Reviews: "Authoritatively and clearly explains the complexities of the international food aid regime and the World Food Programme."
—H. Wayne Moyer, Grinnell College

"Ross makes an important contribution to the literature on food aid and the fight against hunger, and he provides an in-depth insight into a side of the World Food Programme that is not often seen."
—Daniel Maxwell, Tufts University

Description: How has the World Food Programme come to be so well-regarded—even in the US—despite being part of the much-maligned UN system? What are the political and institutional conditions that have enabled it to accrue legitimacy as an international organization? And how much substance lies behind the perceptions of its effectiveness?

Finding the answers to these questions in his analysis of the institutional politics of the WFP, Sandy Ross illustrates important larger issues about international institutions and global governance. He also shows that the very terms of its success limit the WFP"s capacity to change the systemic problems that generate large-scale global hunger.

Contents: The World Food Programme in the International System • The Feed-the-Hungry Norm • Development of the Food Aid Regime • The Evolution of the World Food Programme • Inclusion and Accountability • Effectiveness • Feeding the Hungry • Appendixes: UN Resolution 1714; FAO Principles of Surplus Disposal; Statement by George McGovern, 10 April 1961; The WFP Mission Statement

About the Author: Sandy Ross is research fellow in the School of Social and Political Sciences, University of Melbourne.