§2220a. General provisions
(a) Congressional objectives and findings
The Congress declares that, in order to prevent famine and establish freedom from hunger, the United States should strengthen the capacities of the United States land-grant and other eligible universities in program-related agricultural institutional development and research, consistent with sections 2151a and 2151a–1 of this title, should improve their participation in the United States Government's international efforts to apply more effective agricultural sciences to the goal of increasing world food production, and in general should provide increased and longer term support to the application of science to solving food and nutrition problems of the developing countries.
The Congress so declares because it finds-
(1) that the establishment, endowment, and continuing support of land-grant universities in the United States by Federal, State, and county governments has led to agricultural progress in this country;
(2) that land-grant and other universities in the United States have demonstrated over many years their ability to cooperate with foreign agricultural institutions in expanding indigenous food production for both domestic and international markets;
(3) that, in a world of growing population with rising expectations, increased food production and improved distribution, storage, and marketing in the developing countries is necessary not only to prevent hunger but to build the economic base for growth, and moreover, that the greatest potential for increasing world food supplies is in the developing countries where the gap between food need and food supply is the greatest and current yields are lowest;
(4) that increasing and making more secure the supply of food is of greatest benefit to the poorest majority in the developing world;
(5) that research, teaching, and extension activities, and appropriate institutional development therefor are prime factors in increasing agricultural production abroad (as well as in the United States) and in improving food distribution, storage, and marketing;
(6) moreover, that agricultural research abroad has in the past and will continue in the future to provide benefits for agriculture in the United States and that increasing the availability of food of higher nutritional quality is of benefit to all; and
(7) that universities need a dependable source of Federal funding, as well as other financing, in order to expand, or in some cases to continue, their efforts to assist in increasing agricultural production in developing countries.
(b) Congressional objectives and declaration for collation of components to increase world food production
Accordingly, the Congress declares that, in order to prevent famine and establish freedom from hunger, various components must be brought together in order to increase world food production, including-
(1) strengthening the capabilities of universities to assist in increasing agricultural production in developing countries;
(2) institution-building programs for development of national and regional agricultural research and extension capacities in developing countries which need assistance;
(3) international agricultural research centers;
(4) contract research; and
(5) research program grants.
(c) University involvement, participation, and cooperation
The United States should-
(1) effectively involve the United States land-grant and other eligible universities more extensively in each component;
(2) provide mechanisms for the universities to participate and advise in the planning, development, implementation, and administration of each component; and
(3) assist such universities in cooperative joint efforts with-
(A) agricultural institutions in developing nations, and
(B) regional and international agricultural research centers,
directed to strengthening their joint and respective capabilities and to engage them more effectively in research, teaching, and extension activities for solving problems in food production, distribution, storage, marketing, and consumption in agriculturally underdeveloped nations.
(d) Universities
As used in this subpart, the term "universities" means those colleges or universities in each State, territory, or possession of the United States, or the District of Columbia, now receiving, or which may hereafter receive, benefits under the Act of July 2, 1862 (known as the First Morrill Act) [7 U.S.C. 301 et seq.], or the Act of August 30, 1890 (known as the Second Morrill Act) [7 U.S.C. 321 et seq.], which are commonly known as "land-grant" universities; institutions now designated or which may hereafter be designated as sea-grant colleges under the Act of October 15, 1966 (known as the National Sea Grant College and Program Act) [33 U.S.C. 1121 et seq.], which are commonly known as sea-grant colleges; and other United States colleges and universities which-
(1) have demonstrable capacity in teaching, research, and extension activities in the agricultural sciences; and
(2) can contribute effectively to the attainment of the objectives of this subpart.
(e) Administrator
As used in this subpart, the term "Administrator" means the Administrator of the Agency for International Development.
(
References in Text
The First Morrill Act and the Second Morrill Act, referred to in subsec. (d), refer to acts July 2, 1862, ch. 130,
The National Sea Grant College and Program Act, referred to in subsec. (d), is title II of
Amendments
1978-Subsecs. (f), (g).
Effective Date of 1978 Amendment
Amendment by
International Food Reserve
"(a) The Congress finds that-
"(1) half a billion people suffer regularly from malnutrition or undernutrition;
"(2) even very modest shortfalls in crop production can result in greatly increased human suffering, and undercut the benefits of bilateral and multilateral assistance programs, in poor developing countries with chronic food deficits;
"(3) increasing variability in world food production and trade presents a serious threat not only to consumers but also to producers;
"(4) the World Food Conference recognized the urgent need for an international undertaking to achieve a system of world food security based largely upon strategic food reserves;
"(5) the Congress through legislation has repeatedly urged the President to negotiate with other nations to establish such a system of reserves;
"(6) although the nations of the world have agreed to begin discussions on a system of grain reserves to regulate food availability, agreement on a global network of nationally held reserves still eludes the international community;
"(7) while some progress has taken place in the United States in creating domestic farmer held reserves, the scale of such reserves does not insure adequate protection against fluctuations in world production and price; and
"(8) the United States, as the world's leading producer of foodstuffs, remains in a unique position to provide the leadership necessary to make world food security a reality.
"(b) It is therefore the sense of the Congress that the President should continue his efforts directed toward achievement of an agreement establishing an international network of nationally held grain reserves which provides for supply assurance to consumers and income security to producers."
Similar provisions were contained in the following prior authorization act:
Commission on Hunger and Malnutrition
Settlement of Debt Owed the United States
Section 321 of
Cooperation With Other Countries in Alleviating World Food Shortage; Emergency and Humanitarian Requirements
"(a) It is the sense of the Congress that the United States should participate fully in efforts to alleviate current and future food shortages which threaten the world. To this end, the President shall-
"(1) encourage, support, and expedite, studies relating to the long-range implications of the world food situation (including studies of national and world production, distribution, and utilization of agricultural commodities and other foodstuffs) and support the organizing of a world food conference under United Nations auspices in 1974;
"(2) request the member nations of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade to explore the means for assuring equitable access by all nations to national markets and mineral and agricultural resources;
"(3) consult and cooperate with appropriate international agencies, such as the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, in determining the need for, the feasibility of, and cost on an equitably-shared basis of, establishing an international system of strategic food reserves; and
"(4) report his findings and recommendations to the Congress on the implementation of this section no later than December 31, 1974.
"(b) It is further the sense of the Congress that-
"(1) in making assessments which would affect or relate to the level of domestic production, the Executive Branch should include in the estimates of overall utilization the expected demands for humanitarian food assistance through such programs as are carried out under the Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954 (Public Law 480) [section 1691 et seq. of Title 7, Agriculture]; and
"(2) legislation providing increased flexibility for responding to emergency and humanitarian requirements for food assistance should be considered as promptly as possible to the end that the last sentence of section 401 of the Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954 (Public Law 480) [section 1731 of title 7], may be amended by striking the period and inserting in lieu thereof a comma and the following: 'unless the Secretary determines that some part of the exportable supply should be used to carry out the national interest and humanitarian objectives of this Act [see Short Title of 1973 Amendment note set out under section 2151 of this title]'."