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| UN on Monday marks "World Food Day" |
Rome, Italy: Amid economic crises, climatic shocks, and high and volatile
food prices in a world of plenty where nearly 870 million people still go
hungry, the United Nations on Tuesday marked World Food Day by highlighting
agricultural cooperatives as vital weapon in the war on poverty and hunger.
At the commemorative event at FAO's headquarters in Rome,
FAO's Director General José Graziano da Silva while noting that in Africa and
Near East the number of undernourished people is still growing, he said that
"we cannot allow that in a world of plenty, we already produce enough food
for every human being".
The United Nations Special Representative on Food Security
and Nutrition, David Nabarro, delivering a message from Secretary-General Ban
Ki-moon said that
"The theme of this year's WFD drew inspiration from the
observance of the International Year of Cooperatives 2012.
Nabarro said agricultural cooperatives played a vital role
in improving food and nutrition security. He said that "owned by their
members, they can generate employment, alleviate poverty and empowerment of
poor and marginalized groups in rural areas, especially women, to drive their
own destiny".
Kanayo F. Nwanze, President of the International Fund for
Agricultural Development (IFAD) while noting that some of our largest financial
institutions had their roots in farmers' cooperatives, said that "today
cooperatives produced about 50 percent of global agricultural output."
Speaking at the same ceremony, the UN World Food Programme's
(WFP) Executive Director, Ertharin Cousin, underscored the need for social
safety nets for those who could barely feed themselves. Cousin said that
"when we collaborate for the people we are here to serve, we each perform
our mandates better", and added that, "and we grow autonomy and
resilience in rural communities, improving livelihoods, empowering the poor to
take control of their future."
At a press conference later on food price volatility
Graziano said that everybody at the opening meeting agreed that lack of
coordination was a problem. While countries will face problems like drought,
floods and other climate events in the future, they will not necessarily cause
a food crisis, he said. Graziano said that "if we could avoid every
country to take unilateral measures, like putting bans on others – measures
that we have seen in the past – we can calm down markets and avoid
crisis".