By NNN-BSS,
New York : Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has urged the developed nations to contribute more in mobilizing a substantial fund to ensure food security for developing countries as they are badly hit by current global economic meltdown.
“The problems of developing and least developed countries (LDCs) confronting challenging food security would be resolved if developed nations fulfil their ODA (overseas development assistance) commitment of 0.7 percent of their Gross National Income to developing countries and 0.2 percent to LDCs by 2010 as affirmed in the Brussels Programme,” she added.
Speaking at a meeting on partnering for food security on Saturday here, the Bangladesh’s premier put emphasis on identifying the root causes of food crises and addressing them in a holistic manner for ensuring food security.
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton organised the meeting at Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York as part of the 64th UN General Assembly session now in progress in New York.
Briefing reporters after the meeting, Prime Minister’s Press Secretary Abul Kalam Azad also quoted Sheikh Hasina as saying, “As a developing country, she said food security is of paramount importance for national development and for attainment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).”
“The programmes we adopt must be driven by specific concerns of relevant countries. Therefore, Bangladesh welcomes investment in our nationally driven programmes,” Sheikh Hasina said.
Besides, ensuring food security is also critical for eradicating hunger and poverty from the world, a goal all the countries are committed to, she added.
Sheikh Hasina said Bangladesh attaches high priority to ensuring food security for the people of the country and said the country attained food self-sufficiency during the tenure of her previous government between 1996 and 2001 for which the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the UN presented Bangladesh with its prestigious Ceres Award.
Referring to her government efforts to this end, Sheikh Hasina said that her present government that won a landslide victory in the last general election wants to achieve food autarky again by the year 2012.
The Prime Minister said accessibility to food, particularly by vulnerable and marginalised groups, is important and therefore, a fair and equitable food governance system at national level, but more importantly at international level is essential.
She said there is no disagreement that sustainable agricultural production is essential for ensuring food security and the 2008 food crisis has revealed the importance of food security, particularly for the LDCs.
Listing her government policy, Sheikh Hasina said Bangladesh has adopted a National Food Policy to ensure a sustained food security for all in the country.
Elaborating the programmes undertaken by her government for the purpose, she said for affordable food prices to all, programmes have already been initiated for increased food production, reduced prices of fuel and fertilizers used in irrigation and ensured supply of other farm inputs.
She added that the initiatives had resulted in enhancing productivity and income of farmers and bringing down food prices at affordable level of the common people.
Sheikh Hasina referred to the World Summit on Food Security scheduled to be held in Rome in November and hoped that the conference would facilitate global agreement and support for development of agriculture and attainment of food self-sufficiency in developing countries, particularly in LDCs like Bangladesh.
“We will need to agree on and implement sustainable agricultural policies, transfer of technology and equitable and fair trade rules for food and agricultural products with special and preferential treatment for LDCs,” she added.
About global climate change, the Prime Minister said her government has already adopted a Climate Change Strategy Action Plan-2009 with 44 programmes for implementation within a decade to develop capacity for meeting the impacts of climate change in the next 25 years.
She said a multi-donor trust fund has been formed attracting the support of the developing countries to this.
In this context, she called upon international community especially the development partners and donors to cooperate in making this trust fund successful in fulfilling the multi-faced demands emerging due to climate change.
The Prime Minister also expected that the outcome of the Copenhagen Conference of climate change in December would include assured, adequate and easily accessible funding for adaptation and affordable eco-friendly technology transfer to LDCs, which were critical for ensuring food security.