The rural world: neglected in the fight against the Coronavirus
While the Ecuadorian authorities prioritize fighting the Coronavirus in cities, the rural sector, especially peasant and indigenous family farming, not only feels unprotected, but also deeply affected by preventative measures.
In a statement published today, FIAN Ecuador reports the great impact that current policies and preventative measures are causing in the rural world, particularly in peasant and indigenous family agriculture. According to the Ecuadorian section of FIAN International, the current situation is the result of a model that has subjected nature to a process of "productive artificialization" that has led to the spread of pathogens, the deterioration of the immune system of all species that inhabit the planet, and which is contributing to climate change.
Among its observations, FIAN Ecuador stresses that family and indigenous agriculture continues to be dependent on intermediaries, who have their own transportation and have the conditions to market in the cities.
"That is why it is important that local governments guarantee food transportation and direct marketing without intermediaries," explains the statement.
This dynamic is also reflected in other countries where hundreds of thousands of peasants and other rural workers are left utterly helpless while government focus on urban areas. The current situation, where a food crisis seems imminent, confirms that, to face this and future pandemics, a transformation of food systems - that puts small-scale food producers at the center - is essential. There is no going back to normal.
You can access the statement here.