II 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2909 

To authorize a comprehensive strategic approach for United States foreign 

assistance to developing countries to end extreme global poverty and 

hunger, achieve food and nutrition security, promote endurable, longterm, agricultural-led economic growth, improve nutritional outcomes, 

especially for women and children, build resilient, adaptive, local capacity 

of vulnerable populations, and for other related purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 18, 2014 

Mr. CASEY (for himself, Mr. JOHANNS, Mr. COONS, Mr. ISAKSON, Mr. 

CARDIN, and Mr. BOOZMAN) introduced the following bill; which was read 

twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

A BILL 

To authorize a comprehensive strategic approach for United 

States foreign assistance to developing countries to end 

extreme global poverty and hunger, achieve food and 

nutrition security, promote endurable, long-term, agricultural-led economic growth, improve nutritional outcomes, 

especially for women and children, build resilient, adaptive, local capacity of vulnerable populations, and for 

other related purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Global Food Security 

3 Act of 2014’’. 

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

5 Congress makes the following findings: 

6 (1) According to the Food and Agriculture Or7 ganization (FAO), 805,000,000 people worldwide 

8 suffer from chronic hunger. Hunger and malnutri9 tion rob people of health and productive lives and 

10 stunt the mental and physical development of future 

11 generations. 

12 (2) According to the January 2014 Worldwide 

13 Threat Assessment of the United States Intelligence 

14 Community report, the ‘‘[l]ack of adequate food will 

15 be a destabilizing factor in countries important to 

16 U.S. national security that do not have the financial 

17 or technical abilities to solve their internal food secu18 rity problems’’ and ‘‘[f]ood and nutrition insecurity 

19 in weakly governed countries might also provide op20 portunities for insurgent groups to capitalize on poor 

21 conditions, exploit international food aid, and dis22 credit governments for their inability to address 

23 basic needs’’. 

24 (3) Decades of research have shown that there 

25 are multiple underlying causes of food insecurity and 

26 poor nutrition, including the lack of availability of, 


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1 access to, and consumption of nutritious food, lim2 ited investments to improve agricultural produc3 tivity, insufficient value chains and market develop4 ment for farmers, including small-scale producers, 

5 leading to post-harvest loss, and weak institutions in 

6 government and civil society. 

7 (4) Agriculture, which comprises large portions 

8 of the total labor force in many developing countries, 

9 is an essential component of inclusive economic 

10 growth. According to the World Bank’s 2008 World 

11 Development Report, growth in the agricultural sec12 tor has been twice as effective in reducing poverty 

13 as growth in other sectors. 

14 (5) Women, who are often heads of households 

15 and small farmers, are especially vulnerable to food 

16 insecurity. Women frequently face stricter con17 straints than men in accessing markets and re18 sources. In its 2010–2011 report, the FAO esti19 mated that if women farmers had the same access 

20 to inputs as men, they could increase their farm 

21 yields by 20 to 30 percent. According to the FAO, 

22 this ‘‘could raise total agricultural output in devel23 oping countries by 2.5–4 percent’’. 

24 (6) More than 165,000,000 children younger 

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1 oping world, suffer from malnutrition, which leads to 

2 severe health and developmental consequences. 

3 (7) Malnutrition can undermine future earning 

4 potential by as much as 20 percent and can inhibit 

5 economic growth by as much as 3 percent of gross 

6 domestic product (GDP). The African Union Com7 mission Cost of Hunger in Africa study estimated 

8 that the economic costs associated with child under9 nutrition are substantial, ranging from 2 percent to 

10 16 percent of the gross national product (GNP) in 

11 several African nations. 

12 (8) Research shows that adults who suffered 

13 from stunting as children are less productive than 

14 nonstunted workers and are less able to contribute 

15 to the economy. According to Save the Children’s 

16 2013 Food for Thought report, if the current mal17 nutrition rates continue, global output could be re18 duced by $125,000,000,000 by 2030, when the 

19 young children of today have reached working age. 

20 (9) A comprehensive approach to endurable 

21 food security should not only respond to emergency 

22 food shortages, but should also address malnutrition, 

23 resilience against food and nutrition insecurity due 

24 to disasters, building the capacity of poor, rural pop25 ulations to improve their agricultural productivity, 


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1 nutrition, and incomes, institutional impediments to 

2 agricultural development, value chain access and ef3 ficiency, agribusiness development, access to markets 

4 for the specific needs and barriers facing women and 

5 small-scale producers, education, and cooperative re6 search. 

7 (10) An effective, sustainable approach to com8 bating food insecurity requires participation from 

9 multiple stakeholders, including government, the pri10 vate sector, international organizations, local and 

11 nongovernmental stakeholders, grassroots and civil 

12 society organizations, and higher education research 

13 institutions. 

14 (11) Nongovernmental organizations, faith15 based groups, community-based organizations, and 

16 cooperatives can increase the effectiveness of public 

17 investments by building local capacity, strengthening 

18 food and nutrition security and resilience, and 

19 leveraging additional resources. 

20 (12) The United States has provided consistent 

21 global leadership in addressing food security and in22 vesting in agricultural development and humani23 tarian assistance. In 2010, the United States Gov24 ernment launched Feed the Future (FTF), an initia25 tive designed to expand and better coordinate the 


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1 United States investments in improving global food 

2 security. FTF is a whole-of-government approach 

3 that works across agricultural value chains and fo4 cuses on the dual objectives of improving farmer 

5 productivity, income, and livelihoods in developing 

6 countries and improving the nutrition of women and 

7 children. 

8 (13) The United States Government spear9 headed the creation of the Global Agriculture and 

10 Food Security Program (GAFSP), which mobilizes 

11 contributions from a wide range of international do12 nors to support the goals of FTF. Since 2010, the 

13 GAFSP has leveraged approximately $730,000,000 

14 from 10 donors and reached an estimated 

15 12,000,000 direct beneficiaries in 25 countries. 

16 SEC. 3. POLICY OBJECTIVES; SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

17 (a) STATEMENT OF POLICY OBJECTIVES.—It is in 

18 the national security interest of the United States to pro19 mote global food and nutrition security, consistent with 

20 national agriculture investment plans, which is reinforced 

21 through programs, activities, and initiatives that— 

22 (1) eradicate hunger and malnutrition, espe23 cially for women and children; 


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1 (2) assist foreign countries to achieve long2 term, endurable, and inclusive agricultural develop3 ment by emphasizing— 

4 (A) increased agricultural productivity, in5 come, and growth; 

6 (B) reduction in poverty; and 

7 (C) improved skills building and market 

8 linkages, including for small-scale producers 

9 and women who face specific constraints in ac10 cessing markets and resources; and 

11 (3) ensure the effective use of United States 

12 taxpayer dollars to further these objectives. 

13 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of the 

14 Congress that the Administrator, in providing assistance 

15 under this Act, should— 

16 (1) coordinate, through a whole-of-government 

17 approach, the efforts of relevant Federal depart18 ments and agencies to implement the strategy set 

19 forth in section 5(a); 

20 (2) utilize, to the extent possible, open and 

21 streamlined solicitations to allow for the participa22 tion of a wide range of implementing partners; 

23 (3) consider the provision of assistance through 

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1 er it be grants, cooperative agreements, or contracts, 

2 in order to best meet objectives; and 

3 (4) continue to strengthen existing partnerships 

4 between developing country institutions of agricul5 tural sciences with universities in the United States, 

6 with a focus on building the capacities of developing 

7 nation universities in agriculture. 

8 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 

9 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis10 trator’’ means the Administrator of the United 

11 States Agency for International Development. 

12 (2) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT13 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com14 mittees’’ means— 

15 (A) the Committee on Foreign Relations of 

16 the Senate; 

17 (B) the Committee on Agriculture, Nutri18 tion, and Forestry of the Senate; 

19 (C) the Committee on Appropriations of 

20 the Senate; 

21 (D) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of 

22 the House of Representatives; 

23 (E) the Committee on Agriculture of the 

24 House of Representatives; and 


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1 (F) the Committee on Appropriations of 

2 the House of Representatives. 

3 (3) FEED THE FUTURE INNOVATION LABS.— 

4 The term ‘‘Feed the Future Innovation Labs’’ 

5 means research partnerships led by United States 

6 universities that advance solutions to reduce global 

7 hunger, poverty, and malnutrition. 

8 (4) FEED THE FUTURE STRATEGY.—The term 

9 ‘‘Feed the Future Strategy’’ means the strategy de10 veloped and implemented pursuant to section 5(a). 

11 (5) FOOD AND NUTRITION SECURITY.—The 

12 term ‘‘food and nutrition security’’ means access to, 

13 and availability, utilization, and stability of, suffi14 cient food to meet caloric and nutritional needs for 

15 an active and healthy life. 

16 (6) MALNUTRITION.—The term ‘‘malnutrition’’ 

17 means poor nutritional status caused by nutritional 

18 deficiency or excess. 

19 (7) RESILIENCE.—The term ‘‘resilience’’ means 

20 the ability of people, households, communities, coun21 tries, and systems to mitigate, adapt to, and recover 

22 from shocks and stresses in a manner that reduces 

23 chronic vulnerability and facilitates inclusive growth. 

24 (8) SMALL-SCALE PRODUCER.—The term 

25 ‘‘small-scale producer’’ means farmers, pastoralists, 


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1 and fishers that have a low-asset base and limited 

2 resources, including land, capital, skills and labor, 

3 and, in the case of farmers, typically farm on fewer 

4 than 5 hectares of land. 

5 (9) STUNTING.—The term ‘‘stunting’’ refers to 

6 a condition that— 

7 (A) is measured by a height-to-age ratio 

8 that is more than 2 standard deviations below 

9 the median for the population; 

10 (B) manifests in children who are younger 

11 than 2 years of age, and is a process that can 

12 continue in children after they reach 2 years of 

13 age, resulting in an individual being ‘‘stunted’’; 

14 (C) is a sign of chronic malnutrition; and 

15 (D) can lead to long-term poor health, de16 layed motor development, impaired cognitive 

17 function, and decreased immunity. 

18 SEC. 5. COMPREHENSIVE FOOD SECURITY STRATEGY. 

19 (a) FEED THE FUTURE STRATEGY.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall co21 ordinate the development and implementation of a 

22 United States whole-of-government strategy to ac23 complish the policy objectives set forth in section 

24 3(a), which shall— 


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1 (A) support and be aligned with country2 owned agriculture, nutrition, and food security 

3 policy and investment plans developed with 

4 input from relevant governmental and non5 governmental sectors within partner countries 

6 and regional bodies, including representatives of 

7 the private sector, agricultural producers, in8 cluding women and small-scale producers, inter9 national and local civil society organizations, re10 search institutions, and farmers; 

11 (B) support inclusive agricultural value 

12 chain development, with producers, including 

13 women and small-scale producers, gaining 

14 greater access to the inputs, skills, networking, 

15 bargaining power, financing, and market link16 ages needed to sustain their long-term economic 

17 prosperity; 

18 (C) seek to improve the nutritional status 

19 of women and children, especially during the 

20 critical 1,000-day window beginning at the be21 ginning of a woman’s pregnancy and ending on 

22 her child’s second birthday; 

23 (D) ensure the long-term success of pro24 grams by building the capacity of local organi25 zations and institutions; 


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1 (E) harness science, technology, and inno2 vation, including the research conducted at 

3 Feed the Future Innovation Labs throughout 

4 the United States; 

5 (F) leverage resources and expertise 

6 through partnerships with the private sector, 

7 farm organizations, cooperatives, civil society, 

8 research entities, and academic institutions; 

9 (G) support collaboration, as appropriate, 

10 between United States universities and public 

11 and private institutions in developing countries 

12 to promote agricultural development and inno13 vation; 

14 (H) set clear and transparent selection cri15 teria for target countries, regions, and intended 

16 beneficiaries of assistance provided under this 

17 Act; 

18 (I) set specific and measurable goals, tar19 gets, and time frames, and a plan of action con20 sistent with the policy objectives described in 

21 the Feed the Future Strategy; 

22 (J) ensure that target countries respect 

23 and promote the lawful land tenure rights of 

24 local communities, particularly those of women 

25 and small-scale producers; and 


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1 (K) include criteria and methodology for 

2 graduating countries from United States assist3 ance provided under this Act once the countries 

4 have achieved certain benchmarks. 

5 (2) GOVERNING LAW.—In carrying out the pur6 poses of this Act, assistance may be provided pursu7 ant to section 103, section 103A, title XII of chapter 

8 2 of part I, and chapter 4 of part II of the Foreign 

9 Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151a, 2151a– 

10 1, 2220a et seq., and 2346 et seq.) notwithstanding 

11 any other provision of law. 

12 (b) FEED THE FUTURE COORDINATION.—The Ad13 ministrator shall coordinate, through a whole-of-govern14 ment approach, the efforts of relevant Federal depart15 ments and agencies in the implementation of the Feed the 

16 Future Strategy by— 

17 (1) establishing policy coherence, monitoring 

18 and evaluation systems, and coordination across all 

19 relevant United States Government agencies; 

20 (2) establishing linkages with other initiatives 

21 and strategies of the United States Agency for 

22 International Development, the Department of Agri23 culture, the Department of State, the Millennium 

24 Challenge Corporation, the Overseas Private Invest25 ment Corporation, the Peace Corps, the United 


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1 States Trade Representative, the United States Afri2 ca Development Foundation, the Department of 

3 Commerce, the Department of the Treasury, and the 

4 United States Geological Survey; 

5 (3) establishing platforms for regular consulta6 tion and collaboration with key stakeholders, includ7 ing— 

8 (A) multilateral institutions; 

9 (B) private voluntary organizations; 

10 (C) cooperatives; 

11 (D) the private sector; 

12 (E) local nongovernmental and civil society 

13 organizations; 

14 (F) congressional committees; and 

15 (G) other stakeholders, as appropriate; 

16 (4) leveraging the expertise of the Department 

17 of Agriculture in agricultural development, nutrition, 

18 trade, research, and education; and 

19 (5) establishing and leading regular public con20 sultations in partner countries. 

21 SEC. 6. REPORTING. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

23 date of the enactment of this Act, and not later than De24 cember 31 of each year thereafter through 2020, the Ad25 ministrator shall submit a report to the appropriate conVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:03 Oct 02, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2909.IS S2909

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1 gressional committees that describes the status of the im2 plementation of the Feed the Future Strategy. 

3 (b) CONTENT.—The report required under subsection 

4 (a) shall— 

5 (1) contain an appendix of the Feed the Future 

6 Strategy; 

7 (2) identify any substantial changes made in 

8 the Feed the Future Strategy during the preceding 

9 calendar year; 

10 (3) identify the indicators that will be used to 

11 measure results, set benchmarks for progress over 

12 time, and establish mechanisms for reporting results 

13 in an open and transparent manner; 

14 (4) describe the progress made in implementing 

15 the Feed the Future Strategy; 

16 (5) assess the progress and results of imple17 menting international food and nutrition security 

18 programming; 

19 (6) contain a transparent, open, and detailed 

20 accounting of spending under this Act by all relevant 

21 Federal agencies; 

22 (7) identify any United States legal or regu23 latory impediments that could obstruct the effective 

24 implementation of the programming referred to in 

25 paragraph (5); 


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1 (8) contain a clear gender analysis of program2 ming that includes established disaggregated gender 

3 indicators to better analyze outcomes for food pro4 ductivity, income growth, equity in access to inputs, 

5 jobs and markets, and nutrition; 

6 (9) describe the strategies and benchmarks for 

7 graduating target countries and monitoring any 

8 graduated target countries; 

9 (10) assess efforts to coordinate United States 

10 international food security and nutrition programs, 

11 activities, and initiatives with— 

12 (A) other bilateral donors; 

13 (B) international and multilateral organi14 zations; 

15 (C) international financial institutions; 

16 (D) host country governments; 

17 (E) international and local private vol18 untary, nongovernmental, and civil society orga19 nizations; and 

20 (F) other stakeholders; 

21 (11) assess United States Government-facili22 tated private investment in related sectors in target 

23 countries; 

24 (12) assess the impact of private sector invest25 ment on— 


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1 (A) the economic opportunities available to 

2 small-scale producers; 

3 (B) improving international food and nu4 trition security; and 

5 (C) enhancing endurable, long-term agri6 cultural development; 

7 (13) include consultation with relevant United 

8 States Government agencies in the preparation of 

9 the report; and 

10 (14) incorporate a plan for regularly reviewing 

11 and updating strategies, partnerships, and programs 

12 and sharing lessons learned with a wide range of 

13 stakeholders. 

14 (c) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION.—The 

15 information referred to in subsection (b) shall be made 

16 publicly accessible in a timely manner on a consolidated 

17 website. 

18 (d) GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE RE19 PORT.—During the 1-year period ending on December 31, 

20 2018, the Comptroller General of the United States shall 

21 publish a report that summarizes the progress of the strat22 egy described in section 5(a). 

23 SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

24 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Presi25 dent to carry out this Act, for each of the fiscal years 


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1 2015 through 2020, an amount equal to the amount of 

2 funds made available for food security and agricultural de3 velopment programs for fiscal year 2014 under section 

4 7060(d) of the Department of State, Foreign Operations, 

5 and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2014 (division 

6 K of Public Law 113–76; 128 Stat. 554). 

Æ 


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