Embassy Managua's Diplomatic Outreach Plan Supporting the

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 MANAGUA 000004 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAID ECON PREL PGOV NU SUBJECT: Embassy Managua's Diplomatic Outreach Plan Supporting the GHFSI and the GON's Food Security Strategy REF: A) STATE 124059; B) STATE 127466; C) STATE 12958 D) MANAGUA 1318 SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (SBU) Per reftel A, Embassy Managua has developed a diplomatic strategy to promote and support the Secretary's Global Hunger and Food Security Initiative (GHFSI). Where possible, we will attempt to complement the GON's food security strategy. Our plan focuses on the following four areas: 1) engaging the GON and Nicaraguan people on the benefits of market-led development to promote food security and address poverty; 2) seeking areas of cooperation to enhance the GON's fulfillment of its food security goals where consistent with our own approach; 3) exploring a regional focus to maximize USG food security assistance in Nicaragua; 4) improving international donor coordination. Despite our differing policy approaches with the GON regarding the best means to improve food security, we believe there are areas of mutual interest to build upon. End Summary. POVERTY REDUCTION KEY TO IMPROVING FOOD SECURITY -------------- -------------- -------------- ¶2. (U) The primary food security challenge in Nicaragua is alleviating widespread, endemic poverty. Access to food supplies and basic staples has steadily improved here since 1990, yet the majority of Nicaraguans remain food-insecure because they simply lack the purchasing power required to maintain an adequate, nutritious diet. According to a 2008 World Bank report, 46 percent of the Nicaraguan population, or almost 2.4 million people, live in poverty. Fifteen percent of the population, or 766,000 people, live in extreme poverty. Although Nicaragua's gross domestic product (GDP) growth averaged 3.8 percent from 1995-2008, the World Bank estimates that this rate of growth is insufficient to meet the GON's long term development goal of reducing extreme poverty by 50 percent. THE GON'S FOOD SECURITY STRATEGY -------------- -------------- ¶3. (U) In May 2009, the GON unveiled its new food security strategy that clearly favors a state-led approach, to be implemented at the community (neighborhood),municipal, and departmental level. The GON strategy, entitled, "Food Security and Nutritional Sovereignty Policy for the Agricultural and Rural Sectors," promotes food availability, access, consumption, and utilization for Nicaragua's poorest locales. The GON strategy asserts that achieving food security and poverty reduction are likely to be accomplished utilizing the following methods: an emphasis on domestic food production; buying and selling food in local markets; respecting local knowledge and practices related to food production, storage, processing, and preparation; and ensuring that food imports, both commercial and donations, do not negatively impact domestic production. ¶4. (SBU) Unfortunately, the GON's desired mechanism to implement its food security strategy is via its so-called Citizen Power Councils (CPCs),formed in 2007, which are highly-politicized entities controlled by the ruling Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) party that duplicates the GON's official structure at all levels, and whose membership owes allegiance to President Ortega and First Lady Rosario Murillo. The First Couple has used the CPCs to impose their will and policies on the general population (ref D). For instance, Ortega and Murillo have used the CPCs to implement hunger and poverty reduction programs, such as the "Hambre Cero" (Zero Hunger) program, for partisan reasons. Based on this precedent, we have little confidence that the CPCs will implement the new GON food security program in a non-partisan manner. There is also concern among international donors, and local political and civil society leaders, that the GON's food security strategy will be used to help FSLN supporters to further Ortega's goal of reelection in 2011. ¶5. (U) The GON food security strategy also fails to identify and clearly distinguish the competencies and complementary roles of the private and public sectors. The GON proposal blurs the line between the two objectives of any comprehensive food security strategy. The first objective should be to achieve sustainable food security among individuals who possess the short/medium term potential to overcome their condition of poverty, while the second objective should be to provide immediate food safety nets for those who are chronically (or temporarily) poor with minimal recovery potential. In our view, the first objective should be led by the private sector in Nicaragua, focused on the chain of production and marketing, job creation, and income generation. The second objective should be state-led because of its social protection mandate. GON agreement on these separate, but complementary, roles would assist Embassy Managua and other players to channel and coordinate their support to the GON more effectively. EMBASSY MANAGUA'S DIPLOMATIC OUTREACH PLAN -------------- -------------- -------------- ¶6. (U) Nonetheless, the United States has national security and humanitarian interests in Nicaragua related to food security. Persistently high levels of poverty, hunger, and food insecurity engender instability, and negatively impact building upon our current activities, and long term economic development. Given our limited resources, we propose the following outreach plan to promote the GHFSI, complementing the GON's efforts to improve food security in Nicaragua: a) engage the GON and Nicaraguan public on the benefits of market-led development to promote food security and reduce poverty; b) explore areas of cooperation to support the GON's emergency food security safety net programs; c) implement a regional focus within Nicaragua to maximize USG food security assistance; d) improve international donor coordination. PROMOTING A NATIONAL DIALOGUE ON MARKET-LED DEVELOPMENT -------------- -------------- -------------- ¶7. (SBU) Market-based development remains the best method to reduce poverty and improve food security here. Nicaragua has achieved impressive private sector-led economic growth, job creation, and income generation through the Central American-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR), USAID's Economic Growth and Agriculture activities, the Millennium Challenge Corporation's (MCC) Compact, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) technical assistance and Food for Progress PL-480 programs. [Note: PL-480 obligations are slated to end in Nicaragua in 2010. As a result, GHFSI funds could fill a critical void. End Note.] To promote the benefits of market-based development, members of Embassy Managua's Country Team will engage with senior and mid-level GON officials to underscore the importance of the GON's critical role in supporting conditions to further stimulate and reinforce market-based development. We will emphasize the importance of investing in key communication and infrastructure projects, market feeder roads and bridges, energy sources for targeted rural areas to include mini-hydroelectric plants and the harnessing of solar energy and wind power, and small irrigation technologies and systems. ¶8. (SBU) We will also place strategic op-eds and related articles in both major daily newspapers on the benefits of market-led development, highlighting the critical roles of the private and public sectors in improving food security. Another available tool is the use of targeted IIP speakers. Embassy Managua's Public Affairs Section hopes to execute a full speaker program on food security in 2010, which would include visits to several key cities in Nicaragua. Our goal is to reinforce the message on market-led development via positive coverage in the local media. EXPLORING AREAS OF COOPERATION -------------- -------------- ¶9. (SBU) Post will explore ways to cooperate with the GON that could complement its more reasonable food security goals. While we do not support the GON's state-led and politicized strategy to improve food security, we will discuss with GON counterparts how USG assistance programs could help create conditions to promote sustainable food security. In these discussions we will stress partnering with the private sector, and strengthening social safety net programs for the extremely poor, identifying problem areas that require more support such as nutritional health and education programs for mothers and children. A REGIONAL FOCUS FOR USG ASSISTANCE -------------- -------------- ¶10. (SBU) Given scarce resources to promote food security, we will review our assistance programs to determine whether a regional focus within Nicaragua would yield maximum benefits. USAID is currently conducting a series of background assessments, including a reevaluation and validation of where to focus investments in food security in north-central Nicaragua, for example. This region is home to the largest number of poor and extremely poor families, and is perennially vulnerable to natural disasters such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and droughts. MCC's highly successful Compact, which contains food security elements, already maintains a regional focus in western Nicaragua, particularly in the departments of Leon and Chinandega. [Regrettably, Nicaragua's poor performance on governance and corruption, most egregiously demonstrated in the massive fraud in the administration of the November 2008 municipal elections, has led to a partial termination of MCC assistance.] IMPROVING DONOR COORDINATION -------------- -------------- ¶11. (SBU) Improved donor coordination to address food security issues in Nicaragua is another key element in promoting the GHFSI here. Post will adopt a leading role in coordinating an enhanced dialogue with our bilateral and multilateral partners through workshops and related activities. According to the World Bank, over 40 bilateral and multilateral donors are active in Nicaragua disbursing nearly $550 million annually in foreign assistance. The World Bank further estimates that 25-30 percent of this assistance is allocated for food security-related programs. Hundreds of NGOs active in Nicaragua maintain food security-related projects. Facilitating more information sharing will provide donors a more complete picture of what sorts of projects are being implemented throughout Nicaragua, and whether they are effective. ¶12. (SBU) Given the large role of UN agencies here, we would encourage our colleagues at USUN New York, USUN Rome and US Mission Geneva to take advantage of U.S. influence to consult respectively with the WFP, UNESCO, UNPD and other UN entities. Our goal should be to persuade the UN's Managua offices to more closely collaborate with other donors here such as the European Commission, EU Member States and other important donor countries such as Japan. SANDERS