,,iii #aafth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,s4 ,,res4 #gbh ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,september #cj 7legislative day1 ,september #bi71 #bjbj,mr4 ,casey 7for himself and ,mr4 ,risch7 submitted the following resolution2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,foreign ,relations ,,resolution ,recognizing the instrumental role ,united ,states global food security programs1 particularly the ,feed the ,future program1 have played in reducing global poverty1 building resilience and tackling hunger and malnutrition around the world1 and calling for continued investment in global food security in the face of the economic impact of ,,covid-#ai4 ,whereas food security and nutrition are fundamental to human development1 particularly in the critical #a1jjj day window until a child's second birthday1 and persistent hunger and malnutrition stunt children's mental and physical development and hinder the health1 prosperity1 and security of societies2 ,whereas food insecurity and malnutrition in low- and middle-income countries force tens of millions of people into poverty1 contribute to political and social instability1 and erode economic growth2 ,whereas in its #bjad ,worldwide ,threat ,assessment of the ,united ,states1 the ,united ,states intelligence community reported that the lack of adequate food will be a destabilizing factor in countries important to ,united ,states national security and has since consistently linked global food insecurity to broader instability2 ,whereas1 despite decades of progress1 the ,state of ,food ,security and ,nutrition in the ,world report for #bjbj indicates that global hunger has increased since #bjad1 with #b1jjj1jjj1jjj people worldwide currently experiencing food insecurity1 of which nearly #gej1jjj1jjj people are facing severe food insecurity1 and #aj1jjj1jjj more people having fallen into hunger between #bjah and #bjai1 #add1jjj1jjj children stunted1 and #dg1jjj1jjjj children experiencing wasting2 ,whereas the ,,covid-#ai pandemic has exposed vulnerabilities in global food systems and food supply chains1 and has severely exacerbated existing food security shocks1 such as the ,fall ,army ,worm and desert locust infestations in the ,horn of ,africa region1 particularly in ,kenya1 ,ethiopia1 and ,somalia1 as well as parts of ,asia and the ,middle ,east1 which already represented an unprecedented threat to global food security and livelihoods2 ,whereas the ,,covid-#ai pandemic and its second-order impacts are expected to dramatically worsen the state of global food security and nutrition1 with preliminary assessments predicting a doubling of severe hunger 7from #ace1jjj1jjj to #bfe1jjj1jjj people7 and an increase in child wasting 7from #dg1jjj1jjj to #eb1jjj1jjj7 by the end of #bjbj2 ,whereas the ,united ,states has been a global leader in addressing food insecurity on a bipartisan basis and across ,administrations1 particularly in response to the global food price crisis in #bjjg-bjjh and subsequent launch of the whole-of-government1 ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development-led1 ,feed the ,future program in #bjaj2 ,whereas the late ,senator ,richard ,lugar of ,indiana was instrumental in advancing ,united ,states efforts to reduce global poverty through smart investments in agriculture and food security1 including through his stewardship of the ,global ,food ,security ,acts of #bjjh and #bjji1 support for the launch of the ,feed the ,future program in #bjaj1 and continued advocacy to formally authorize the ,feed the ,future program through enactment of the ,global ,food ,security ,act of #bjaf 7,public ,law #aad-aie7 and the ,global ,food ,security ,reauthorization ,act of #bjah 7,public ,law #aae-bff72 ,whereas the ,global ,food ,security ,act of #bjaf 7,public ,law #aad-aie71 as enacted in #bjaf and reauthorized in #bjah1 required the development and implementation of a comprehensive ,united ,states ,government ,global ,food ,security ,strategy and codified the ,feed the ,future framework1 strengthening its accountability and transparency mechanisms1 deepening interagency engagement1 and engaging a broad coalition of stakeholders1 including faith-based and civil society organizations1 universities and research institutions1 the ,united ,states private sector1 and ,united ,states farm and commodity organizations2 ,whereas ,feed the ,future investments have helped transform countries' food systems and improve their own food security and nutrition1 with investments currently focused in twelve target countries and #ce aligned countries and regions in ,asia1 ,central ,america1 and east1 southern1 and west ,africa2 ,whereas according to its most recent progress report1 ,feed the ,future has helped more than #bc1djj1jjj people lift themselves out of poverty1 prevented #c1djj1jjj children from being stunted1 and ensured that #e1bjj1jjj families no longer suffer from hunger in areas where the program operates2 ,whereas ,feed the ,future is making significant progress towards building local capacity and resilience by promoting inclusive economic growth1 strengthening monitoring and evaluation1 implementing sustainable agricultural practices1 risk management1 improving forecasting and adaptation1 and building the agricultural capacity of rural communities2 ,whereas ,feed the ,future also is advancing women's economic empowerment by providing targeted technical assistance to women working in agricultural systems and equipping women with adequate tools1 training1 and technology for small-scale agriculture2 ,whereas ,feed the ,future investments benefit communities in the ,united ,states as well1 including by increasing ,united ,states trade and agricultural exports to ,feed the ,future countries by more than #a1djj1jjj1jjj since inception2 and ,whereas ,feed the ,future investments in international agricultural research and development through partnerships with ,united ,states universities and land-grant institutions1 international research systems1 such as the ,consortium of ,international ,agricultural ,research ,centers1 and other organizations will help the ,united ,states agricultural sector prepare for1 adapt to1 and remain resilient amid evolving threats2 ,now1 therefore1 be it ,that the ,senate-- 7#a7 supports continued investment in ,united ,states global food security programs1 and particularly through the ,feed the ,future program's comprehensive1 multi-sectoral1 transparent1 data and results-driven approach toward reducing hunger1 poverty1 and malnutrition in low- and middle-income countries2 7#b7 recognizes the need to deepen and extend these efforts in order to achieve the global goal of ending hunger by #bjcj1 particularly in the face of unprecedented challenges posed by the ,,covid-#ai pandemic1 political and social instability1 high levels of human displacement1 gender inequities1 extreme natural shocks1 and the increasing prevalence of invasive agricultural pests1 such as desert locusts and the ,fall ,army ,worm2 7#c7 supports ,united ,states ,government efforts to focus on improving nutrition and health1 building resilience1 integrating water1 sanitation1 and hygiene and empowering women1 youth1 and smallholder farmers2 7#d7 calls on the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development to-- 7,a7 annually review the ,feed the ,future program and1 as appropriate1 expand the list of target countries1 including those in fragile contexts2 7,b7 include information on all countries benefitting from direct ,feed the ,future investments1 to include both focus and aligned countries1 in annual reporting in order to further enhance the program's commitment to transparency and impact2 7,c7 develop a robust multi-sectoral learning agenda for maternal and child malnutrition and its causes1 with a focus on the #a1jjj day window until a child's second birthday2 7,d7 strongly amplify the critical role of women and smallholder farmers in enhancing food security and catalyzing agriculture-led economic growth2 and 7,e7 advance the ,new ,partnerships ,initiative by promoting1 building the capacity of1 and entering into partnerships with locally-led organizations under the ,feed the ,future program2 7#e7 calls on the relevant ,federal agencies identified under the ,united ,states ,government ,global ,food ,security ,strategy1 including the ,united ,states ,departments of ,state1 ,agriculture1 ,commerce1 and ,treasury1 and the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development1 the ,millennium ,challenge ,corporation1 the ,international ,development ,finance ,corporation1 the ,peace ,corps1 the ,office of the ,united ,states ,trade ,representative1 the ,u4,s4 ,africa ,development ,foundation1 and the ,u4,s4 ,geological ,survey1 to-- 7,a7 continue to advance global food security as a ,united ,states foreign assistance priority1 enhance inter-agency coordination under the ,global ,food ,security ,strategy1 and align relevant programs with the ,feed the ,future program's needs-based1 multi-sectoral approach2 and 7,b7 contribute to the development of an updated ,global ,food ,security ,strategy and a ,global ,food ,security ,research ,strategy in #bjba to guide and inform ,feed the ,future activities between #bjbb and #bjbf4