Statement By WFP Executive Director Josette Sheeran On The World Food Summit And Feeding The Hungry Billion

Main Category: Aid / Disasters
Article Date: 18 Nov 2009 - 1:00 PST

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As delegates at the World Summit on Food Security discuss urgent measures to counter the forward march of hunger, we must mobilise all world citizens - not just global leaders -to feed the more than one billion hungry people around the world.

Today, almost one in every six people on earth wakes up not knowing whether they will have enough to eat. These are the most vulnerable and voiceless people in the world - poor, hungry families suffering from the prolonged impact of stubbornly high food prices, the global financial crisis, and the increased frequency of climate-related disasters such as drought and hurricanes.

Food security is not only a matter of humanitarian assistance and agricultural development; it is a matter of national security, peace and stability. Without food, people revolt, migrate or die. This is the emergency issue of our generation, and we stand at a critical crossroads. At this moment in time we must galvanize all nations, all people and all resources to defeat hunger.

As the number of hungry people continues to rise, needs are exceeding resources. Traditional donors have been very generous - especially in light of the global financial crisis that has hurt people even in the world's richest countries. But new government donors and all world citizens must step forward to fill the gap. At the start of the World Food Summit, WFP reached out to the world with "A Billion for a Billion, " our first internet citizen appeal at http://www.wfp.org/, to give everyone a role in tackling hunger.

More than a billion people go hungry, yet more than a billion people are on the internet. If everyone with plenty gave just US$1.50 or €1 a week, those without food would have enough to eat.

The final measure of the success of this Summit - or any gathering - is whether there will be less hunger when we next gather. Together we need to make sure that the hungry eat today - and are able to feed themselves tomorrow. It's time to act.

Source
World Food Programme