The New Nation - Internet Edition

UNB, Dhaka

Food aid from the US Department of Agriculture to Bangladesh Government has long been halted for not spending the previous assistance worth over US$ 30m in 10 years, a senior American official said here Wednesday.

Oliver Flake, Agricultural Attaché of the US Embassy in New Delhi, made the remark while talking to reporters at a seminar at a local hotel. He said the money given 10 years ago was supposed to be spent in 18 months.

Flake said the money needs to be spent before the US Dept of Agriculture could consider further food aid.

He noted that the prices of wheat would go down in Bangladesh if some minor changes were made to the tender process of wheat procurement.

The seminar on "International Wheat Market and Bangladesh Wheat Import" was organized by US Wheat Associates, an organization that represents US wheat producers. US Ambassador in Dhaka James Moriarty and US Wheat Associates Vice-president Mark Samson also spoke on the occasion.

The meet took place at a time when the people of Bangladesh are buying wheat flour, as also other foodstuffs, at prices they have paid never before-largely for production shortfalls at home and abroad, combined with reported market manipulation.

Ambassador Moriarty said inflation and global climate change are two major challenges facing Bangladesh, and high food prices worldwide strike hard at low-income countries like Bangladesh.

"Global climate change appears to bring more natural disasters which often wipe out crops. Bangladesh successfully and simultaneously tackled both those problems in the past years. The result was strong economic growth for the year, more than 6 percent," he said. Describing agricultural trade between Bangladesh and US as vibrant, Moriarty said free and efficient trade could help

Bangladesh secure food stocks at the best prices in times of crisis. He mentioned that in the last four years Bangladesh's agricultural exports to the US have doubled from US$ 86m to US$ 166m. US agricultural exports to Bangladesh have also grown from US$ 79 to US$ 120m in last two years, the US envoy said.

Moriarty said that improved trade practices mean more wheat at better prices for the people of Bangladesh. "What we seek is a level playing field to allow US farmers to compete fairly to feed Bangladesh's hungry mouths," he told the function.

He said that the people of Bangladesh impressed him with their strength in the face of threat to their survival- natural disaster, food crises. "In the face of adversity, Bangladeshis have made tremendous progress, specially in their ability to grow their own food."

US wheat Associates Vice-president Samson said that last year (from June to May), 230,000 tons of wheat was imported from the USA in private sector while there was no import in public sector.

He said this year (from June till today) there is no import of US wheat either in private or public sector. About the reason behind it Samson said, "Price (of US wheat) is higher."

He also said the forecast is that the wheat export from the United States would be steady this year.