United Nations: The Covid-19 pandemic has further intensified food insecurity to a level not seen in decades, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned on Friday, Prensa Latina publishes.
In a World Food Day video message, the UN chief stressed that in a world of plenty, it is a grave affront that hundreds of millions go to bed hungry each night.
Some 130 million people risk being pushed to the brink of starvation by the end of this year, and this is on top of the 690 million people who already lack enough to eat, he said.
As we mark the 75th anniversary of the Food and Agriculture Organization, we need to intensify our efforts to achieve the vision of the Sustainable Development Goals, the UN secretary-general said in the video.
Guterres announced that next year, he will convene a Food Systems Summit to inspire action towards this vision.
We need food systems that provide decent, safe livelihoods for workers, we have the know-how and the capacity to create a more resilient, equitable and sustainable world, the Portuguese diplomat stressed.
On his official Twitter account, the top UN official indicated that the award of this year’s Nobel Prize for Peace to the World Food Program recognizes the right of all people to food, and our common quest to achieve zero hunger.