In the Senate of the United States,
October 20 (legislative day, October 2), 1998.
Resolved, That the bill from the House of Representa-
tives (H.R. 4283) entitled ‘‘An Act to support sustainable
and broad-based agricultural and rural development in sub-
Saharan Africa, and for other purposes.’’, do pass with the
following
AMENDMENT:
Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Af-
rica: Seeds of Hope Act of 1998’’.
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents is as
follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings and declaration of policy.
TITLE I—ASSISTANCE FOR SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA
Sec. 101. Africa Food Security Initiative.
Sec. 102. Microenterprise assistance.
Sec. 103. Support for producer-owned cooperative marketing associations.
Sec. 104. Agricultural and rural development activities of the Overseas Private
Investment Corporation.
Sec. 105. Agricultural research and extension activities.
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TITLE II—WORLDWIDE FOOD ASSISTANCE AND AGRICULTURAL
PROGRAMS
Subtitle A—Nonemergency Food Assistance Programs
Sec. 201. Nonemergency food assistance programs.
Subtitle B—Bill Emerson Humanitarian Trust Act of 1998
Sec. 211. Short title.
Sec. 212. Bill Emerson Humanitarian Trust Act.
TITLE III—MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
Sec. 301. Report.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND DECLARATION OF POLICY.
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following:
(1) The economic, security, and humanitarian
interests of the United States and the nations of sub-
Saharan Africa would be enhanced by sustainable,
broad-based agricultural and rural development in
each of the African nations.
(2) According to the Food and Agriculture Orga-
nization, the number of undernourished people in Af-
rica has more than doubled, from approximately
100,000,000 in the late 1960s to 215,000,000 in 1998,
and is projected to increase to 265,000,000 by the
year 2010. According to the Food and Agriculture Or-
ganization, the term ‘‘under nutrition’’ means inad-
equate consumption of nutrients, often adversely af-
fecting children’s physical and mental development,
undermining their future as productive and creative
members of their communities.
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(8)(A) United States food processing and agri-
cultural sectors benefit greatly from the liberalization
of global trade and increased exports.
(B) Africa represents a growing market for
United States food and agricultural products. Africa’s
food imports are projected to rise from less than
8,000,000 metric tons in 1990 to more than
25,000,000 metric tons by the 2020.
(9)(A) Increased private sector investment in Af-
rican countries and expanded trade between the
United States and Africa can greatly help African
countries achieve food self-sufficiency and graduate
from dependency on international assistance.
(B) Development assistance, technical assistance,
and training can facilitate and encourage commercial
development in Africa, such as improving rural
roads, agricultural research and extension, and pro-
viding access to credit and other resources.
(10)(A) Several United States private voluntary
organizations have demonstrated success in empower-
ing Africans through direct business ownership and
helping African agricultural producers more effi-
ciently and directly market their products.
(B) Rural business associations, owned and con-
trolled by farmer shareholders, also greatly help agri-
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cultural producers to increase their household in-
comes.
(b) DECLARATION OF POLICY.—It is the policy of the
United States, consistent with title XII of part I of the For-
eign Assistance Act of 1961, to support governments of sub-
Saharan African countries, United States and African non-
governmental organizations, universities, businesses, and
international agencies, to help ensure the availability of
basic nutrition and economic opportunities for individuals
in sub-Saharan Africa, through sustainable agriculture and
rural development.
TITLE I—ASSISTANCE FOR SUB-
SAHARAN AFRICA
SEC. 101. AFRICA FOOD SECURITY INITIATIVE.
(a) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS IN CARRYING OUT
THE INITIATIVE.—In providing development assistance
under the Africa Food Security Initiative, or any com-
parable or successor program, the Administrator of the
United States Agency for International Development—
(1) shall emphasize programs and projects that
improve the food security of infants, young children,
school-age children, women and food-insecure house-
holds, or that improve the agricultural productivity,
incomes, and marketing of the rural poor in Africa;
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(2) shall solicit and take into consideration the
views and needs of intended beneficiaries and pro-
gram participants during the selection, planning, im-
plementation, and evaluation phases of projects;
(3) shall favor countries that are implementing
reforms of their trade and investment laws and regu-
lations in order to enhance free market development
in the food processing and agricultural sectors; and
(4) shall ensure that programs are designed and
conducted in cooperation with African and United
States organizations and institutions, such as private
and voluntary organizations, cooperatives, land-grant
and other appropriate universities, and local pro-
ducer-owned cooperative marketing and buying asso-
ciations, that have expertise in addressing the needs
of the poor, small-scale farmers, entrepreneurs, and
rural workers, including women.
(b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Congress
that, if there is an increase in funding for sub-Saharan pro-
grams, the Administrator of the United States Agency for
International Development should proportionately increase
resources to the Africa Food Security Initiative, or any
comparable or successor program, for fiscal year 2000 and
subsequent fiscal years in order to meet the needs of the
countries participating in such Initiative.
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SEC. 102. MICROENTERPRISE ASSISTANCE.
(a) BILATERAL ASSISTANCE.—In providing micro-
enterprise assistance for sub-Saharan Africa, the Adminis-
trator of the United States Agency for International Devel-
opment shall, to the extent practicable, use credit and
microcredit assistance to improve the capacity and effi-
ciency of agriculture production in sub-Saharan Africa of
small-scale farmers and small rural entrepreneurs. In pro-
viding assistance, the Administrator should use the applied
research and technical assistance capabilities of United
States land-grant universities.
(b) MULTILATERAL ASSISTANCE.—
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Administrator of the
United States Agency for International Development
shall continue to work with other countries, inter-
national organizations (including multilateral devel-
opment institutions), and entities assisting micro-
enterprises and shall develop a comprehensive and co-
ordinated strategy for providing microenterprise as-
sistance for sub-Saharan Africa.
(2) ADDITIONAL
REQUIREMENT.—In carrying
out paragraph (1), the Administrator should encour-
age the World Bank Consultative Group to Assist the
Poorest to coordinate the strategy described in such
paragraph.
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SEC. 103. SUPPORT FOR PRODUCER-OWNED COOPERATIVE
MARKETING ASSOCIATIONS.
(a) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this section are—
(1) to support producer-owned cooperative pur-
chasing and marketing associations in sub-Saharan
Africa;
(2) to strengthen the capacity of farmers in sub-
Saharan Africa to participate in national and inter-
national private markets and to promote rural devel-
opment in sub-Saharan Africa;
(3) to encourage the efforts of farmers in sub-Sa-
haran Africa to increase their productivity and in-
come through improved access to farm supplies, sea-
sonal credit, technical expertise; and
(4) to support small businesses in sub-Saharan
Africa as they grow beyond microenterprises.
(b) SUPPORT FOR PRODUCER-OWNED COOPERATIVE
MARKETING ASSOCIATIONS.—
(1) ACTIVITIES.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the
United States Agency for International Develop-
ment is authorized to utilize relevant foreign as-
sistance programs and initiatives for sub-Saha-
ran Africa to support private producer-owned
cooperative marketing associations in sub-Saha-
ran Africa, including rural business associations
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that are owned and controlled by farmer share-
holders.
(B) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS.—In car-
rying out subparagraph (A), the Adminis-
trator—
(i) shall take into account small-scale
farmers, small rural entrepreneurs, and
rural workers and communities; and
(ii) shall take into account the local-
level perspectives of the rural and urban
poor through close consultation with these
groups, consistent with section 496(e)(1) of
the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22
U.S.C. 2293(e)(1)).
(2) OTHER ACTIVITIES.—In addition to carrying
out paragraph (1), the Administrator is encouraged—
(A) to cooperate with governments of foreign
countries, including governments of political sub-
divisions of such countries, their agricultural re-
search universities, and particularly with United
States 
nongovernmental 
organizations 
and
United States land-grant universities, that have
demonstrated expertise in the development and
promotion of successful private producer-owned
cooperative marketing associations; and