São Paulo – This Monday (30th), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) announced that it will create a trust fund to ensure food security in the continent. Donations will be made by countries in the continent and institutions. The proposal was presented by the institution during the FAO’s Regional Conference in Africa, held last week in Brazzaville, Congo.
According to the proposal, the fund is meant to complement rather than replace donations that the continent receives from other countries and organizations. The bulk of the funds will be allocated to the Horn of Africa countries (such as Somalia) and the Sahel region (Mauritania, Chad, Niger, Mali and Sudan) to fight hunger stemming from drought, among other causes.
During the announcement of the proposal, the Brazilian-born FAO director general José Graziano da Silva stated that the African oil exporting countries “have a great opportunity to promote the continent’s social and economic development” by helping lift the poorer out of their continuing food insecurity situation. “I would like to appeal to African nations, especially oil-producing countries to invest some of these resources in agriculture in a sustainable manner without damaging the environment,” he said.
The president of Congo, Denis Sassou Nguesso, called for “concrete efforts” for the fund’s creation, so that the continent may achieve sustainable food security and establish a permanent climate of peace and consensus.
Now, the FAO will pay visits to the African countries to negotiate how the funds will be disbursed, after which the project will be outlined in greater detail. According to the FAO, some institutions which already aid in fighting hunger made symbolical donations to show their support to the idea. The conference was attended by 45 countries in the continent, and topics included ways to increase small farmers’ productivity and access to markets, and regions in which the FAO must step up its efforts to fight hunger.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
