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
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.