Office of the Historian

222. Note From the Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs (Armacost) to Secretary of State Shultz1

Washington, October 1, 1984
Mr. Secretary:

We face another acute food crisis in Africa. Credible reports anticipate as many as 900,000 deaths in Ethiopia alone by year’s end. Chet Crocker and Peter McPherson propose to freeze $50 million in PL 480 Title I reserves to assure that we have adequate resources on hand to meet urgent Africa needs through February when a supplemental may be required.2 I strongly endorse this course of action. It is the right thing to do, and we need to be out ahead of the problem.

Michael H. Armacost3
  1. Source: Department of State, U/S Michael Armacost CHRON and Country Files, 1979–1989, Lot 89D169, MHA Chron 1984. Confidential.↩
  2. In an undated, unsigned memorandum to Shultz, McPherson outlined FY 1984 spending on the African famine and discussed freezing the $50 million in Title I reserves, as well as Crocker’s ideas. (Reagan Library, African Affairs Directorate, NSC: Records, AF Famine: [05/20/84–09/30/84])↩
  3. Armacost initialed “MA” above his typed signature.↩