Stealing Food
Food is now the main thought exercising the government's mind. The post-flood scenario is looking fairly precarious, even though the government's initial efforts have been largely successful in preventing any serious shortages. However, we are well into the winter season when most of the rural development (RD) projects under food for work (FFW) programme are implemented. This programme helps to maintain, expand and improve rural infrastructure while providing employment and subsistence grain allowance to disadvantaged families. But this is where another worry comes into play. Corruption in the implementation of FFW programmes is nothing new, but given the precarious nature of household food security in the aftermath of the floods and lack of employment opportunities, the importance of FFW programme this season assumes critical proportions.
There are solid grounds for such worries. According to a recent study by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), between 26 and 40 per cent of the food aid earmarked for RD projects are "misappropriated", which is probably a euphemism for stealing. But whether the food is stolen or "lost" in some other way is quite irrelevant. The fact, as clearly revealed in the IFPRI report, is that most of the "leakage" occurs through pilfering or stealing. Government officials, possibly in collusion with Union Parishad members and chairmen, are the key players in a chain of corruption that cheats ordinary poor folks of their rightful share of food aid donated by Bangladesh's development partners. Not only are the poor cheated this way - and receive less nutrition value from FFW programme than statistics show - but rural development work are also hampered.
What all this means is that the government needs to put this particular house in order with the utmost urgency. The politics of wheat may be the butt of many jokes, but this is certainly no laughing matter, particularly when a major food crisis is staring the rural population in the face. The government needs to improve monitoring of FFW programmes and distribution of food aid from the supply depots right down to the household level. More important perhaps, the government needs to install a mechanism by which the cost of corruption in rural development projects is made many times higher than the benefits gained by unscrupulous officials. Stealing from the poor to fatten the rich cannot be acceptable in any society.
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