ANI
24 Sep 2021, 06:48 GMT+10
New York [US], September 24 (ANI/Xinhua): Food should be viewed as a human right, not as a commodity, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Thursday.
"We need to re-think how we see and value food -- not simply as a commodity to be traded, but as a right that every person shares," the UN chief told the landmark UN Food Systems Summit, that brought together farmers and fishers, youth, indigenous peoples, heads of state and government and many more, in an effort to transform the sector and get the world back on track to achieve all 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.
"But in countries, communities and households in every corner of the world, this essential need -- this human right -- is going unfulfilled," said the secretary-general.
"Every day, hundreds of millions of people go to bed hungry. Children are starving. Three billion people cannot afford a healthy diet. Two billion are overweight or obese. Four hundred and sixty-two million are underweight. And nearly one-third of all food that is produced is lost or wasted," he went on.
The top UN official urged governments and businesses to work together to "increase access to healthy diets, including by incentivizing new behaviours."He called for efforts to build food systems "that protect our planet.""Throughout, we need to strengthen the resilience of local food systems to external shocks, like conflict, climate change and pandemics," said Guterres.
"We must build a world where healthy and nutritious food is available and affordable for everyone, everywhere," he added.
The secretary-general said although food systems generate one-third of all greenhouse gas emissions and are responsible for up to 80 percent of biodiversity loss, "they can and must play a leading role" in addressing all the challenges facing the world to realize the SDGs by 2030.
"We need food systems that support the health and well-being of all people," he said, adding that malnutrition, hunger and famine are not forces of nature, but "the result of the actions -- or inactions -- of all of us." (ANI/Xinhua)Get a daily dose of Myanmar Sun news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Myanmar Sun.
More InformationWASHINGTON, D.C.: President Donald Trump says the United States could soon reach a trade deal with India. He believes this deal would...
Nearly three months after a devastating earthquake struck Myanmar, the country remains trapped in a deepening crisis, compounded by...
The groups combined GDP is $20 trillion greater than that of the Western bloc, the Russian president has said BRICS has already outstripped...
The summit declaration denounced the recent terrorist attack in Kashmir that triggered a military escalation between India and Pakistan...
Prayagraj (Uttar Pradesh) [India], July 6 (ANI): Former Union Cabinet Minister and senior BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi on Sunday...
Rio de Janeiro [Brazil], July 6 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during the 17th BRICS Summit on Sunday, asserted that condemning...
MOSCOW, Russia: This week, Russia became the first country to officially recognize the Taliban as the government of Afghanistan since...
CAIRO, Egypt: This week, both Hamas and Israel shared their views ahead of expected peace talks about a new U.S.-backed ceasefire plan....
WASHINGTON, D.C.: The Trump administration has made public a visa decision that would usually be kept private. It did this to send...
MADRID, Spain: Liverpool footballer Diogo Jota and his younger brother, André Silva, have died in a car accident in Spain. Spanish...
LONDON, U.K.: An unrelenting heatwave sweeping across Europe has pushed early summer temperatures to historic highs, triggering deadly...
President Donald Trump's plans to build a space-based Golden Dome missile defense shield have drawn immediate criticism from China,...