearbook app is now available on Google Play Store and iOS App Store