World Food Day: Making migration a choice, not a necessity | Sunday Observer

World Food Day: Making migration a choice, not a necessity

5 November, 2017
 The panel (from left)    University of Colombo Department of Sociology Professor Siri Hettige, Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) Researcher Dr. Bilesha Weeraratne, farmer from Morawaka, Mithra Kulatunga and the moderator WFP Anusara Singhkumarwong
The panel (from left) University of Colombo Department of Sociology Professor Siri Hettige, Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) Researcher Dr. Bilesha Weeraratne, farmer from Morawaka, Mithra Kulatunga and the moderator WFP Anusara Singhkumarwong

As food insecurity is too often cited as a reason for migration, experts from different sectors urged the need for investing in food and nutrition, especially, in rural communities also investing in the agricultural sector which would help the rural youth to retain in their own livelihoods, which would result in changing the future of migration in Sri Lanka.

The importance of making the agricultural sector an attractive profession for the youth by adopting different strategies was also stressed, as the sector mainly relies on the older generation, at present.

These remarks were expressed at a lengthy discussion held in Colombo last Tuesday to mark World Food Day with the participation of Additional Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Dr. W.M.W. Weerakoon, Department of Sociology, University of Colombo, Professor Siri Hettige, Researcher, Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) Dr. Bilesha Weeraratne and a farmer, Mithra Kulatunga, from Morawaka.

The event was also addressed by representatives from The Food and Agricultural Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), United Nations World Food Program (WFP) and the UN Migration Agency (IOM).

They provided facts and reflections on the topic of migration in Sri Lanka and how to make the agricultural sector sustainable.

“The reason why people move from the village to the city is because those in rural areas in Sri Lanka do not get a sufficient income. The rural youth will migrate when they don’t have money for agriculture, and only the elderly farmers will then remain in the village. We need to make sure the youth in the rural areas get the benefit of this agricultural revolution,” Additional Secretary Dr. W.M.W. Weerakoon said.

To make a better income, he suggested, local farmers need to look at how to add value to their products rather than only selling the primary products.

“While increasing productivity, we should get the farmer to the value chain and introduce more value added products,” he said.

He encouraged the use of more machinery to attract the youth to this sector. He said that home cultivation too should be encouraged and schoolchildren inspired to cultivate in the school gardens.

He requested the international community’s support, to achieve these tasks, so that the village youth would be an asset to society, he said.

A sizeable proportion of the Lankan population is migrating from rural areas to cities and overseas, every year.

Almost 243,000 workers departed for foreign employment in 2016, in countries of the Middle East.

Poverty, unemployment, and reoccurring climate shocks impact food security of many families, resulting in migration.

“Rural areas are particular providers of migrants, across the globe and here in Sri Lanka. Food insecurity, the inability to escape poverty, the slow development of the agriculture sector as a profitable business and the absence of off farm employment opportunities are one of the drivers of the rural exodus,” according to FAO Representative Nina Brandstrup.

However, compared to forced migration, economic migration requires a different approach, she said.

Brandstrup presented a few solutions in this regard which included: Modernizing the agricultural sector, improving the resilience of rural livelihoods to climate change and creating business opportunities and jobs in rural areas that are not only agricultural-based must be priorities as also reflected in the Government of Sri Lanka’s vision 2025.

“Only this way can we craft the conditions for people, especially, for the young, to stay closer to home. The support to this endeavour is at the heart of FAO’s work,” she said.

However, according to her, migration is not a negative phenomenon.

Given the chance, she said, migrants help build the economy of their host region or country. They can also fill labour shortages, bring new skills, enthusiasm and an entrepreneurial drive.

She stressed that polices and incentives need to be put in place to encourage a more farsighted use of the financial flows from migrants to help reduce the push for further migration.

Prof Siri Hettige, expressing his thoughts said, though the earlier problem in Sri Lanka was lack of lands, one of the main issues in the country as of now is labour shortage which needs to be addressed.

“We have a rural migration. We have about 20 percent population in urban areas. When you travel around the country, you see a lot of lands completely abandoned, that is because rural areas are not able to find labour, as people are interested in finding more lucrative jobs in urban areas and abroad,” the professor pointed out.

However, he said, with the current education system which concentrates entirely on examination success, it would not help to address this issue. He stressed the need for linking agriculture to the education system.

While providing a better working condition for farmers, the professor said, the Public and the Private sector should come up with a system to establish a value chain to various areas.

Sharing her views, Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) Researcher Dr. Bilesha Weeraratne said, the lack of opportunity to find employment in their original areas are some of the reasons for the migration flow.

But, she said, there is a positive side as well in migration, such as the inflow of remittances which should be used effectively. She stressed that the remittances should be re-invested for rural development and the agricultural sector.

Farmer, Mithra Kulatunga who is from a modern farming background said, it is important to change the way of looking at farmers, and the way to interact with them. He said, the media can play a bigger role in helping to change that.

Speaking at the event, IOM Chief of Mission Guiseppe Crocetti made three points on the impact food insecurity can have on migration, and vice versa, while proposing a few ideas on ways forward.

His first point was about understanding and addressing the drivers of migration. He said that ensuring the viability of agricultural livelihoods require tackling the root causes of displacement and irregular migration, and investing in rural development.

He said, The New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants recognises the importance of conflict, disasters, climate change, as well as food insecurity, as drivers of large-scale, unmanaged migration that need to be addressed.

His second point related to recognising migration as a resilience strategy.

He said that under certain conditions and circumstances, migration can be used as a livelihood or coping strategy that has the potential to greatly reduce the exposure and vulnerability of households, giving them an opportunity to multiply and diversify their incomes, secure resources in the face of hazards and generally enhance their reliance.

Effectively managing migration can therefore prevent subsequent, larger and forced permanent movements, he opined.

The third point was about partnerships.

In the coming months, he said, states will have an opportunity to discuss and negotiate broad partnerships and set out actionable commitments for the development of the Global Compact for safe, orderly and regular migration. Meanwhile, shedding light on nutritional aspect, WFP Country Director Brenda Barton said while gains are being made in many areas of human development, there is still much more work to be done to address Sri Lanka’s nutrition challenges.

She noted that according to the results of the recently released Demographic and Health Survey, stunting or being too short for one’s age is steadily increasing.

Further, she noted that prevalence of wasting or being too thin for the height among children under five stands at a critical level of 15 percent and is unchanged since the last survey.

“This highlights the need for immediate action to address household nutrition insecurity,” she stressed.

At the same time, she said, there is a rapid rise in rates of overweight and obesity, especially, among women of reproductive age.

“Let us see these important years ahead to invest in the food security and nutritional welfare of Sri Lanka’s rural communities, including building their reliance to shocks like droughts and floods which are drivers of hunger and malnutrition,” she said.

High level policy and decision makers including government ministries, academia, civil society, private and youth groups also expressed their opinions during the discussion. 

 

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