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Ensuring the availability of the minimum food requirements of the entire population is a formidable task as the Government has to achieve this while trying to contain the spread of COVID-19. It is made even more difficult as it has to be accomplished under an island-wide curfew.

Success

There has been success in both containing the virus, as well as the provision of food. However, much more could have been achieved in containing the virus had people acted in a more socially responsible manner. Admittedly fighting the spread of the virus and ensuring food supplies in tandem is a difficult balancing act.

Serious problems

Although much has been achieved in ensuring the availability of food to people during these days of an economic shutdown and prolonged island-wide curfew, there are serious problems with the supply and availability of food in the country. Accessibility of food by an increasing number of unemployed people without income remains a severe problem.

Most Samurdhi beneficiaries appear to have not received the promised income support, and there maybe a large number of people who are not Samurdhi recipients, with no income and no means of livelihood due to the curfew, who are unable to access basic food requirements.

Transport and Marketing

An emerging problem is the inability to transport agricultural produce from some farming areas to markets. This has even resulted in burning of vegetables by farmers in certain agricultural areas, which on one handcould lead to a lesser availability of food supplies in urban areas, and a loss of farmers’ income to farmers, on the other.

Apparently this dislocation of vegetable transport has occurred owing to the closure of the Dambulla Economic Centre, a hub for vegetable distribution in the country. There is no doubt the closure of this centre was necessary to prevent a large number of people gathering and contracting the virus.

Curfew

The island-wide curfew has hampered the transport of agricultural produce to markets, especially the DambullaEconomic Centre, a key hub from which agricultural produce goes to markets around the country. The Government has now intervened to resolve the difficulties in transporting agricultural produce by purchasing and transporting produce. Yet, the curfew restrictions and limited market access could continue to hinder transport of produce from farms to consumers.

Impacts

The impasse in transporting vegetables has had multiple adverse impacts on food security. It has reduced the supply of vegetables, deprived farmers of their income and wasted food that was essential. It is imperative to resolve this problem by developing an alternate means of transporting food from cultivation areas to markets.

People left behind

The supply, availability and access to food is difficult for a large number of people who do not have adequate income to obtain food. Despite efforts by the Government and community initiatives, the problem of accessibility of food to those without incomes remains severe.

Social interventions

As in the past, when disasters have struck the country, community organisations, religious groups and individuals are assisting the poorest with gifts of essential food. These are a useful supplement to the Government’s efforts to reach the poorest. The Government should assist these efforts and channel their assistance through them.

Peace Council

The National Peace Council (NPC) has documented these social interventions in their press release of March 2020. These efforts are in all parts of the island and reach the most deserving. In addition, many of the social interventions are inter-religious and contribute to national cohesion and ethnic and   religious harmony.

Individual help

Simple acts of kindness of individuals and groups are alleviating the food security of the most vulnerable. Many people are providing money and food to the deprived in their vicinity. However these efforts are impeded by difficulties of getting assistance to some communities owing to the curfew and travel restrictions.

Curfew constraints

However essential, the continuation of the curfew makes food availability and distribution difficult. The economic shutdown and the curfew are increasing food security concerns by increasing unemployment, low income and the inaccessibility of available food supplies. These conditions could increase the number of people with inadequate basic food requirements. The availability of adequate food supplies has also been hampered by the disruption of food transportation.

Summing up

A large number of workers have lost their jobs. Factory and hotel workers, occupations linked to tourism, daily wage earners, self-employed workers, agricultural workers, workers in export manufacturing and informal workers have lost their income. These people are the most vulnerable. They will have difficulties in accessing adequate food owing to their inadequate purchasing power.

While the national availability of food is of fundamental importance, the harsh reality is, a person’s financial capacity to access food matters most in ensuring adequate food for a family. The large number of people unemployed and without income require Government and social intervention.

A continuing problem is the accessibility of food to the increasing number of unemployed without income. Their income has been severely eroded owing to the economic shutdown. They have no money to buy food. It is heartening to know that there are individual, community and social organisations intervening to provide food for those without income to access food.

In conclusion

There should be no doubt whatsoever that the control and elimination of COVID-19 is the foremost need. Economies cannot function until COVID-19 is contained drastically. The world economy and the Sri Lankan economy cannot revive without the elimination of this pandemic.

However, a judicious implementation of the curfew to ensure essential economic activity is vital.  Perhaps the time has arrived when a cautious planned curfew relaxation should be implemented to enable a gradual functioning of industries and services, to ease the supply, marketing and availability of food.

Nevertheless, we must be mindful of the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) advice – countries should be cautious about lifting restrictions introduced to curb the spread of COVID-19, as it is taking hold of more countries.

Rajan Phillips has expressed the imperatives succinctly: “Fight the virus, Feed the people.”