by Livia Minca
Food is one of the most basic human needs, like air and water. However, nearly a sixth of our fellow humans do not have access to it and go to bed hungry each day: both an unnecessary tragedy and a source of social and political unrest.
Food is one of the most basic human needs, like air and water. However, nearly a sixth of our fellow humans do not have access to it and go to bed hungry each day: both an unnecessary tragedy and a source of social and political unrest.
In order to raise public
awareness, disseminate information about this issue and focus attention on food
security as well as to mobilize public opinion and funds in favour of the
global fight against hunger, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the
United Nations (FAO) decided to celebrate World Food Day each year on 16
October, the day on which the Organization was founded in 1945.
The objectives of World Food Day
are to:
- encourage attention to agricultural food production and to stimulate national, bilateral, multilateral and non-governmental efforts to this end;
- encourage economic and technical cooperation among developing countries;
- encourage the participation of rural people, particularly women and the least privileged categories, in decisions and activities influencing their living conditions;
- heighten public awareness of the problem of hunger in the world;
- promote the transfer of technologies to the developing world;
- and strengthen international and national solidarity in the struggle against hunger, malnutrition and poverty and draw attention to achievements in food and agricultural development.
With all the advances in science
and technology, the world has the means to eliminate hunger but this will
require the firm commitment of all sectors of society.
As in previous years, FAO will
organize the Run For Food Race to mark World Food Day. This year the race will
take place in Rome, Italy. The Run for Food Race wants to draw people’s
attention to the fact that many, way too many people not only don’t have enough
energy to do some exercise, but also they don’t have even the minimum energy to
survive! They are poor people living mainly in developing countries, they don’t
have enough to eat nor enough money to feed themselves, and often they are
children. The inscription fees of the race will be donated to small-scale
projects aimed at helping the populations in the Horn of Africa hit by drought
and famine. So, if you are Italian or travelling there during the event and if
you want to send a message to those who don’t know yet that almost 1 billion
people are in this situation, participate in the Run for Food Race.
Even if you cannot be at the
race, you can still help. In 1997 FAO launched the TeleFood Programme to
encourage initiatives to create a global solidarity movement, pooling the
resources of governments, the private sector and civil society to raise
awareness of the problem of hunger and to collect funds to finance projects
that provide sustainable solutions. You can also support this programme by
making donations or helping promote activities and events in your own country.
You can read more about it at: http://www.fao.org/getinvolved/worldfoodday/en/
The World Food Day is a great
opportunity to think about the uneven distribution of the food resources around
the planet and how each of is part of the problem, but also of the solution. So
when you go shopping next time, remember that not buying that extra food (that
will probably go bad in your fridge anyway) can offer the chance to less a
fortunate person to have something to eat.
