MILLET
EXPORTS - AGRICULTURE
News:
United Nations applauds
India's push for millets & wheat exports to countries in food crisis
What's
in the news?
●
The United
Nations Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) has praised India for
refocusing on millets and selling 1.8 million tonnes of wheat to 18 nations
that experienced a severe food scarcity last year as a result of Russia-Ukraine
conflict.
Key
takeaways:
●
Millets are important for farmers to adapt to climate change, given their
drought resistance and to ensure nutrition in some of the world's poorest and
most remote areas.
India
and Millets:
●
India
is the world leader in the production of millets with a share
of around 41% of total world production in 2020.
●
India produces around 12 million MT of
millets annually, according to Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare
data.
Various
Kinds of Millets:
●
The various kinds of millets include
sorghum (Jowar), pearl millet (Bajra), finger millet (Ragi), little millet
(Kutki), small millet (Samai), foxtail millet (Kangni), proso millet (Barri),
barnyard millet (Jhangora), kodo millet (Kodra), two pseudo millets (buckwheat
and kuttu), Ameranthus (Chulai) and other millets.
Top
Millet Exporters:
Top
Millet Importers:
Status
of Indian Millet Exports:
●
India’s export of Millets is 64 million USD in the year 2021-22.
●
India is exporting millets to 139
countries across the globe. The export of value-added products of Indian
millets are also spread across the world.
Major
Export Destinations of Indian Millets:
Measures
taken by India to increase Millet exports:
●
Agricultural and Processed Food Products
Export Development Authority (APEDA)
has been aggressively working towards facilitating shipments of millets by
Indian exporters and helping them make inroads into new markets.
●
APEDA has developed its own Virtual Trade Fair (VTF) application to
facilitate interaction among exporters, producer organizations and
international buyers.
●
APEDA has created the Nutri-Cereals Export Promotion Forum which also includes millet
exports. It has also organized a sensitization programme for millet start-ups
to familiarize them about export opportunities.
●
APEDA has signed an MOU with Indian Institute of Millets Research (IIMR) for making a
strategy for promotion of millets and millet value added products.
●
Union
Budget 2022-23 provides assistance for post-harvest
value addition and branding of millet products in the domestic as well as
global markets.
●
16
programmes are being planned by APEDA for promotion of Millets
and Value Added Products of Millets in UAE, Indonesia, USA, Japan, UK, Germany,
Australia, Republic of Korea, South Africa and Saudi Arabia.
Go
back to basics:
IFAD:
●
The International Fund for Agricultural
Development is a UN specialized agency
that has been concentrating on supporting initiatives in various poor and
vulnerable countries to help them combat poverty, hunger, and food insecurity.
●
IFAD works towards removing poverty and hunger in rural areas all over the world,
especially in developing countries.
Headquarters
-
Rome, Italy
Goal:
●
Its goal is to empower poor rural men and
women in developing countries to achieve higher incomes and improved food
security.
Uniqueness:
●
It is the only multilateral development institution exclusively focused on
transforming rural economies and food systems.
Governance:
●
IFAD is managed by the two main governing bodies i.e. the
Governing Council and the Executive Board.
●
The Governing Council is the highest
decision-making body of IFAD.
Members:
●
IFAD has 177 member states and works in partnership with the Organization of
the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and members of the Organisation for
Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
IFAD
and India:
●
India
is a founder member of IFAD and a key contributor among the
member countries.