U.N. News: Rising hunger, ‘an outrage in a world of plenty’: Guterres
“Although [the World Food Programme], like many other U.N. agencies, must work in politically charged settings, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating impact on the state of global food security, flagged the U.N. chief [António Guterres]. … He cited WFP figures that 690 million people do have not enough to eat, as 130 million more, risk being pushed to the brink of starvation by the end of the year, spelling out that ‘this is totally unacceptable.’ Moreover, the impacts of food insecurity are ‘profoundly gendered,’ sidelining the very women who can help ‘in overcoming this challenge’ to greater suffering. Appealing for a massive rescue package for the most vulnerable people and countries, he stressed the need to ensure that recovery address inequalities and fragilities and that health and social protection systems are strengthened with more robust food systems a ‘key part of the future’…” (11/16).