May

14

2008

10:00—12:00 PM
2128 Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, DC
,

Congressional Hearing: Contributing Factors and International Responses to the Global Food Crisis

On Wednesday, May 14, 2008, the House Financial Services Committee (Chairman Frank, D-Mass.) held a hearing on "Contributing Factors and International Responses to the Global Food Crisis" to examine the underlying causes of the current intense pressures on the world’s food system and focus on the immediate and urgent short-term humanitarian challenges to the crisis. A panel of leading world scholars, experts, and advocates representing a wide range of experience both within the U.S. government and at international organizations such as the UN, the FAO, the World Bank and the IMF testified on the international food crisis. 

The hearing also focused on what kinds of trade policies and other interventions by governments, aid agencies, and international institutions--including the World Bank, the IMF, and International Fund for Agricultural Development--would be necessary and most effective in establishing a sustainable and secure food system that meets the basic food needs of all people. 

Witness List & Prepared Testimony: 
Dr. Robert Watson, Director, International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development (IASSTD) 
Dr. Raj Patel, Political Economist and Visiting Scholar at Center for African Studies, University of Californian, Berkeley 
The Honorable Andrew Natsios, Former Administrator, U.S. Agency for International Development 
Arvind Subramanian, Senior Fellow, the Peterson Institute for International Economics and the Center for Global Development 
The Honorable Eva Clayton, Former Special Adviser to the Director-General, Food and Agriculture Organization at the United Nations 

Arvind Subramanian Testifying

The webcast can be viewed at http://www.house.gov/apps/list/hearing/financialsvcs_dem/hr051408.shtml

Read Arvind Subramanian's testimony

Printed Hearing: The printed version of this hearing will be posted as soon as it is available.

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