Khalid Mekhbub: the number of hungry people in the world is growing

- There is hunger on the horizon, 815 million people suffered from hunger in 2016; there is an increase in the indicator (in 2015 – 766 million people). Such data threatens the achievement of sustainable development goals. 60% of the hungry live in regions of conflict and changing climate, which causes an increase in migration, - said the expert.

According to him, the regional conference is an integral part of the FAO structure: it gives a regional view of the organization's work. The priorities approved as a result of the conference will be used to make the budget and the work plan of the organization for the next 2 years.

"It is obvious that without progress in reducing and limiting hunger by 2030, we will not be able to achieve all the sustainable development goals", Khalid Mekhbub said.

- Trying to overcome hunger, we produce more than we can consume. At the same time, a third of the products are thrown away and the number of hungry people is growing, so something is going wrong. What can we do about it? The activity of the FAO in the area of funds transfer to provide the necessary minimum for people who have nothing is important", said General Director of the FAO José Graziano da Silva. – As for reduction of food loss and spoilage: there are initiatives in this area – it is necessary to add progress to the methodology and the creation of a data and food bank.

According to da Silva, agriculture needs new food systems.

- In contrast to hunger, there is a problem of obesity. Here we need sources of inspiration and concrete examples that we can implement in our countries. Parliamentarians should change the work in this direction at the level of legislation, - said the General Director of the FAO.

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