“I am committed to
truth, not to what is established,” said Gandhi. The
Millennium Development Goals, which seek between
now and 2015 to eradicate extreme poverty, achieve
universal primary education, promote gender equality,
reduce infant mortality, fight the spread of such
diseases as HIV/AIDS and malaria, and guarantee
environmental sustainability, are a challenge to us all,
individually and collectively. Each human being is
unique and respect for others must be both universal
and imperative.
The world is paradoxical. We meet here during
these weeks to speak of the food crisis and famine in
the world, and we do so 63 years after having set in
motion actions and structures within the framework of
the United Nations to eradicate such phenomena.
In 2008, well into the twenty-first century, of the
2.5 billion poor people living in the countries of the
South, 950 million live in conditions of extreme
poverty. The forecasts of the International Fund for
Agricultural Development indicate that, by 2025, the
world will have 2 billion more people living in
conditions of extreme poverty.
In one year, the world has been confronted, as it
was in the last century, by mass movements of
populations driven by hunger. The Governments of the
wealthiest countries, international agencies and
non-governmental organizations (NGOs) stand helpless
before the worsening malnutrition and social tensions
that have resulted.
The Secretary-General declared in his 2007 report
on the Millennium Development Goals that the world
does not want more promises. However, reality in its
crudest aspect has put us through disturbances in recent
months caused by people who are suffering famine in
various countries. On Tuesday, the President reminded
us in his opening speech of the perils of our current
situation. We face a global financial crisis, a global
energy crisis, a global food crisis and climate change.
Faced with this situation, it is inevitable that we ask
ourselves the questions: What did we do wrong? What
is it that does not work?
The prices of basic food products have risen by
50 per cent in one year, and a group of United Nations
experts has determined that the price of goods around
the world has risen by 30 per cent since January 2008.
If we take into account that there are 1.4 billion people
living on less than $1.25 a day, there are far too many
people living in the world today in extremely
precarious conditions, with no access to schools,
potable water or basic health care and hygiene.
Some experts say that the food crisis is the result
of the failure of development policies that were
adopted to encourage economic and social progress in
countries classified as poor. Those countries often have
substantial natural resources and could produce basic
products, such as cereals, but reality is obstinate and
the fact is that two thirds of developing countries are
net importers of food products.
Alfred Sauvy, the economist and sociologist, said
that the milestone of the economy is not labour but
consumption. That is the source of one of the principal
current problems. Consumer goods are scarce and
demand exceeds supply. The Director-General of the
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United
Nations (FAO), Jacques Diouf, forecasts an increase of
56 per cent in the cost of imports of cereals for the
more disadvantaged countries, but he also forecasts an
increase of 53 per cent for the European countries.
The current crisis is closely related to the
geographical distribution of productivity. Perhaps
production should be increased in the places where
people are suffering famine and less surplus sent from
countries with more resources, since it contributes to
increasing the dependency of the poor countries. In that
respect, we agree with the decision of the World Bank
to double its loans for agriculture to Africa, with a
provision of $800 million for 2009.
At the same time and in order to correct the
distortions that have been created in the markets, the
liberalization of agricultural markets must be
accompanied by measures of support for small local
farmers so as to avoid the temptation of giving up
production in favour of importing foreign food
products. In fact, liberalization would have to be
reinvented. Rather than serving as a common pattern
for all countries, it would have to be applied according
to the specific circumstances of each country, while the
pros and cons are analysed with caution.
On the other hand, the subject of agricultural
subsidies has not been resolved definitively, nor has
true freedom of trade, which would serve to help the
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countries that need it most, been established.
Liberalization would also have to involve an increase
in productivity and the development of human
resources, basic infrastructures, access to technology
and knowledge including respect for the environment.
In other words, it would have to contribute to
sustainable development, as indicated in the Doha
Outcome Document of July 2008.
The current crisis shows the vulnerability of the
present system. In that regard, without ignoring hard
realities, Andorra fully shares the approaches agreed in
Rome in June during the High-Level Conference on
World Food Security: the Challenges of Climate
Change and Bioenergy. Since 2005, the Government of
Andorra has worked on development cooperation with
all of the major international bodies, vulnerable
countries at their request, NGOs and civil society.
In the current context and in accordance with the
call from world leaders, major international actors and
international specialized and regional organizations,
we have assisted the most affected countries through
financial contributions to FAO and NGO initiatives.
We also cooperate on support for agricultural trade and
production in Burkina Faso, Colombia and Morocco
through NGOs active in the field. For that reason, we
endorse the future options being used to maintain
biological diversity, sustainable forestry practices and
the adaptation of new technology that can help to
promote ecological balance and slow the effects of
climate change.
Demographic growth on a planet that already has
more than 6.7 billion inhabitants; chemical and
industrial pollution; ill-adapted land use; desertification
and water; the interaction of animal, vegetable and
horticultural species; international trade and the
movements of peoples are all destabilizing factors that
are now upon us and very real. We have to address
them with all the means available to us. Guaranteeing
food for everyone on our planet is basic, essential and
vital. Sixty-three years ago we thought that today, in
the twenty-first century, this would be a fact, an
outdated concept, a matter achieved, the success of our
dreams. Sadly, we were wrong. Now, we need to be
strong. To keep going and face up to the most
pessimistic forecasts which warn us of the failure of
the Millennium Development Goals.
We have made the diagnosis, we are aware that
the policies we have encouraged in recent decades have
not fulfilled our expectations. But we still have time to
rectify this and for this reason I would like to
congratulate both the Secretary-General for his
initiatives and the rest of the international bodies and
civil society for the specific actions they are
implementing around the world.
Speeches, reports and fine words are necessary
but we suffer from a serious inability to act. Let us not
hide behind excuses. Let us take action based on the
facts. The dignity of every human being obliges us to
do so and humanity deserves it!