The World Food Crisis

Statement


1. The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights is alarmed at the rapid worldwide rise in food prices and the soaring energy prices that have precipitated a global food crisis and are adversely affecting the right to adequate food and freedom from hunger as well as other human rights of more than 100 million people.

2. The world has lived for too many years with a chronic crisis of 854 million people suffering from food insecurity and two billion people suffering from malnutrition and undernutrition.

3. Prices of basic staple foods (including rice, maize, wheat etc) have risen by up to 60 per cent around the world. The poorest people in the world are the most severely affected as they already spend up to 60- 80 per cent of their income on food, compared with 20 per cent in the developed world.

4. The food crisis underscores the interdependence of all human rights, as the enjoyment of the human right to adequate food and freedom from hunger is of paramount importance for the enjoyment of all other rights, including the right to life.

5. The Committee calls upon all States to revisit their obligations under article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and article 11 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Under article 11(1) of the Covenant, States parties recognize “the right of everyone to an adequate standard of living for himself and his family,