Asia faces rising rice prices

Food prices are continuing to skyrocket throughout Asia, causing many governments to intervene to stabilise domestic rice prices for fear of acute shortages in the future and social unrest. And as the price of rice skyrockets across the region more and more people are slipping back into poverty. “The rising food prices across Asia are threatening to undo the economic miracle of the last two decades,” Paul Risely, regional spokesman for the UN World Food Programme (WFP), said. “It’s a silent crisis, a silent tsunami that is tearing through the region, with devastating results.”

Rice — the region’s staple — is the main concern. It has increased in price almost every week now since the beginning of the year. Many exporting nations have implemented bans and restrictions on rice exports to dampen the local prices. Panic buying, rationing and hoarding are increasing alarmingly, fuelled by fears that rice and other foodstuffs may run out soon in many Asian countries, despite repeated government calls for calm. In Bangladesh, and parts of South-east Asia in particular, panic buying of rice has been reported for fear that stocks in the stores and markets will run out.

Aid agencies working with the poor, including the WFP, are increasingly worried that if this situation continues they will soon have to cut back on their food assistance programmes. “Malnutrition is almost certainly going to rise significantly in many of the poorest parts of Asia,” ActionAid food specialist John Samuel said. Already the number of people at risk of hunger or starvation has more than doubled. In Nepal, the number of people who are in danger of starving if food prices remain high has doubled to eight million, or a third of the population, in the last six months. Throughout Asia there are mounting signs of discontent and fears for the future as rice prices soar.

In Bangladesh, over the past two weeks there have been long queues of people every day at government stores to buy the heavily subsidised five kg packs of rice and other basic commodities. From the Philippines to Pakistan, from China to Indonesia, the fears are the same — food shortages and hunger. In Thailand, cheap government supported packets of rice are on sale, but the major supermarket stores have rationed their sales to three 5 kg bags per person to prevent panic buying, depleting their stocks.

“The massive food riots in the Haiti capital recently are a wake up call for all Asian governments,” said ActionAid’s Samuel. “If immediate measures like protective price mechanisms are not taken, there is likely to be food protests here too. There is a social crisis looming which will become a major political problem, especially for Asia’s democracies.”

“This is a crisis that has been brewing for years,” said Samuel. “Although there has been substantial economic growth right across the region, this has been in the industrial and service sectors, investment in the agriculture has stagnated or even declined.” “Unless there is concerted investment in agriculture in Asian countries, food price hikes will become a perennial problem. This includes investment in irrigation, better water management, improved storage facilities for harvested grain, soft-loans to farmers and comprehensive marketing and delivery systems, and land reform,” he said. — IPS