•  Home
•  Who We Are
•  What We Do
•  Media Centre
•  Publications
•  Humphrey Award
•  Reference
•  Links
•  Contact Us

Rights & Democracy welcomes the adoption of Right to Food Guidelines

News Release

Montreal , September 24, 2004? A ground breaking decision on the elimination of world hunger was taken at the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO). After eight years of debate, governments overcame their differences and adopted by consensus "Guidelines on the Implementation of the Right to Food". This breakthrough occurred yesterday at a special "friends of the chair" negotiating session at the FAO in Rome ( Italy ).

According to the FAO, 840 million people suffer from hunger and malnutrition - more than half of them are children. UN leaders have committed to cutting that number by half by 2015.

"The Guidelines will be a practical tool for governments to use in the fight against hunger", said Jean-Louis Roy, President of Rights & Democracy. "The elimination of hunger is a goal that should never be missed because of political differences. We have more than enough food in this world to feed every man, woman and child and we should be doing whatever is necessary to do so."

Although Rights & Democracy regrets the voluntary nature and discretionary language of the Guidelines, it supports many of the agreed-upon paragraphs because of their interpretation of economic, social and cultural rights. The agreed definition of the Right to Food reflects not only access to food, but also the access of individuals and groups to productive resources. Moreover, the Guidelines clearly identify the wide range of state obligations on this respect. For example, states must respect the existing access to food and protect people from being deprived by economically powerful actors. They must also invest the maximum of available resources to progressively achieve the full realization of the Right to Food by taking immediate and targeted steps.

The Guidelines are one of the few concrete results that emerged from the World Food Summit (WFS) process in 1996, and the "World Food Summit: Five Years Later" in 2001. The objective of the Guidelines initiative was to develop the missing political will required to end hunger and malnutrition around the world by empowering people to hold their governments accountable to the international human rights treaties they have signed and ratified.

Since the World Food Summit Declaration in 1996, several conceptual breakthroughs have taken place with regards to the definition and recognition of the human right to adequate food. The UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights developed a legal interpretation of the Right to Food and subsequently, the "World Food Summit: Five Years Later" launched a process that led to the creation of an intergovernmental working group for the development of the Guidelines. The debate around the Guidelines has introduced the human rights discourse to a broader audience within the United Nations and its agencies, going beyond human rights departments.

Providing practical steps for governments, the guidelines recognize that the human right to food must be implemented based on national strategies which begin with a careful analysis of the causes of hunger and the existing legislative and policy framework. The Guidelines also recognize that implementation begins by identifying vulnerable or marginalized groups and developing processes that will contribute towards the elimination of inequality.

Rights & Democracy will continue to advocate Right to Food and believes that the Guidelines on Implementation of the Right to Food will become a valuable means for both governments and communities, but not without a clear political commitment.