FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf on hunger strike (Photo Courtesy FAO/Giulio Napolitano)

Rome — THE world summit on food security officially opened in Rome, Italy today with a call for decisive action for the total eradication of hunger in the world.

President Rupiah Banda, who arrived here yesterday, was among world leaders attending the three-day high level meeting being held at the Food and Agricultural Organisation headquarters in Rome.

He is accompanied by First Lady Thandiwe, Agriculture Minister Brian Chituwo and other senior Government officials.

In his opening statement, United Nations Secretary General Ban-Ki-Moon, said leaders needed to act now to increase food production in order to feed the one billion hungry people and secure the lives of millions others threatened with hunger worldwide.

Mr Ban said it was the duty of the international community not only to feed the hungry, but also to empower the hungry to feed themselves.

The UN secretary general emphasised that there was need for the international community to ensure food was available and affordable to all, for countries in the world to meet the millennium development goals (MDGs) by 2015

He called for reduction in emissions that were causing climate change as there would be no food security without climate security.

The forthcoming world summit on climate change in the Danish capital Copenhagen was therefore critical for world leaders to take concrete action in addressing the challenges of climate change as it was closely linked to food security.

FAO director general Jacques Diouf, called on governments and the international community to place food security top of their development agenda.

He said food production needed to increase by 70 per cent worldwide in order to provide adequate and nutritious food to all.

President Banda was among heads of State and government scheduled to address the summit yesterday afternoon.

Yesterday, Mr Banda participated in a pre-summit consultative meeting on rural development and proposals to launch the south-south cooperation between Sub Sahara Africa and Brazil, which is ranked among the countries that have successfully reduced hunger among their nationals.

ZANIS