Inter Press Service: Now Is the Time to Tackle Malnutrition and Its Massive Human Costs
José Graziano da Silva, FAO director general, and Margaret Chan, WHO director general

“The scourge of malnutrition affects the most vulnerable in society, and it hurts most in the earliest stages of life. Today, more than 800 million people are chronically hungry, about 11 percent of the global population. … These numbers are shocking and must serve as a global call to action. … Government leaders, scientists, nutritionists, farmers, civil society, and private sector representatives from around the world will gather in Rome from Nov. 19 to 21 for the Second International Conference on Nutrition (ICN2). It is an opportunity they cannot afford to miss: making peoples’ right to a healthy diet a global reality. … FAO and WHO are ready to assist countries in this effort. By transforming commitment into action and cooperating more effectively with one another and with other stakeholders, the world has a real chance of ending the multiple burdens of malnutrition in all its forms within a generation” (11/13).