Food Security Bulletin - Issue 26 - Summer 2022
The Food Security Bulletin (FSB), prepared semi-annually by the Palestine Economic Policy Research Institute (MAS), actively contributes to the work of the Food Security Sector in Palestine. The Bulletin aims to provide decision-makers and institutions in the field with regular and fruitful information pertaining to their important work. This 26th issue of the FSB comes after unprecedented and consecutive shocks in the global commodities market with the COVID-19 pandemic and the Ukraine war.
The Bulletin, covering the first half of 2022, begins with the latest Food Security news – reviewing food security implications in the face of the Russia-Ukraine crisis. It draws strategic implications following trade disruptions and protectionist policies in other countries while shedding light on local and regional responsive capacities. This comes in addition to the semi-annual updates the FSB provides on periodic changes in global and Palestinian food prices, utilizing the latest Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) and Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) data.
This timely issue of the FSB comes at a critical juncture, where government and NGO institutions are contending with accumulated financial pressures and threats to the effectiveness and sustainability of their relief programs. The latest developments in funding key programs provided by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) and the World Food Programme (WFP) are examined under aid disruptions, alongside the unfavorable financial condition of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) and its National Cash Transfer Program (NCTP). Nevertheless, the FSB also reviews the, seldom covered, secondary, positive externalities of food security programs by publicizing the recent cash-based transfer modality report of the WFP.
Finally, the Bulletin includes a literature review of two key papers relevant to the aforementioned latest developments in global and regional food security issues. An additional review takes on a piece examining technical efficiency and total factor productivity with cooperative membership in the West Bank.
While MAS continues to report on the overall food security situation in Palestine, it is also deepening and expanding its coverage of related issues, through both regular coverage of agriculture and related social development issues in the Quarterly Economic Monitor, as well as in-depth analytical policy studies on agriculture finance, food losses, the food system, and related SDGs. Through its comprehensive and interdisciplinary approach, the Institute offers an inclusive forum for research and dialogue on the complex and evolving issues affecting food security and nutrition. Visit our new and updated website to learn more.
