| Spotlight on World Food Day: Reassessing Priorities |
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World Food Day, held every year on October 16 to mark the day that the UN Food and Agricultural Organization was founded in 1945, marks a tragic note in 2008. In the midst of a global financial crisis that raises serious concerns about meeting international aid commitments, a dramatic increase in food prices has already pushed nearly a billion people to the brink of starvation. With the attention of world leaders consumed by a bailout of the international financial system, a mere fraction of the $2 trillion used to support the world's banks could wipe hunger off the planet. While the financial crisis demands the attention of the world's richest countries, 967 million malnourished people are left waiting for their own multi-billion dollar rescue plan. This “colossal human tragedy”, in the words of UN General Secretary Ban Ki-moon, is unfolding as the world fights to keep the promise made in the first Millennium Development Goal (MDG) – to reduce hunger and poverty by half by the year 2015. The global financial crisis now threatens to push millions more into severe hunger, according to a new report by Oxfam International. Other news released by the FAO places the hunger situation into context: according to the latest issue of the UN's Crop Prospects and Food Situation report, crop production this year is forecast to increase 4.9 percent to a record 2,232 million tonnes. A combination of crises across the Horn of Africa, on the other hand, has left more than 17 million people on the precipice of a new humanitarian disaster - the equivalent of nearly the entire population of Australia facing starvation, says a recent report released by CARE International. As Banks Are Rescued, Will the World's Hungry Be Overlooked? - Oxfam World Food Day Reminder of Daily Crisis Borne by Millions, Say UN officials Links to Related Articles by STWR 17th October 08 - Petra Sorge, Spiegel Online As Banks Are Rescued, Will the World's Hungry Be Overlooked? Link to the Oxfam briefing paper: Double-Edged Prices - Lessons from the Food Price Crisis A dramatic increase in food prices over the last year has pushed nearly a billion people to the brink of starvation. The international aid organization Oxfam warns in a new report that the global financial crisis could exacerbate the situation. As markets plunge around the world and rich countries become increasingly preoccupied with the global financial crisis, 923 million around the world are going hungry waiting for their own multibillion dollar rescue plan. According to a new study released on Thursday by the international aid organization Oxfam, the world hunger crisis threatens to slip entirely under the radar as developed countries grow more and more obsessed with the turmoil in financial markets. "At the same time when billions of dollars are being allocated to address the financial crisis, it seems as if the world hunger crisis has been totally forgotten," said Marita Wiggerthale, an expert with Oxfam Germany told SPIEGEL ONLINE. Last May, the prospects for fighting world hunger looked much brighter. At a conference held in Rome, industrialized nations pledged $12.3 billion to help combat the problem. So far, though, only $1 billion has been paid out. To put these figures in perspective, German Chancellor Angela Merkel that would commit up to €500 billion ($669 billion) to help bailout German banks and financial institutions. A stark increase in food prices over the last year is putting an ever larger portion of the globe at risk for starvation. Over the last 14 months, for example, the price of rice has gone up 66 percent in Bangladesh while the price of wheat has doubled in Senegal and quadrupled in Somalia "Since families in developing countries spend almost two-thirds of their income on food, even a small increase in prices can push the poorest of the poor toward starvation," said Wiggerthale. And while "one might think that millions of farmers in poor countries would be benefiting from the recent climb in prices, but that's not happening." The reason, said Wiggerthale, is that farmers are consumers as well as producers of commodities. At the same time that food prices have risen, the cost of seed and fertilizer has also nearly tripled. That's why in countries such as Zambia and Malawi, the poverty rate is rising twice as fast in the countryside as in cities. The United Nations estimates it would require between $25 billion and $40 billion to effectively respond to the world hunger crisis. The measures taken so far, according to Oxfam, are "totally inadequate." Still, not everyone is feeling the squeeze from soaring food prices. Several big multinational corporations linked to agriculture are having banner years. Nestle's revenues were up nine percent in the first half of 2008, while sales at British supermarket giant Tesco climbed 10 percent. The biggest winner of all might be agribusiness giant Monsanto: Its profits for the first quarter amounted to $3.6 billion, a 26 percent spike over last year. World Food Day Reminder of Daily Crisis Borne by Millions, Say UN officials 17th October 08 - UN News As the eyes of the world continue to watch the ups and downs of global markets amid the current financial turmoil, United Nations officials are calling attention today to another global crisis – hunger – which affects millions daily and kills a child every six seconds. “This year’s World Food Day comes at a time of crisis,” Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon states in his message for the occasion. “Global financial turmoil is exacerbating concerns about rising food and fuel costs, which have already driven 75 million people deeper into the abyss of hunger and poverty.” Mr. Ban notes that this “colossal human tragedy” is unfolding as the world fights to keep the promise made in the first Millennium Development Goal (MDG) – to reduce hunger and poverty by half by the year 2015. Even before prices started rising, 800 million people were going to sleep hungry every night, the Secretary-General points out. And now, with energy costs rising and the price of food having more than doubled in the past year alone, an additional 100 million people could be pushed into hunger and poverty. “These are life-and-death matters that we must confront with serious thought and resolute action,” he adds, calling on Governments, organizations and citizens to forge meaningful partnerships to overcome these challenges so the world can meet all the MDGs and, ultimately, usher in a world free of hunger and poverty. The head of the UN World Food Programme (WFP) agreed that at a time when the world’s attention is consumed by the financial crisis, it is appropriate to focus today on the global hunger crisis, which is a daily reality for families across the globe. “Rapidly rising food shortages, dramatic increases in fuel costs, and profound changes in climate conditions conspired this year to bring new dimensions of suffering and hardship to the poor, depriving almost one billion people of the food they need to live a healthy life,” Executive Director Josette Sheeran said in her message for the Day. “On this day, we remember those who have lived with the ache of hunger, for too long . . . and who now need our help even more,” she added. World Food Day is observed annually on 16 October, the day on which the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) was founded in 1945. At a ceremony today at FAO headquarters in Rome, Director-General Jacques Diouf called for a political and financial push to boost sustainable agriculture in the world’s poor countries, double global food production and free the world of hunger and malnutrition. “I wish to reaffirm that we know what needs to be done to eradicate the hunger of 923 million people in the world. We also know what needs to be done to double world food production and feed a population that is expected to rise to 9 billion people by 2050.” He noted that $22 billion was pledged to promote global food security earlier this year, but that only 10 per cent of this has so far materialized – mainly for emergency food aid. “What we need ... is political will and delivery on financial commitments, if we are to be able to make the essential investments that are needed to promote sustainable agricultural development and food security in the poorest countries of the world,” he stated. Describing the situation of hunger in the world as “alarming,” the independent UN expert on the right to food has called for a new production system to tackle the global food crisis. In a message to mark the Day, UN Special Rapporteur Olivier De Schutter states that “the violation on a daily basis of the right to food for hundreds of millions of people worldwide has its roots in an outdated and inadequate production system, rather than in the actual quantity of food available. “But there is hope in this crisis,” he adds. “Indeed, if the right choices are made now, this shock may even prove salutary, for it provides governments and international agencies with an opportunity to learn from what happened.” Among the activities planned in over 150 countries to mark this year’s World Food Day is the popular Run for Food, which will take place in Rome on 19 October involving 4,000 people with a similar event to be held on the same day in Milan. Other major events are also planned in Albania, Egypt, Morocco, Republic of Korea and a number of Asian and Latin American countries during this month. Former United States President Bill Clinton will participate in a World Food Day ceremony at UN headquarters in New York on 23 October. "The perfect storm just got more perfect": On World Food Day, 17 million people face starvation in the Horn of Africa In Ethiopia, at least 6.4 million people need emergency food aid. In Somalia, nearly half the population is slowly starving, and the country is facing a food crisis unseen since the famine of the early 1990s. And in Kenya, poor families are paying as much as 80 percent of their income just on food alone. A combination of drought, conflict, and rising food prices has left more than 17 million people in the Horn of Africa sliding into a full-blown humanitarian crisis – that's the equivalent of nearly the entire population of Australia facing starvation. These countries are heading into the peak hunger season when cereal prices are at their highest, and families have no stocks left from the previous harvest. But with world markets in a downward spiral and world leaders warning of a coming global recession, the food crisis and the fate of 17 million people in Africa is being pushed down the list of priorities. "These countries were already facing a combined threat of drought and rising food prices," said Jonathan Mitchell, CARE's Emergency Director. "Add to this the global financial crisis, and things could hardly be any worse. The perfect storm just got more perfect." In CARE's Living on the Edge of Emergency report released last month, CARE warned that the number of people on the edge of a food emergency has skyrocketed to 220 million – almost twice as many in 2006. As governments tighten their spending, CARE is again warning that the international community must focus their efforts on disaster risk reduction, investing in food production and providing long-term safety nets to prevent the poorest from falling over the edge into starvation. The consequence of not heeding this warning is what we're seeing today in the Horn of Africa. "We're living in a world of global volatility, and we need to have a road map on how to confront hunger," said Mitchell, who recently returned from Ethiopia and Kenya, two of the hardest-hit countries. "For the 17 million people facing starvation in the Horn of Africa, it's too late for mitigation measures. We need to act now to prevent a full-scale humanitarian catastrophe." CARE, with more than 60 years' experience distributing food to families in need, is rushing to fill the gap. CARE is providing emergency assistance such as food and drinking water to 3.1 million people in Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya and Sudan. World Food Program: World Food Day UN Food and Agriculture Organization: Get Involved! World Food Day
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