What is the Black Sea Grain Initiative?

  • November 8, 2022
  • Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
  • Category: DPN Topics
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What is the Black Sea Grain Initiative?

Subject: International relations

Context:

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began, exports of grain from Ukraine, as well as food and fertilizers from Russia, have been significantly hit. The disruption in supplies pushed soaring prices even higher and contributed to a global food crisis.

The Black Sea Grain Initiative, brokered by the United Nations and Turkey, was set up to reintroduce vital food and fertilizer exports from Ukraine to the rest of the world. Here are some key points to understand.

 A deal to get vital supplies moving again

Ukraine, one of the world’s largest grain exporters( also called as breadbasket), normally supplies around 45 million tonnes of grain to the global market every year but, following Russia’s invasion of the country, in late February 2022, mountains of grains built up in silos, with ships unable to secure safe passage to and from Ukrainian ports, and land routes unable to compensate.

This contributed to a jump in the price of staple foods around the world. Combined with increases in the cost of energy, developing countries were pushed to the brink of debt default and increasing numbers of people found themselves on the brink of famine.

On 22 July, the UN, the Russian Federation, Turkey and Ukraine agreed the Black Sea Grain Initiative, at a signing ceremony in Turkey’s largest city, Istanbul.

The deal allowed exports from Ukraine of grain, other foodstuffs, and fertilizer, including ammonia, to resume through a safe maritime humanitarian corridor from three key Ukrainian ports: Chornomorsk, Odesa, and Yuzhny/Pivdennyi, to the rest of the world.

To implement the deal, a Joint Coordination Centre (JCC) was established in Istanbul, comprising senior representatives from the Russian Federation, Turkey, Ukraine, and the United Nations.

Supplies to World –

  • About 44% of the shipments, which include corn, wheat, rapeseed, and sunflower oil among others, reached high-income countries (including Spain, Netherlands and Italy among others),
  • 28% reached low and middle-income countries (Egypt, Iran, Sudan and Kenya among others) and
  • 27% reached upper-middle income countries (Turkey, China and Bulgaria among others).

Prelims Facts –

  1. Ukraine is among the largest exporters of wheat, maize, rapeseed, sunflower seeds and sunflower oil, globally.
  2. The UN Food and Agricultural Organisation’s (FAO)’s Food Price Index, assesses the monthly change in international prices of a basket of food commodities.

International Food Policy and Research Institute (IFPRI) –

The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) is an international agricultural research center founded in the early 1970s to improve the understanding of national agricultural and food policies to promote the adoption of innovations in agricultural technology.

  • The Global Food Policy Report is one of IFPRI’s flagship publications.
  • In 1993 IFPRI introduced the 2020 Vision Initiative, which aims at coordinating and supporting a debate among national governments, nongovernmental organizations, the private sector, international development institutions, and other elements of civil society to reach food security for all by 2020.
  • IFPRI produces the Global Hunger Index (GHI) yearly measuring the progress and failure of individual countries and regions in the fight against hunger. The GHI is a collaboration of IFPRI, the Welthungerhilfe, and Concern Worldwide.
  • IFPRI has produced the related Hunger Index for the States of India (ISHI) (2008) and the Sub-National Hunger Index for Ethiopia (2009)

Imp Map for Prelims –

International Relations What is the Black Sea Grain Initiative?