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Dear Members of the Board,

I am writing to inform you that tomorrow World Food Program USA will be releasing its report (attached here), Winning the Peace: Hunger and Instability, that finds that extreme hunger is not only a consequence of entrenched conflicts across the globe but is, in fact, a driver of instability. The report, which draws extensively on more than fifty recent peer-reviewed studies examining the link between food insecurity and instability, offers some important insights.

Key findings include:


* Approximately 95 percent of the over 50 peer-reviewed studies examined in the report are able to establish an empirical link between food insecurity and instability. Winning the Peace is among the most in-depth reviews of research on the link between food insecurity and instability ever produced. Approximately 75% of the studies included the report were produced in the last five years.


* The relationship between food insecurity and instability is complex and best understood as the sum of its many parts. The report surfaced at least 11 drivers of food insecurity examined by researchers—from land competition and food price spikes to rainfall variability—linked to 9 separate types of instability—ranging from peaceful protest to violent interstate conflict.


* Food insecurity and state fragility are inextricably linked. Roughly 80 percent of countries that were severely food insecure in 2016 were also considered ‘fragile’ or ‘extremely fragile’ (51 of 64 countries), and vice versa.


* Money and food can be a strong motivator for recruitment into extremist movements. This is true of ISIS, al Shabaab, Boko Haram and others offering recruitment incentives to desperate people incapable of feeding their families.


* While modern conflicts are almost never driven by a single cause, food insecurity is a key factor driving several conflicts. Development must be prioritized alongside defense and diplomacy in the U.S. national security toolkit and approaches to fighting global hunger must be comprehensive in order to meet the many manifestations of food-related instability.


Winning the Peace: Hunger and Instability is being issued at a critical moment. As you may already be aware, the number of hungry people is on the rise for the first time in a decade. In 2016, 815 million people were undernourished, an increase of 38 million people from 2015. The number of people who are in need of emergency food assistance rose from 80 million in 2016 to 108 million in 2017, a 35 percent increase in a single year. OCHA has just issued its 2018 Global Humanitarian Appeal<http://interactive.unocha.org/publication/globalhumanitarianoverview/> which requires a record $22.5 billion in funding to meet the urgent needs of some 136 million people across the world affected by protracted conflicts, natural disasters, epidemics and displacement.

The collective response is not keeping pace with the rise in need. I am confident the US will continue to lead but a global effort is critical to stem the tide of hunger and instability. It is our expectation that this report will serve as an important resource in promoting an understanding that there is no security without food security. The report will serve as a cornerstone for work being undertaken by WFP USA as we move into the year ahead.

I would like to express our special appreciation to Senator Dole and Senator Daschle for co-authoring the foreword to this report.

Thank you all for your continued support and commitment to WFP USA.

All the Best,
Rick


Richard Leach
President & CEO

World Food Program USA
1725 Eye Street NW, Suite 510
Washington, DC 20006
T 202.627.3737
F 202.530.1698
rleach@wfpusa.org<mailto:jcorum@wfpusa.org>