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NTS Bulletin

NTS Bulletin February 2014

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A publication of the Centre for Non-Traditional Security (NTS) Studies at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.

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This year is the 20th anniversary of the release of the 1994 United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) Human Development Report, which defined the concept of human security and brought it to international attention. It is thus timely to ask: where is human security today? The following is the second part of a series exploring the evolution of the concept and its impact on security thinking and practice.

20 Years of Human Security:
A special focus on food security

By Centre for Non-Traditional Security (NTS) Studies
S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS)
Singapore

Food security is one of the seven components of human security set out in the 1994 Human Development Report. According to the Report, food security exists when ‘all people at all times have both physical and economic access to basic food’. This definition upholds the right of people to be free from the fear of hunger; and emphasises their entitlement to food, whether through producing it themselves, buying it from the marketplace, or through public distribution programmes.

Towards a multi-dimensional perspective

The definition of ‘food security’ has evolved over the years to reflect changes in policy thinking and realities on the ground. The early focus was on food ‘availability’. Later, the importance of ‘access’ and ‘utilisation’ was also recognised. As a result of the impacts of food prices on vulnerable populations, ‘stability’ was added to the mix (see box).

The various dimensions came together in the definition developed at the 1996 World Food Summit. The Summit’s declaration states that food security ‘exists when all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life’. This widely accepted definition reinforces the multi-dimensional nature of food security and serves to guide policy responses that are holistic and enhances the welfare of populations.

The empowerment perspective

Recently, there have been calls to give greater agency to individuals and communities. According to this view, which is usually advanced within conversations on human rights-based approaches, food security is strengthened when the food insecure are empowered with the means to gain access to resources that will increase their ability to feed themselves. The role of government is thus to provide an enabling environment, through for example policies that support job creation and give the vulnerable greater access to financing to start businesses.

Such discussions highlight the interlinkages between socioeconomic well-being and food security, and reinforce broader trends in the human security discourse to recognise the importance of interconnections and interdependence between and among different issue areas.

The dimensions of food security

  • Availability. The availability of sufficient quantities of food of appropriate quality, supplied through domestic production or through imports (including food aid).
  • Access (physical and economic). Access by individuals to adequate resources for acquiring appropriate foods for a nutritious diet.
  • Utilisation. Utilisation of food through adequate diet, clean water, sanitation and healthcare to reach a state of nutritional well-being where all physiological needs are met.
  • Stability. To be food secure, a population, household or individual must have access to adequate food at all times. They should not risk losing access to food as a consequence of sudden shocks (e.g., an economic or climatic crisis) or cyclical events (e.g., seasonal food insecurity).

Extract from: Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO), 2006, ‘Food security’, Policy Brief No. 2.

Core readings

Also from the ‘20 Years of Human Security’ series

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CLIMATE CHANGE, ENVIRONMENTAL SECURITY AND NATURAL DISASTERS

News & Commentaries

Selected Publications

This report looks at warming problems that can occur in years instead of centuries. It warns of potential ‘tipping points’ where the climate passes thresholds, beyond which major and rapid changes occur. It also talks about how governments can prepare for such tipping points in terms of infrastructure and social systems.

These recommendations on oceans and seas are compiled from two civil society consultations conducted in 2013–2014. They cover, among others, sustainable and just fisheries, marine bio-prospecting and the use of marine genetic resources, regulations on seabed mining and support to address the effects of climate change.

This report looks at the management of land-based biomass production and consumption. In particular, it explores how to attain a higher degree of sustainability across different scales: from the management of soils on the field to global land use. The report examines the impacts of global trends – population growth, urbanisation and changes in diets and consumption behaviours – on global land-use dynamics. It considers the consequences of such trends for biodiversity and the supply of food, fibres and fuel as well as the long-lasting implications for resource security.

Events & Announcements

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ENERGY AND HUMAN SECURITY

News & Commentaries

Selected Publications

This paper explores issues of energy access and energy poverty in Asia and the Pacific. It suggests that grid extension is the most viable option for urban areas and for around 30 per cent of rural areas; and pro-poor public-private partnership is useful in financing energy access initiatives. The paper recommends selecting appropriate technology, promoting community participation, emphasising maintenance and after-sales service, and building local capacity as ways to improve energy access and eradicate energy poverty.

While energy consumption has increased in the past two decades, so have energy reserves. Oil production has risen by 20 per cent, and global crude oil reserves are 60 per cent higher than in 1993. According to the report, share of natural gas in transportation and power generation will grow. Meanwhile, nuclear energy has a mixed future as developed countries begin to phase it out while developing countries seek to establish it. Renewable energy is not expected to contribute significantly to energy supply in the foreseeable future.

According to the report, primary energy consumption growth will drop from 2.2 per cent per annum for the period 2005–2015 to 1.1 per cent per annum for 2025–2035 due to a slowing down of the pace of industrialisation in China after 2015. Consequently, energy consumption in the residential, services and agriculture sectors is set to match that of industry. Coal’s current large contribution to consumption growth will also diminish rapidly. The report suggests that renewables (including biofuels) will overtake nuclear by 2025, and match hydropower by 2035.

Events & Announcements

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FOOD SECURITY

News & Commentaries

Selected Publications

This report examines the implications of economic growth and rising incomes on the consumption of food. Diets have changed in parts of the world where incomes have increased. There has been a documented shift of consumption from cereals and tubers to meats, fats and sugar. This report suggests that future diets that are rich in animal products, especially meats, will drive up prices for meat but not for grains.

This paper brings a new perspective to the analysis of the food price crisis. Specifically, it looks at the rise of a configuration of agribusinesses and grain traders (the ‘Agro-Trader nexus’) that are not mere price-takers. The paper argues that the Agro-Trader nexus has actively contributed to the inflationary restructuring of the world food system by facilitating the rapid expansion of the biofuels sector.

Events & Announcements

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HEALTH SECURITY

News & Commentaries

Selected Publications

This article argues that the financing of effective interventions, including public health technologies for specific diseases such as malaria, is linked to a decrease in child mortality. The findings from this study could help inform aid allocation and health aid policies, particularly those related to interventions targeted at the poor.

This article presents a baseline model for a global fund for social protection aimed at internationally financing care for the ill and disabled. The authors emphasise the need to pay attention to within-country inequalities when selecting which metrics of need would affect fund distribution among low- and middle-income countries.

Events & Announcements

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INTERNAL AND CROSS-BORDER CONFLICT

News & Commentaries

Selected Publications

This paper examines security sector governance (SSG) in situations of conflict, with the peace process in Mindanao as a case study. It points out that weaknesses in SSG in Mindanao have complicated the efforts to manage the conflicts in the area and hindered the peace process there.

This paper focuses on the concept of racist hate speech. It takes issue with existing approaches to dealing with hate speech; and argues that the evolution of hate speech has made it necessary to adopt an intersectional approach to hate speech that understands the concept of hatred in a broader sense.

Events & Announcements

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TRANSNATIONAL CRIME

News & Commentaries

Selected Publications

This brief provides an overview of human trafficking in Southeast Asia. It notes that human trafficking in the region is principally for forced labour, utilises formal or informal recruitment mechanisms, and targets women, men and children, and sometimes entire families. Although all eight countries in the study have legal frameworks in place to combat trafficking and ASEAN has already initiated anti-trafficking regional instruments, they still struggle with the implementation of relevant laws.

According to this report, the Philippines lost at least USD132.9 billion in illicit financial outflows from 1960 to 2011 – mostly due to crime, corruption and tax evasion. Furthermore, illicit inflows to the Philippine economy over the same period amounted to USD277.6 billion, primarily due to technical smuggling (underinvoicing of exports and imports). The report warns that illicit funds undermine the Philippines’ gross domestic product (GDP) growth, reduce domestic savings, drive the underground economy and facilitate crime and corruption.

Events & Announcements

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WATER SECURITY

News & Commentaries

Selected Publications

The authors draw attention to the potential pitfalls and unintended harm that come from implementing integrated water resources management (IWRM) strategies do not take into account the local context and real-world problems. The paper argues that IWRM is often pursued as an end in itself rather than used as a toolkit to help address water management issues, to the detriment of better water management.

This report highlights the value and importance of wetlands by drawing from a wide range of case studies from Asia, Africa and Latin America. It notes that wetlands have a direct impact on the local environment, ecosystems and livelihood of communities, and it advocates a more local, community-driven approach to wetlands conservation and management. The report also argues that agriculture, tourism and water use are not necessarily incompatible with the conservation and protection of wetlands.

Events & Announcements

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Terms of Use:

You are free to publish this material in its entirety or only in part in your newspapers, wire services, internet-based information networks and newsletters and you may use the information in your radio-TV discussions or as a basis for discussion in different fora, provided full credit is given to the author(s) and the Centre for Non-Traditional Security (NTS) Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS). Kindly inform the publisher (NTS_Centre@ntu.edu.sg) and provide details of when and where the publication was used.

About the Centre:

The Centre for Non-Traditional Security (NTS) Studies, based in the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), was inaugurated by Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Secretary-General Dr Surin Pitsuwan in May 2008. The Centre maintains research in the fields of Climate Change, Food Security, Energy Security, Health Security, as well as Internal and Cross-border Conflict. It produces policy-relevant analyses aimed at furthering awareness and building capacity to address NTS issues and challenges in the Asia Pacific region and beyond. The Centre also provides a platform for scholars and policymakers within and outside Asia to discuss and analyse NTS issues in the region.

The Centre is the Coordinator of the ASEAN-Canada Research Partnership (2012–2015) supported by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Canada. It also serves as the Secretariat of the initiative.

In 2009, the Centre was chosen by the MacArthur Foundation as a lead institution for its three-year Asia Security Initiative (2009–2012), to develop policy research capacity and recommend policies on the critical security challenges facing the Asia-Pacific. It is also a founding member and the Secretariat for the Consortium of Non-Traditional Security Studies in Asia (NTS-Asia).

More information on the Centre can be found at www.rsis.edu.sg/nts.


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