According to a recent report, 81% of Egyptians don’t have enough to cover their monthly food bill

A recent government survey has revealed an increasing number of Egyptians are struggling to clothe and feed themselves whilst keeping a roof over their heads. The report by the Egyptian Food Observatory found that of the 1680 households surveyed in September 2012, 86% said their income was insufficient to cover their monthly food, clothes and shelter bill. This marked a rise from 74% back in 2012. In an effort to cope with this growing food divide, many families reported adopting extreme coping strategies such as borrowing food and money. Indeed, overall 81.4% of households surveyed said their income was insufficient to meet their monthly food needs.

“Consuming cheaper food items overtook “borrowing” relative to the previous quarter, suggesting that vulnerable households are adopting more radical coping mechanisms where incomes do not suffice,” said the report. “Other coping strategies adopted included; reducing food intake either by reducing food portions or the number of meals, buying on credit.”

The highest percentage of households surveyed stating their income was insufficient to meet their monthly food needs was recorded in Fayoum (93.3%), followed by Matrouh (92.9%). Average spend on food and beverages amongst vulnerable households constituted 61.7% of total household spend this quarter, compared to the national average of 40%.

Another major issue that the report highlighted was the inadequate Baladi (Local) Bread Subsidy System which fails to control how much bread a person can access and tends to produce poor quality bread. As such, this (and the very long queues) puts off many people and they are then forced to buy non-subsidised bread which is 5-10 times the cost.

The rising cost of basic food is what brought many Egyptians onto the streets during the Arab Spring. It’s also what seems to be keeping them there. Writing in the Arabist, Issandr El Amrani added that whilst the government has acknowledged across-the-board food price inflation on a range of commodities, the government has also advised citizens not to over-eat. “Really,” he remarked. “Still wonder why Egyptians are protesting?”

For more on food issues in MENA see:

Food Shortages Could Force World To Go Veggie

Arab Spring Countries Face Increased Risk of Food Price Shocks in 2013

Rising Food Prices Behind Riots in Tunisia and Algeria

: Rebel Economy

: Photo of Egyptian man walk in the market of Aswan via ChameleonsEye / Shutterstock.com

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According to the latest findings by global risk-analyser Maplecroft, Arab Spring countries are at greater risk of rising food prices in the coming year

It’s no secret that the high price of basic food staples were a contributing factor to the revolts which began in Tunisia and Egypt and sparked the ‘Arab Spring’. The protesters took to the streets waving bread and asking for equality and an end to corruption. Today, however, it seems little has changed since those protests in terms of the cost of food. According to the latest food price forecasts for 2013 by global risk-analyser Maplecroft, food prices are actually likely to rise again in the region. What’s more: countries involved in the protests around the Arab world are particularly at risk of rising food price shocks.

“The drivers of the ‘Arab Awakening’ were varied and complex and included long standing public anger at high levels of governmental corruption and oppressive tactics against populations and political opposition,” states Maplecroft CEO Alyson Warhurst. “When these factors combine with food insecurity, sparked by rising global prices, it can create an environment for social unrest and regime change.”

Back in 2007/8, a global food crisis resulted in several food riots across the region including places such as Yemen and Egypt. This year, the tenuous nature of global food security was back on the agenda due to the USA’s worst drought in 50 years and a 10% drop in production across countries from the former Soviet Union. These low crop yields have lead to to a global food price rise of 6% in July 2012. A report by Rabobank, a financial specialist in agro-commodities, estimates that price of food staples could rise by as much as 15% by June 2013, resulting in record high food prices.

“Food price forecasts for 2013 provide a worrying picture,” states Maplecroft’s Head of Maps and Indices Helen Hodge. “Although a food crisis has not emerged yet, there is potential for food related upheaval across the most vulnerable regions, including sub-Saharan Africa.” In the Middle East and North Africa region, the countries at greatest risk include Yemen, Syria and Libya (who along with Iraq are classified as ‘high risk’). Those defined as at ‘medium risk’ of food price hikes include Egypt and Tunisia.

Maplecroft explains that the region remains at elevated risk of food price fluctuations due to its heavy reliance on US and Russians crops. Whilst they are so dependent on cereal imports they wil remain vulnerable to market prices.

The Food Security Risk Index has been developed for governments, NGOs and business to help identify those countries which may be susceptible to famine and societal unrest stemming from food price fluctuations. Maplecroft reaches its results by evaluating the availability, access and stability of food supplies in 197 countries, as well as the nutritional and health status of populations, the organization states.

For more on food prices across MENA see:

Rising Food Prices Behind Riots in Algeria and Tunisia

Arab Protests Affect World Food Prices

How Climate Change Contributed to the Syrian Uprising

Image Arab girls harvesting in Bethlehem via Ryan Rodrick Beiler / Shutterstock.com

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The Applied Research Institute in Jerusalem estimates that over half the households in Gaza are food insecure, and almost 80 percent of households in Gaza are reliant on relief support. The institute estimates there are up to 550,176 food insecure persons in the West Bank, 22 percent of the population, and 829,954 in the Gaza Strip, around 52 percent. In the West Bank, those living along the border and separation barrier experience higher levels of food insecurity. These dire circumstances need innovative, domestic solutions.

The conflict with Israel isolates Palestinians in countless ways, impeding movement, trade, and access to water. It further complicates the rising risk of food insecurity. But mobile technologies provide Palestinians greater access to employment and information. Today an estimated 90.6 percent of Palestinians use mobile phones. Businessman Murad Tahboub told The Guardian that the IT industry is resilient to political turmoil.

“Checkpoints and borders don’t matter,” he said. “As long as you have access to electricity and a phone line, the basics of your business are in place.”

Foreign investors are increasingly interested in developing Palestinian technology, natural resources and solar power. The IT industry in particular has seen a 64 percent increase in foreign business since 2009. And it is still growing. Such mobile technology and networks are intrinsically tied to food security in the Middle East.

A recent report by the World Bank found that mobile and digital technologies have immensely positive impacts on a developing community’s agricultural industry. Mobile phone technology was linked to increased entrepreneurship and proactive strategizing among Moroccan farmers. Another study cited in the World Bank report found that introducing mobile phones could reduce grain price dispersion by 6.4 percent and reduce price variation by 12 percent in just one year.

Palestinian companies and institutions are investing heavily in education, hoping to arm their text-happy youth with the knowledge needed to confront challenges like environmental degradation and food security. The Palestinian Authority and Ramallah City Hall are currently working together on an environmental education initiative that hopes to reach 4,000 students in 14 schools across the city.

“Our difficult circumstances over the past 100 years mean that education is now our only asset,” said Tahboub. “It was the one thing we could carry with us.”

::Wall Street Journal

Image of cell phone and window via Shutterstock

Read more about Palestine:

Gaza Man Makes Electric Car in a Day

Israel and Palestine Join Hands to Build Eco-Park

Get a Green Loan from the Green Palestine Investment Company

The post Could Phones Revolutionize Palestinian Agriculture? appeared first on Green Prophet.

Egypt is losing an estimated 11,736 hectres of agricultural land every year according to UN sources

From food contaminated with human waste in Cairo due to water shortages to concerns that the country could be on the brink of famine, Egypt is facing its fair share of food problems. Now, there are reports that desertification is eating into agricultural land and putting local food production at risk. Although only 3% of Egypt’s land is cultivated, urban sprawl and construction is cutting into this precious resource which serves 85 million people.

“Desertification is the real danger everybody should pay attention to,” Abdel Rahman Attia, a professor of agriculture at Cairo University, told IRIN. “This problem is manifesting itself in a huge food gap [which] will widen even more in the future as we lose more agricultural land to desertification.”

Egypt currently imports more 60% of its food yet rising sea levels, construction and a growing population (expected to reach 123 million in 2029) mean that it may have to start importing more food to sustain its people. So far, rising sea levels have contributed to the loss of around 768,903 hectares of land and have also contaminating the land with seawater making it less productive.

Ismail Abdel Galil, the former chairman of Egypt’s Desert Research Centre, told IRIN that studies showed that just over a hectare of fertile land in the Nile Valley is lost every hour due to construction on agricultural land. Desertification caused by the shrinkage of fertile land is also contributing to water shortages – according to Egyptian officials the country’s 55.5 billion cubic metre share of Nile water is already insufficient to meet its needs.

Water scarcity looks set to worsen for Egypt as countries sharing the Nile’s water resources such as Ethiopia and Sudan seek to increase their own share and improve their water security. There was a recent diplomatic rift between Egypt and Ethiopia due to the latter’s plans to build dam which would affect the amount of water reaching Egypt (which seems to have reached a stalemate now).

Another factor thrown into the deadly mix of food production for Egypt is climate change. Whilst it is difficult to assess the full implications of a warming planet on Egypt’s food production, rising temperatures will no doubt contribute to further desertification and put its agricultural abilities under greater stress.

: Image via eviljohnius/flickr.

:: IRIN

For more on Egypt and Food see:

Egypt Could Be On Brink Of Famine

How Climate Change Threatens Alexandria, Casablanca, and Tunis

Water-Poor Egyptians Use Sewage For Crops Instead

The post Desertification In Egypt Is Putting Food Supplies At Risk appeared first on Green Prophet.

Humanitarian crises erupt in Libya, Yemen and Syria as the populations revolt against their oppressive leaders

From the very start, the price of food has played an important role in the emerging Arab Spring which has swept across Egypt, Tunisia, Algeria, Jordan, Yemen, Syria and Libya. As food prices rose so did the anger in Arab nations, where ordinary people were paying a high price for basic food whilst their leaders lived in the lap of luxury. Now, as the conflict reaches a stalemate in Yemen, Syria and Libya after months of fighting, the unsteady economic and political situation has lead to reports of widespread hunger.

A week ago the United Nations Mission, on a visit to Yemen, officially added the country to the list of food troubled spots and called on the international community to provide humanitarian aid. An already impoverished country with widespread malnutrition and severe water scarcity, the UN World Food Program also launched an emergency operation to feed 1.7 million severely food insecure Yemenis.

Yemen is the poorest country in the whole of the Middle East and the food situation has been exacerbated by months of fighting to overthrow the current president Ali Abdullah Saleh.

Syria, which is now in its fourth month of unrest, also faces food problems and was struck by drought in 2010 which led to the displacement of half a million people in East Syria. In mid-June, government forces loyal to the current president Bashar Al-Asad halted food supplies from reaching Syrian villages near the border with Turkey as many Syrians fleeing government violence has gathered there.

In February, the Syrian government had attempted to stem some of the unrest over high food prices by offering cash payments to 420,000 families.

The situation in Libya is also deteriorating after months of fighting between rebels and Gaddafi-loyal forces. As the country relies heavily on food imports, the limited movement of goods in and out has meant that there has been less produce at markets with some areas going without electricity or water.

Reem Nada with the World Food Program told The Media Line that her organisations has already distributed 6,000 tonnes of food in Libya since March 2011 and has designated another 22,000 tonnes for Libyan refugees in Tunisia and Egypt.

According to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), over one million refugees have fled Libya as a result of the fighting.

:: Image via US Army Africa/Flickr.

:: MediaLine

For more on the Arab Spring see:

Gaddafi Could Use Water As A Weapon In Conflict

Arab Spring May Boost Chance for Desertec Solar Power

The Rising Voices of Arab Women

The post Millions Go Hungry In Syria, Libya and Yemen appeared first on Green Prophet.

Following the food riots that rocked the Middle East, Algeria is bolstering its agricultural self-sufficiency through irrigation projects and tax breaks for local producers

Food security is a tricky topic to grasp because food doesn’t just rely on the water and sun it needs to grow but also on the price of oil, the right climate and suitable agricultural land. These along with other factors such as the health of the economy and political stability all affect the price of food staples which we rely on and illustrate the complexity of food security.

Take for example the recent revolts in the Arab world. Sparked by the rising cost of food, they had the effect of pushing up the price of food higher due to the rising price of oil in the period of instability. In response to its own food riots in early January, Algeria has launched a range of projects to improve its agricultural self-sufficiency and food security.

According to reports by the Oxford Business Group, Algeria wants to improve its food security by discouraging imports and raising local production through irrigation projects to limit the country’s vulnerability to external commodity shocks.

As the world fourth largest importer of wheat, Algeria is slowly reducing its dependency with wheat imports falling by 8.5% between 2009 and 2010. Cereal imports were also down from around $5.4bn in 2009 to $5.2bn in 2010.

To help bridge the gap, irrigation projects are planned to increase domestic crop production- the government wants to expand its irrigation networks and increase irrigated surface area from around 400,000 hectares to 1 million hectares by 2015.

Around 9,000 hectares of land in the Bouira and Bejaia province have already earmarked for irrigation which will boost agricultural production in the area from around 30,000 tonnes to more than 120,000 tones a year.  The milk and dairy sector had also been targeted for improvements to productivity and efficiency through training programmes.

As the Global Arab Network remarks: “Should the government initiatives bear fruit, then the increased domestic production will go a long way to reducing the dependency on imports, buffering the country’s economy from external commodity shocks and increasing the efficiency of the local agricultural sector. This, in turn, should help keep prices lower and shelves stocked.”

: Global Art Network

: Image via KevinLallier on flickr.

For more on Algeria and food security see:

How Food Insecurity Fuels Anger in the Middle East

The Water Behind Middle Eastern Woes

Rising Food Prices Behind Riots in Algeria and Tunisia

The post Algeria To Boost Its Food Security appeared first on Green Prophet.

The Jatropha plant may produce bio-diesel for cars but, like other biofuels, it also leads to a rise in food prices due to competition for land space

From solid gold biofuel Mercedes in Abu Dhabi to biofuel-producing algae lakes in Iran, it seems that biofuels are destined to play a part in the region’s future development. Now, Jordan has announced that it will be experimenting with planting Jatropha, a tree which produces high-quality biodiesel to be used in standard diesel cars.  But are biofuels really the solution to the Mideast’s dependency on gas and oil?

The recent announcement from the Jordanian government that it will be cultivating an oil-producing plant no doubt received a mixed reception.  On the one hand, anything which challenges the country’s heavy dependency on petroleum is surely a good thing.  On the other hand is the whole issue of whether biofuels are actually sustainable or ‘green’ fuels that should be encouraged.

Food vs. Fuel

The Jatropha plant in question is a small tree or bush whose seed produces oil which can processed into bio-diesel and used directly in cars. According to the Jordan Times, by-products can also be used as biomass to power electricity or as fertilizer. This apparent win-win situation does however ignore the fact that plants cultivated for fuels are jostling for space with plants cultivated for food.

Forestland is already coming under pressure due to the growing demand for space to grow crops used for biofuels (or agrofuels as they are also known).  As Danny Chivers points out in his no-nonsense guide to climate change, there are two major problems with biofuels: the land-grab causes an increase in the price of food and the demand for land also causes poorer farmers to cut down rainforests to create farmlands which contributes to climate change.

Biofuel Contribute to Rising Food Prices

We have already reported on the political implications of rising food prices in the region- a rush for biofuels which puts more pressure on food supplies would only aggravate the situation.  Although biofuels do seem to provide a rather convenient quick-fix, which avoids dealing with our deadly dependence on oil or the need to sort out public transport to reduce people’s attraction to gas-guzzling cars, the reality is that it comes at the price of more expensive food.

Now, I can probably live without a car but I definitely can’t live without food so to my mind biofuels are simply a risk not worth taking.

: Image via treesftf on flickr.

For More Bio-Fuels in the Middle East:

Abu Dhabi’s Solid Gold Biofuel Mercedes Another Dubious ‘Green’ Development

With So Much Oil and Natural Gas, is Biofuel a Viable Mideast Fuel Option?

Israel Cleantech Intelligence: Clean Air and 6 More Headline

The post Is the Middle East Buying into Disastrous Biofuels? appeared first on Green Prophet.

Bahrain, which saw deadly protest this month, is eager to control the price of food according to Wikileaks

Rising food prices have been at the centre of the recent riots to hit the Arab world and so it comes as no surprise that many Arab nations are working hard to avoid similar food price rises.

According to the Wikileak revelations, Bahrain increased government subsidies in an effort to off-set rising prices for lower-income families in 2008 and has promised more generous subsidies recently. Even so, this hasn’t stopped political turmoil as the tiny Gulf state has been rocked by explosive protests this month that left seven dead and hundreds injured when troops opened fire on protesters.

Bahrain, which has a population of just over 1 million, has struggled with rising food prices although generous subsidies have been promised to take the edge of the high prices. Bahrain, like other Gulf states imports most of its food and consumer goods making it particularly vulnerable to price hikes.

It was reported by the Economist that the site of recent protests in Bahrain- Pearl Square in the country’s capital- now houses a sprawling camp of several thousand protesters with free-food stands. The protests also led to the cancellation of the Formula Grand Prix event which normally brings in $600 million in total revenue to the Gulf state.

The high price of food is believed to have contributed to the success of revolts in places such as Tunisia and Egypt. In fact, the riots have also had an affect on world food prices by pushing up the price of oil which has impacted the price of food production and consequently the price of food.

In Saudi Arabia, where food makes up a quarter of household costs (more than anywhere else in the region), there have also been attempts to stem food prices. The King of Saudi, who is 83, returned for a health trip abroad and announced a very generous $37 billion for new public spending to stave off unrest.

Other Gulf states such as the UAE have attempted to improve their food security due to the high level of imported food in the region. However, concerns have been raised at the methods that the oil-rich countries have attempted to achieve their food security- namely buying up huge tracts of land across Africa.

:Image via certified su on flickr.

For more on rising food prices in the Middle East see:

Arab Protest Affect World Food Prices

Rising Food Prices Behind Riots in Algeria and Tunisia

Jordan Joins The Food Protest As Tunisian President Steps Down

The post Wikileaks, Bahrain and Saudi: Concerns over Rising Food Prices Spread appeared first on Green Prophet.

Protests in the Arab world, which were in part influenced by rising food prices, may be adding pressure to global food prices

When the protest in Tunisia kicked off in early 2010, we at Green Prophet highlighted the link between the unrest and rising food prices that meant that many citizens were angry because they could not afford to feed their families.

This led to a wide level of support for the protests, which ultimately led to the fall of the President Ben Ali and later President Mubarak. Now, however, commentators are drawing a link between protests in the Middle East and further rising global food prices.

You probably won’t be surprised to learn that rising oil prices is at the heart of the reason why the protest are driving up food prices.  As Tafline Laylin wrote earlier today, the price of oil has risen 6% to $95.39 per barrel following the turbulence in the MENA region.  This is apparently a six-year high.

As the agricultural industry is heavily reliant on fossil fuels (through machines, transportation and fertilizer production), this means that the rising prices of oil has led to the rising price of food.

With the recent revolt in Libya- a country which happens to be the world’s 12^th biggest oil exporter- some commentators states that an impact on oil and consequently food prices is inevitable.

Egypt nudged prices upwards and so further protests will no doubt continue to push up the price of oil and food as they are so inextricably connected.

With the recent wikileak revelation that Saudi exaggerated its oil production by up to 40% this trend is set to continue in the future. It also reinforces the need to diversify our energy mix and seek more sustainable energy that is not so susceptible to market shocks and political turmoil.

: Guardian

::Image via cjb22 on flickr.

For more on political unrest and food prices see:

Rising Food Prices Behind Riots in Algeria and Tunisia

Soaring Food Prices Hit Lebanon

Jordan Joins The Food Protest As Tunisian President Steps Down

The post Arab Protests Affect World Food Prices appeared first on Green Prophet.

It’s impossible to point to any one issue and claim it as the final explanation for the protests unnerving leaders in the Middle East. Weeks ago one Tunisian man set himself on fire when he was told he couldn’t sell his wares, and his fire has raged on since. But the root of today’s discontent, and the root of tomorrow’s continuing trouble, will have a close correlation with water. Siting the same document we reported on last week, Blue Peace, The Guardian reports that in time water will be of more geopolitical consequence than even oil. Because, quite frankly, we’re running out. And thirsty people can’t be stifled.

Here are a few startling facts taken from The Guardian:

• In forty years, Abu Dhabi will have completely depleted its ancient fossil water resources;
• 19/21 of Yemen’s main aquifers are no longer being replenished. That country is considering moving its capital as a result;
• In 25 years, Saudi Arabia’s water demand increased by 500%, a demand that will double again in the next 20 years;
• Within the next 30 years, Jordanians will only have 91 cubic meters of water each year, compared to the minimum average of 1,000 cubic meters considered bearable. Already, their water poverty is at 200 cubic meters;
• 1,500 desalination plants along the Gulf and Mediterranean make up for shortfalls, at high costs to energy consumption and ecosystems;
• Turkey has water, but they don’t care to share.

The unfortunate irony in many of oil-rich states, is that their economies depend largely on rising oil prices, but many of them import up to 90% of their food (like Qatar). Oil money until now has keep down political unrest since it was used to subsidize food and water, but that trend is spiraling out of control and many in the Middle East are going hungry. And they site corruption as the cause of their suffering.

Nor is desalination the catchall answer since it pours huge volumes of concentrated salt back into the waters from which it was taken, causing incredible damage to marine ecosystems.

Rising temperatures – some predict as high as 10 degrees in some places – (and therefore rising evaporation in already dry areas) and population growth combined with food shortages makes the Middle East’s future a very inhospitable place indeed.

The Guardian and the Blue Peace report both emphasize the necessity for governments to cooperate and share resources. Otherwise, riots and even greater suffering could easily become a permanent fixture of life in the region.

:: The Guardian

More on the Middle Eastern riots:

Rising Food Prices Behind Riots In Algeria and Tunisia

Jordan Joins The Food Prices as Tunisian President Steps Down

Egypt’s Conflagration is Advanced Warning for an Unsustainable World

image via plusgood

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