(Vatican Radio) The Vatican said on Tuesday we can only eliminate hunger and food
insecurity by promoting inclusion. The Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United
Nations, Archbishop Francis Chullikatt told the international body more needs to be
done to stop hunger. “By pointing out the problem of exclusion and the need for
inclusion, we bring up the uncomfortable fact that hunger is not caused by the lack
of sufficient food to feed every person on the planet,” he said during a UN meeting
on agricultural development, food security, and nutrition. “While improvements
in food production remains an important goal, food security will be achieved by all
only when we change social structures and when we learn to show greater solidarity
towards the poor and the hungry,” said Archbishop Chullikatt. “Hunger is not just
a technical problem awaiting technological solutions. Hunger is a human problem that
demands solutions based on our common humanity.”
The full text of the
intervention is below
Intervention of Archbishop Francis Chullikatt Apostolic
Nuncio, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the UN
Second Committee
of the 68th Session of the UN General Assembly Item 25: Agriculture
development, food security and nutrition (New York, 29 October 2013)
Madame
Chair,
Food is one of the most basic human needs. The fundamental right to
adequate food and its importance to human development and flourishing is recognized
in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and reaffirmed consistently in different
international declarations since then through a number of United Nations resolutions
and reports. Matching the volume of reports are the numerous commitments to end hunger,
commitments from national governments, international agencies and civil society.
Yet in today’s world many nations still face periodic food crisis. Clearly more needs
to be done.
In this regard, my Delegation welcomes the Secretary General’s
report on Agricultural Development, Food Security and Nutrition (A/68/311) and its
focus on continuing international efforts to reduce malnutrition and poverty in so
many regions of the developing world. Moreover, the recent note by the Secretary General
transmitting the interim report on the ‘Right to Food’ (A/68/288) has particular relevance.
Hunger, like all forms of poverty, is caused by exclusion. Consequently, we
can only eliminate hunger and food insecurity by promoting inclusion. Here we could
follow Pope Francis’ simple advice: “Every proposal must involve everyone” and we
must leave “behind the temptations of power, wealth or self-interest” and instead
serve “the human family, especially the needy and those suffering from hunger and
malnutrition.”[1]
In addressing the issue of agriculture development, food
security and nutrition, my Delegation supports the principle of the human right to
food, which requires this issue to be seen firstly through a human rights lens, which
places the human person at the center of our understanding of this fundamental issue.
In our efforts to promote “a life of dignity for all”[2] we must work for agriculture
policies that promote inclusion, respect for the dignity and rights of those still
on the margins of today’s society, and the well-being of current and future generations.
By pointing out the problem of exclusion and the need for inclusion, we bring
up the uncomfortable fact that hunger is not caused by the lack of sufficient food
to feed every person on the planet. As Pope Francis noted: “It is a well-known fact
that current levels of production are sufficient, yet millions of people are still
suffering and dying of starvation. This […] is truly scandalous. A way has to be found
to enable everyone to benefit from the fruits of the earth, and not simply to close
the gap between the affluent and those who must be satisfied with the crumbs falling
from the table, but above all to satisfy the demands of justice, fairness and respect
for every human being.”[3]
While improvements in food production remains an
important goal, food security will be achieved by all only when we change social structures
and when we learn to show greater solidarity towards the poor and the hungry. Hunger
is not just a technical problem awaiting technological solutions. Hunger is a human
problem that demands solutions based on our common humanity.
The tragedy of
hunger amidst plenty is exacerbated by the excessive waste of economic resources,
especially food. But there is also considerable waste in the overall system of production
and distribution of food. The FAO estimates that 1.3 billion tons of food is wasted
every year. Often this waste is due to the fact that wasting food can be more profitable
than ensuring that food goes to those in extreme need. "Whenever food is thrown
out,” Pope Francis points out, “it is as if it were stolen from the table of the poor,
from the hungry!"[4]
Madame Chair,
In promoting a human rights based
and humanitarian approach to food security, it is necessary to link food to non-discrimination
and universal access. Too often, access to food becomes a weapon for controlling,
at times even subjugating, populations, rather than a tool for building peaceful and
prosperous communities.
To bring about an effective distribution of food,
the principle of subsidiarity provides helpful guidance. This principle recommends
that human activities be carried out at the most local and immediate level possible,
so as to maximize participation. Larger entities have the responsibility to support
smaller ones first, and only take over when these smaller groups are unable to carry
out their activities effectively. Subsidiarity helps sustain food security because
food security consists not solely in giving food to people; it means helping them
become self-sufficient so that they provide their own food, either by growing it themselves
or by exchanging for food the goods and services they provide. Thus, getting people
involved in the process of solving food insecurity is an essential step in achieving
this goal.
In conclusion, while there will not be a one-size-fits-all solution
to food insecurity and hunger, there needs to be the one goal of food security for
all so that there will be ever fewer people suffering from poverty and hunger in our
world.