Written Answers. - World Hunger.
Ivor Callely
Question:
19
Mr. Callely
asked the
Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs
the developments, if any, in relation to world hunger; the areas where the threat of famine is prevalent; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
[20080/96]
The World Food Summit will take place in Rome from the 13-17 November this year. The summit has been organised by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation, the FAO. The summit is taking place at a time of growing international concern about declining world cereal production, stocks and food aid supplies, as well as rising cereal prices. The FAO has projected that world food production will have to increase by more than 75 per cent over the next 30 years to keep pace with population growth. Some 800 million people, 200 million of them children, are chronically undernourished in the developing world alone. One out of five people in the developing world cannot get enough food to meet their daily needs. In sub-saharan Africa, two out of five people do not have adequate food.
The summit, bringing together Heads of State and Government, has been convened to seek commitment at the highest political level to the goal of global food security and to the eradication of world hunger. Through the agreement of a policy statement and a plan of action, world leaders will seek a global consensus on ending hunger and promoting food security at local, national and international levels.
Ireland has extensive involvement in the World Food Summit event and preparations. The Taoiseach will attend the Heads of Government Session of the summit and will address the summit on the 15 November, presenting the Presidency statement on behalf of the EU. In preparations for the summit, the Presidency has chaired EU coordination meetings, and has represented the EU in discussions of the draft summit texts with other regional groups.
Ireland's commitment to alleviating world hunger is also illustrated in our Overseas Development and Emergency Aid expenditure. Ireland's contribution to the UN Food and Agriculture organisations in 1995 was over IR£2.16 million. Food security and agricultural development projects form important aspects of our bilateral project aid programmes, and food aid is provided from our emergency and humanitarian assistance fund to refugees and vulnerable people affected by natural disasters, famine and conflict.
The UN food aid organisation, the World Food Programme, issues frequent reports outlining developments in its operations and identifying areas that are threatened by famine, or where serious threats to food security exist. Its most recent reports detail food insecurity relief measures in Burundi, Zaire, Rwanda, Somalia, Angola, Afghanistan, Chechnya, Tajikistan and Former Yugoslavia. The worsening situation in Zaire has led to the cut-off of humanitarian supplies which, according to the World Food Programme, could result in a hunger crisis affecting over one million Rwandan and Burundian refugees. Recent FAO reports also outline serious food supply difficulties requiring emergency food aid in Sudan and Somalia, as well as the development of pockets of famine in Liberia, due to the disruption of relief distributions caused by civil strife.
