The problem is that the USA, Europe, and other wealthy donors tend to wait until the crisis is full blown—eg, television pictures of babies with bloated bellies—until they hand over badly needed funds. "Donors are inherently driven by the politics of response”, said Barrett. As one senior US aid official describes it, humanitarian assistance is almost nonexistent in Somalia, weak in Ethiopia, and just ramping up in Kenya.
"Working through the agricultural system is more sustainable than, for example, (vitamin and mineral) supplements, which have an expensive delivery system, and people have to keep coming back.