Rising prices have plunged an additional 75 million people below the hunger threshold, bringing the estimated number of undernourished people worldwide to 923 million in 2007. As the World Food Day is observed today, UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) 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 said at a ceremony in Rome marking World Food Day, the anniversary of FAO’s foundation in 1945.
Noting that $US22 billion was pledged to promote global food security earlier this year, but that only 10 percent of this has so far materialized – mainly for emergency food aid – Diouf declared:
"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."
The theme for this year celebration is "World Food Security: the Challenges of Climate Change and Bioenergy".
FAO estimates had put the number of people suffering from chronic hunger worldwide in 2003-05 at 848 million, an increase of 6 million from the 842 million in 1990-92, the World Food Summit baseline period.
Soaring food, fuel and fertilizer prices have exacerbated the problem. Food prices rose 52 percent between 2007 and 2008, and fertilizer prices have nearly doubled over the past year.
