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U.N. chief calls for 50 p.c. increase in food production

ROME: U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon mapped out a twin-track strategy to tackle soaring food prices as world leaders met for a three-day summit on Tuesday in a global response to the food crisis.

“You all know about the severity and scale of the global food crisis. Before this emergency, more than 850 million people in the world were short of food,” said Mr. Ban at the summit, hosted by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

The high-level conference comes as the world is experiencing a dramatic increase in food prices. Agricultural commodity prices rose sharply in the past two years and continued to rise even more sharply in the first three months of 2008, with foodstuffs such as rice, corn and wheat all reaching record highs, sparking riots in many countries and worsening the situation of the 850 million people already affected by chronic hunger.

A joint report by the FAO and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) warned last week that food prices were expected to remain high over the next decade even if they would ease from their recent peaks. Mr. Ban said the international community must take immediate steps to increase food availability to vulnerable people as a short-term response.

He called on developed countries to help poor countries expand food assistance through food aid, vouchers or cash, scale up nutritional support and improve safety nets and social protection programmes to help the most vulnerable.

Small farmers’ food production should be urgently boosted by distributing seeds and fertilizers in time for this year’s planting seasons, said Mr. Ban. Some actions have been taken at international level to meet immediate needs. The World Bank announced last week the establishment of a $1.2 billion financing facility to boost food production, including $200 million in grants targeted at the world’s poorest countries.

The FAO also called for $1.7 billion in new funding to provide low-income countries with seeds and other agricultural support. Mr. Ban in particular warned against food export restrictions imposed by certain countries in the face of higher food prices on the global markets to ensure domestic supply.

“Some countries have taken action by limiting exports or by imposing price controls... They only distort markets and force prices even higher,” he said. “I call on nations to resist such measures and to immediately release exports designated for humanitarian purposes,” he added.

“Food production needs to rise by 50 per cent by the 2030 to meet the rising demand,” he said. Mr. Ban said investment in agriculture was vital to ensure global food security. — Xinhua

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