Expressing the Commitment of the House of RepMcresentatives to Building on the Twenty Years of Success of the George Govern-Robert Dole Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program

Floor Speech

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Mr. McGOVERN. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 1156) expressing the commitment of the House of Representatives to building on the twenty years of success of the George McGovern-Robert Dole Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program.

The Clerk read the title of the resolution.

The text of the resolution is as follows: H. Res. 1156

Whereas the George McGovern-Robert Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program (referred to in this preamble as the ``McGovern-Dole Program'') has improved the food security, nutrition, literacy, and primary education of school-age children, particularly young girls, and their families in over 48 countries in just two decades;

Whereas the McGovern-Dole Program was established by section 3107 of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 1736o-1) to procure agricultural commodities and provide financial and technical assistance to carry out preschool and school food for education programs in foreign countries and maternal, infant, and child nutrition programs for pregnant women, nursing mothers, infants, and children who are 5 years of age or younger;

Whereas the McGovern-Dole Program has provided over 5.5 billion school meals benefitting over 31 million school-age children and their communities;

Whereas the McGovern-Dole Program has been successfully administered by the Foreign Agricultural Service of the Department of Agriculture;

Whereas the McGovern-Dole Program is a key program of the Department of Agriculture aligned with the governmentwide Global Food Security Strategy;

Whereas in fiscal year 2021 alone, McGovern-Dole Program projects have directly benefitted more than 4.5 million children and community members through the distribution of United States-produced commodities that provide daily nutritious and high-quality meals and mitigate food insecurity;

Whereas the McGovern-Dole Program partners with American farmers, who provide 46,770 metric tons (``MT'') of food commodities in support of fiscal year 2021 McGovern-Dole Program grants in Central America, Africa, and Asia;

Whereas the McGovern-Dole Program complements United States agricultural commodities with food grown and purchased locally to support farmers and markets within their own communities and to build the capacity of local governments and communities to continue and sustain the benefits of the McGovern-Dole Program into the future;

Whereas during the COVID-19 pandemic when school closures were commonplace, the McGovern-Dole Program effectively shifted from providing meals in schools to providing take- home rations and distributed approximately 23,000 MT of commodities donated by the United States and 550 MT of locally procured commodities to more than 1,700,000 McGovern- Dole Program participants and their families across 26 active projects, ensuring that children continued to receive daily meals and learn while at home;

Whereas the McGovern-Dole Program recognizes the value of educating young girls and contributes to overcoming the barriers they encounter in accessing a high-quality education by promoting equality and the reduction of gender-based violence;

Whereas school meals provide an incentive for families to send girls to school and help girls to stay in school, effectively preventing early marriage and delaying first pregnancy, which can trap young women in poverty and limit their future potential;

Whereas the McGovern-Dole Program strengthens local community health and education through the formation of parent-teacher associations, teacher training, and improving the infrastructure of schools, classrooms, commodity storerooms, latrines, and water sources; and

Whereas the United States, as a member of the Global School Meals Coalition, is committed to and recognizes that investments in McGovern-Dole Program, are central to bolstering food security, building resilience to future shocks, and supporting the nutritional, health, and educational needs of children and adolescents worldwide: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Representatives that the United States is committed to--

(1) building upon the twenty years of successful work of the George McGovern-Robert Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program (in this resolution referred to as the ``McGovern-Dole Program'') and its positive role in breaking cycles of hunger and poverty, providing opportunity through education and literacy, and improving overall nutrition and health;

(2) complementing humanitarian assistance efforts and development programs through the continued implementation of the McGovern-Dole Program that addresses global food insecurity and creates conditions for peace and stability; and

(3) supporting United States farmers, millers, shippers, and commodity groups that provide agricultural commodities for use in the McGovern-Dole Program to help combat global malnutrition and food insecurity and advance global education.
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Mr. McGOVERN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of H. Res. 1156. Today, we are considering this legislation, calling on Congress to build on the 20 years of success of the George McGovern-Robert Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program.

McGovern-Dole is one of America's signature child nutrition and food security programs. It is named after Senators George McGovern and Bob Dole, both of whom worked tirelessly and in a bipartisan way to end hunger among children in the United States and around the world.

They continued their work together after leaving the Senate, living examples of what can be accomplished when Members of Congress put partisanship aside and make the welfare of children and families their number one priority.

In that bipartisan tradition, I am proud to stand here today with my Republican colleague and co-lead on this resolution, Congressman Tracey Mann. I am grateful to each of the 86 bipartisan cosponsors of this resolution.

I also want to honor and recognize our former colleague, the incredible Jo Ann Emerson, who was my co-lead in 2001 when the McGovern-Dole legislation was first introduced and later established by Congress in the 2002 farm bill.

Over the past 20 years, McGovern-Dole has provided lifesaving meals in a school setting to over 31 million of the world's most vulnerable children, providing U.S. and international organizations with American commodities, grants, and technical assistance to strengthen child nutrition and education.

Working through partners like the World Food Programme, Catholic Relief Services, World Vision, Save the Children, Counterpart International, and many more, McGovern-Dole has reduced hunger and increased school enrollments, attendance, literacy, and the support of families and communities for education, especially for girls.

America's farmers are vital to the success of the McGovern-Dole Program. Over the past 20 years, more than 1.3 million metric tons of U.S. commodities have been used to create nutritious, culturally appropriate school meals in over 48 countries.

But just as important as the statistics, perhaps even more important, are the stories. I remember in Colombia, I visited a program in Soacha, on the outskirts of Bogota. On barren hillsides, surrounded by shanties housing thousands of internally displaced families, children were receiving school breakfast and lunch.

Mothers and grandmothers were training as cooks, preparing the meals. Clearly visible in the cafeteria were USDA and USAID bags of grains, beans, and lentils.

One mother came up to me and said: ``Please thank the American people when you go back home. I couldn't feed my children. I couldn't send them to school. I was afraid my son was going to join the paramilitaries or the guerillas just to get food. Now, my son is getting fed, and he is staying in school. Please tell the American people thank you.''

In Nairobi, Kenya, in the largest slum in the world, I went to a McGovern-Dole breakfast and lunch program. The school principal showed me how they store and prepare the U.S. commodities that feed her students and how all the students know that this is a program from the American people. I ate porridge made from American yellow peas. The kids dug into the food like it was manna from heaven.

One little boy would take a bite and then scoop a small amount out of his bowl and put it in his pockets. He was taking food home to his younger siblings who don't get anything to eat.

Madam Speaker, McGovern-Dole represents the very best of this country. It is something the American people should be proud of, a powerful message to the world about who we are and what we stand for, not only freedom of speech, freedom of religion, or freedom of the press, but also freedom from want, freedom from fear, and freedom from hunger.

There are many ways to advance our national security and economic interests abroad. This program ought to be at the top of the list. As we confront the global challenges of war, pandemic, and climate change, food security and nutrition programs must remain at the forefront of international development and humanitarian work.

I urge my colleagues to visit McGovern-Dole programs when they travel abroad. I urge them to support funding that expands and builds upon these 20 years of success.

Madam Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support H. Res.

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Mr. McGOVERN. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Bishop).

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Mr. McGOVERN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman from Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro), the distinguished chair of the Appropriations Committee.

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Mr. McGOVERN. Madam Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman from Connecticut (Mrs. Hayes), my distinguished colleague.

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Mr. McGOVERN. Madam Speaker, I have one additional speaker, but I don't see her. I yield myself the balance of my time to close.

First of all, let me thank the gentleman from Kansas (Mr. Mann) for his support of this resolution and for his advocacy on behalf of the McGovern-Dole program. As we listened to the back-and-forth here today, it is really quite inspiring to see the breadth of the bipartisanship here, that we are all dedicated to trying to deal with this horrific problem of childhood hunger around the world.

Hunger is a political condition. We have the resources, the funds, and the infrastructure. We have everything we need to eradicate hunger in this country and across the planet. What we have lacked is the political will.

The McGovern-Dole program was inspired by George McGovern and Bob Dole, a liberal Democrat from South Dakota and a conservative Republican from Kansas. Their efforts together have made a dent in childhood hunger. It has made a huge difference. It has allowed more young kids, especially girls, to go to school, to become literate, to be able to get an education, to be able to succeed in their countries.

It is so incredible when you travel and you see a McGovern-Dole project anywhere in the world, how grateful people are to the people of the United States for supporting this.

Parents are the same everywhere. We all want to make sure that our kids are safe, that they are fed, that they have a good future. What this program does is, it helps parents ensure that their kids' future is bright.

I believe that when we talk about national security, it has to be more than just about the number of bombs we have. It has to be about how we alleviate these global challenges like hunger, and in this case, childhood hunger. That is the way we build a more secure and a more stable world.

I am proud of all the organizations that have participated in the McGovern-Dole program. I am proud of all those who have helped administer the McGovern-Dole program, and I am proud to serve with colleagues, Democrats and Republicans, who support this important initiative.

I will close simply by saying, this is not only a good program, it is a great program. At a time when people wonder where the bipartisanship is in Washington, here is an example where we can bring people together.

I know I mentioned her briefly in the beginning, but I do want to acknowledge our former colleague, Congresswoman Jo Ann Emerson from Missouri. She was a strong partner in this effort early on, in getting the legislation that established McGovern-Dole up and running, and I can't ever thank her enough.

To all my colleagues, please support H. Res. 1156, and please let us all commit to doing more to eradicate hunger and food insecurity here in the United States and around the world in the year to come.

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H. Res. 1156, expressing the commitment of the House of Representatives to building on the twenty years of success of the George McGovern-Robert Dole Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program.

The McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program helps support education, child development and food security in low-income, food-deficit countries around the globe.

In 2017, there were 821 million people worldwide experiencing hunger. That is one in every nine people.

66 million children are experiencing hunger worldwide every day. One in six children are food insecure.

According to UNICEF, approximately 3.1 million children globally die from undernutrition every year. It is estimated that every 10 seconds a child around the globe dies from hunger.

Even in the United States, hunger and food insecurity are major problems. In my home of Houston, almost 725,000 people experience food insecurity, which amounts to about 23% of Houston's households.

More than 500,000 Houstonians live in food deserts. These food deserts are found mostly in areas with limited transportation, lack of aid, and high unemployment rates.

Hunger is also tragic because it reflects economic and social inequity. In Houston, for example, food deserts are more likely to occur in primarily Black communities.

Lack of food doesn't just impact a child's hunger levels. Food insecurity stunts a child's growth and development and often children fall behind in school because they are unable to focus while experiencing hunger.

Children who experience food insecurity grow into adults with health complications that emerged from the lack of food.

As former Chair of the Congressional Children's Caucus I worked to improve the lives of children not only in the United States, but globally because the children are the future, and we must do everything possible to protect them.

Global food insecurity is of great importance to me because, not only am I a longtime Member of the House Hunger Caucus, I represent the same Congressional District that had been represented by iconic leaders who fought to end hunger in the U.S. and globally.

I am proud to continue the historic legacy of Congresswoman Barbara Jordan, who was a champion for human dignity and fought for the rights of all people regardless of race, gender, heritage, or economic status, and Congressman Mickey Leland, who worked tirelessly to raise awareness of, and fight for, policies to end food insecurity around the globe and who, tragically, died in a plane crash while working to end world hunger on a relief mission in Ethiopia.

Starvation is a terrible thing. It's something that nobody should have to go through. And yet, there are people in this world who are starving right now as a consequence of natural disasters, war, and even as a tool of warfare.

In Pakistan, food deprivation is compounded by the human toll from recent floods and other natural disasters. Using drought to strategically exacerbate starvation is unacceptable.

The people of Ethiopia's Tigre Province are being subjected to a truly vile and malicious use of food deprivation in this way. The region was already suffering from drought, and when compounded by forced starvation from denial of access to food as a weapon of war, the effect is heinous and the consequences are unforgiveable.

Russia's aggression against Ukraine is a global food insecurity tragedy on multiple levels. As Putin wages his war against the people of Ukraine, he uses food as a weapon by destroying the food production and transportation capacity of the country he invaded. At the same time, since Ukraine grows grains and crops that feed much of the world, Putin's devastation of Ukraine's food production infrastructure and takeovers of Ukrainian food exports cause food insecure populations of countless countries to suffer, especially in Africa.

The McGovern-Dole program also aims to defeat malnutrition. Children across the globe are affected by malnutrition and the McGovern Dole program is working to combat this debilitating condition.

The McGovern Dole Program has been successful at saving lives all over the world for 20 years.

This program boosts school enrollment, increases attendance, and improves reading outcomes and literacy results through providing school meals, teacher training, and government capacity-building.

The McGovern Dole Program has been able to improve health, nutrition, and dietary practices through supporting Maternal and Child Nutrition (MCN). The program encourages the inclusion of health and nutrition sensitive activities, such as micronutrient-fortified products, take- home rations, treatments for illnesses, and nutrition education.

H. Res. 1156 must be passed. With bipartisan Congressional support, the United States has been able to work with other countries on hunger, specifically childhood hunger, which is a devastating condition.

It is imperative that we continue to work together to reduce hunger worldwide.

We must end this unnecessary suffering before it claims even more lives.

This bill must be important to us all. Investing in children today will only benefit the world in the future.

We must continue this program to address global food insecurity and create conditions for peace and stability.

This effort will support U.S. farmers, millers, shippers, and commodity groups that provide agricultural commodities for the program to help combat malnutrition and food insecurity worldwide.

I encourage my colleagues to join me in supporting this critical bill that will build upon the 20 years of success of the George McGovern-Robert Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program.

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