FAO urges Latin America to step up anti-hunger fight

The Latin American and Caribbean governments must show political will and provide economic resources to mitigate the hunger problem that afflicts the region, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) said Wednesday.

Reports from Guatemala City said the organization urged regional governments to take "concrete actions" to achieve rural development and "reduce the number of hungry people."

A total of 33 agriculture ministers are in Guatemala City, capital of Guatemala, to hold a three-day FAO regional meeting andare expected to approve strategies on food security, rural development and reduction of the gap in rural areas.

FAO General Director Jacques Diouf told the press that "we haveseen some Latin American and Caribbean countries with clear political will" to guarantee food security for their poorest people.

According to the FAO's figure, the hunger problem affects 53 million people in the continent. He said the number of hungery people must be halved by 2015.

He said national budgets have to include resources for poverty reduction, food security and social development.

Source: Xinhua