NEW YORK / GENEVA (26 October 2014) – Eradicating hunger and ensuring access to adequate food has not been universally achieved despite considerable legislative and judicial progress in many countries throughout the world in the last decade, said today the new United Nations Special Rapporteur on the right to food, Hilal Elver.
“The challenge is global, with approximately one billion people around the world suffering from chronic hunger, while another billion suffer from ‘hidden hunger’ caused by a lack of crucial vitamins and minerals” Ms. Elver stressed in her first report to the UN General Assembly*.
“Climate change and environmental degradation in particular pose a major threat to global food security, compounded by globalization of the food sector, an ever expanding monoculture for export and large corporations, and a worrisome rise in food prices in recent years,” she said referring to the many obstacles preventing people from accessing their basic right to food in a reliable and dignified manner.
In her report, Ms. Elver also highlights the considerable challenges faced by women: “They play a vital role in food security and nutrition, yet they continue to be disproportionately affected by poverty, malnutrition and unpaid care roles in the family and community.”
“The empowerment of women and the protection of their rights should be placed at the center of the right to food policy-making process as an agency of change,” the expert said. In her view, “this should not be limited to rural areas, but also extended to urban women, as well as women from indigenous communities, those living in refugee camps, ethnic and religious minorities and undocumented migrants.”
The Special Rapporteur emphasized that States are responsible, individually and through international co-operation, to take all steps necessary to meet the vital food needs of their people, especially of the most vulnerable groups.
“Children in particular are suffering because of a lack of access to adequate food, with more than two million children under five dying every year as a result of poor nutrition. This is unacceptable if we are to protect the rights of future generations,” she noted.
“In contrast chronic diseases related to obesity, including heart disease, diabetes and some cancers as a result of dietary changes and urbanization are on the rise, with children and adolescents the main targets of marketing campaigns employed by the food and beverage industry.”
The human rights expert called for renewed political commitment from all States to advance the implementation of the right to adequate food, urging them to address the post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals so as to reach all proposed goals, with priority given to sustainability and the adoption of a vigorous human rights approach.
(*) Check the full report (A/69/275): http://www.ohchr.org/EN/newyork/Pages/HRreportstothe69thsessionGA.aspx
