26 Jun UPDATED: Whose Alliance? The G8 and the Emergence of a Global Corporate Regime for Agriculture

*Updated with new media links*
A new report by CIDSE and EAA has been released.

CIDSE and EAA are deeply concerned about the vision and approach of the G8 New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition in Africa which enshrines food security in a market orientation, rather than as a human right. We believe the initiative falls short of what is needed to eradicate hunger and could potentially undermine progress towards that end. This briefing outlines what we consider to be some of the major problems and risks with the New Alliance, as well as key recommendations. The analysis and recommendations are structured around three central themes: 1) Coherence, 2) Vision, and 3) Process.

You can download the report here.
Also, and related, Sophia Murphy recently published a good report on what sort of role the G20 should be playing around food security and agriculture and analysis translates quite well over to the G8.
In the report — “The G-20 and Food Security: What Is the Right Agenda? ” — Sophia  outline the positive ways that the  G-20 could address food security: by reforming certain problematic domestic policies (for instance, US and European biofuels mandates); by accepting greater transparency in the level and use of grain stocks; by improving the regulation of speculation on commodity futures markets; through progress shifting their agricultural production systems toward less-polluting models; and by accepting disciplines on the use of export restrictions and working with net-food importing developing countries to restore confidence in international trade.
You can download that report here.
Finally, a list of critiques about the New Alliance has been circulating on various listservs. I am not sure who to attribute it to but I am sending out a thank you to the person/people who have put it together.
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Critiques of the New Alliance on Food Security and Nutrition
‘Letter from African Civil Society Critical of Foreign Investment in African Agriculture at G8 Summit’ (May 2012)
www.foodfirst.org/en/Challenge+to+Green+Revolution+for+Africa
‘The New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition: Nothing New About Ignoring Africa’s Farmers’ (Eric Holt-Gimenez, May 2012)
www.huffingtonpost.com/eric-holt-gimenez/africa-food-security_b_1537279.html
‘G8 punts on food security… to private sector’ (Sophia Murphy, IATP, May 2012)
www.iatp.org/blog/201205/g-8-punts-on-food-security-%E2%80%A6-to-the-private-sector
‘G8 food security alliance answers question hungry people have not asked’ (Oxfam, May 2012)
www.oxfam.org/en/grow/pressroom/pressrelease/2012-05-18/g8-food-security-alliance-answers-question-hungry-people-have-not–
Privatizing the Governance of ‘Green Growth’ (Heinrich Böll Foundation, Nov 2012), especially pp. XV-XVI
www.boell.org/downloads/Alexander_Privatizing_Governance_of_Green_Growth_Version_2.pdf
The Hunger Games: How DFID support for agribusiness is fuelling poverty in Africa (War on Want, Dec 2012)
www.waronwant.org/attachments/The%20Hunger%20Games%202012.pdf
Structural Adjustment 2.0: G8 Initiative New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition in Africa (Forum on Environment & Development working group on food and agriculture, Jan 2013)
www.forumue.de/fileadmin/userupload/AG_Landwirtschaft_Ernaehrung/Message_G8-Initiative_New_Alliance_16012013_Englisch.pdf
‘Tanzanian Civil Society Statement on Farmers’ Rights’ (March 2013) – pursuant to Tanzania’s accession to the UPOV 1991 intellectual property regime as part of its New Alliance cooperation framework
www.ip-watch.org/weblog/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/UPOV-Tanzania-CSO-Statement-1.pdf
The G8 and Land Grabs in Africa (GRAIN, March 2013)
www.grain.org/article/entries/4663-the-g8-and-land-grabs-in-africa.pdf
Whose Alliance? The G8 and the Emergence of a Global Corporate Regime for Agriculture (CIDSE, April 2013)
www.cidse.org/index.php?option=com_k2&Itemid=195&id=266_7ebace07392a17595c1f53c276f42b24&lang=en&task=download&view=item
—
 – Kirtana Chandrasekaran and Nnimmo Bassey, “G8’s new alliance for food security and nutrition is a flawed project”
www.guardian.co.uk/global-development/poverty-matters/2013/jun/07/g8-new-alliance-flawed-project
– Nick Dearden, “G8 needs reminding the market doesn’t know best when it comes to hunger”,
www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/jun/09/g8-market-hunger
– George Monbiot, “Africa, let us help – just like in 1884”,
www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/jun/10/african-hunger-help-g8-grab
– Mark Tran, “Nigeria makes light of scepticism about new alliance on hunger and nutrition”
www.guardian.co.uk/global-development/2013/jun/10/nigeria-new-alliance-food-security
– Raj Patel, “G8 vision for tackling hunger wilfully ignores the politics of malnutrition”
www.guardian.co.uk/global-development/poverty-matters/2013/jun/12/g8-vision-tackling-hunger-politics-malnutrition
– Molly Kinder and Nachilala Nkombo, “New alliance as imperialism in another guise? Monbiot should know better”
www.guardian.co.uk/global-development/poverty-matters/2013/jun/12/new-alliance-imperialism-monbiot-know-better
– George Monbiot, “Bono can’t help Africans by stealing their voice”
www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/jun/17/bono-africans-stealing-voice-poor
 – Joyce Banda, “New food security alliance is timely for Malawi’s path out of poverty”
www.guardian.co.uk/global-development/poverty-matters/2013/jun/18/new-alliance-food-security-malawi?