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The United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO)
calls food security "both an individual right and a collective
responsibility." The right to adequate food is enshrined
in a number of international agreements and human rights instruments,
including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948)
and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural
Rights (1966). Most recently, at the 1996 World Food Summit,
leaders from 185 countries and the European Community affirmed
"the right of everyone to have access to safe and nutritious
food, consistent with the right to adequate food and the fundamental
right of everyone to be free from hunger."
According to FAO's own figures, however, 826
million people around the world do not get enough to eat.
In most cases, the problem is more a matter of distribution
of resources than of outright food shortages. Most sources
agree that adequate food supplies exist to feed the world's
population, but resources are distributed unevenly due to
a combination of political, economic, trade and social factors.
In 1996-1998, FAO reports, 11% of the population
of Latin America and the Caribbean-54.9 million people-was
chronically undernourished. This statistic was an improvement
over the last available figures, from 1990-1992, when the
percentage was 13%. In some countries, however, hunger had
actually increased. In the Caribbean as a whole, the figure
rose from 26% to 31%. Central America also saw an increase,
from 17% to 20%. In Haiti, an astounding 62% of the population
was classified as undernourished in 1996-1998. Other countries
with high indices of hunger included Nicaragua (31%), the
Dominican Republic (28%), Guatemala (24%) and Bolivia (23%).
Many different factors contribute to food security
in a given country. At the national level, policy and institutional
changes are necessary to ensure sustainable agricultural growth
and more equitable income distribution. Changing global trade
policies also affect the food security of developing countries.
A major concern of Latin American and Caribbean countries
with regard to the proposed Free Trade Area of the Americas
(FTAA) is agricultural market access. Some countries already
receive preferential trade treatment under various multilateral
agreements. Those with diversified agricultural markets and
trading partners are poised to gain most from trade liberalization
as compared to countries with weak market infrastructures
and few export commodities.
Another issue likely to cause controversy in
the coming years is the introduction of genetically altered
crops. Proponents cite the potential for creating nutritionally
enhanced and pest-resistant strains of plants, while opponents
warn of the risk of unforeseen health and environmental consequences.
Critics also complain that the patenting of genetic resources
puts food security in the hands of corporations.
The Quebec City Summit Plan of Action
makes no direct reference to food security. However, it identifies
the eradication of poverty and inequity as "the primary
challenge that confronts the Hemisphere" and reaffirms
the participating countries' commitment to promote "a
more equitable distribution of the benefits of economic growth."
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