Food security is a threat to humanity
26/01/2022 10:26
Food security is a threat to humanity
26/01/2022 10:26
Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- On 25 January, President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev, at the Central Asian States - China summit, proposed jointly initiating the adoption of a separate UN General Assembly resolution on ensuring food security in a pandemic.
According to the UN, today more than 820 million people in the world are hungry, for the same reason, about 144 million children under the age of 5 are stunted. The food systems of countries are working with interruptions, and the COVID-19 pandemic has further exacerbated the situation.
Currently, in the context of the spread of a new wave of coronovirus, interaction and joint implementation of proactive measures to meet the growing needs of the population for food is a problem not only for individual countries and regions, but for the whole world.
The lack of effective mechanisms for the coordinated provision of food security in Central Asia, China and other countries has a number of negative consequences.
During the pandemic, many countries have already faced problems related to restrictions on the implementation of export-import operations with food products caused by the pandemic, the spread of various kinds of phytopathogenic viruses, etc.
Undoubtedly, the main task of all countries of the world is to save people's lives and preserve their livelihood opportunities, as UN Secretary-General A. Guterres has repeatedly stated.
Against the backdrop of the demographic growth of the population of Central Asia (75.4 million) and China (1.5 billion), water sources are declining, and this is one of the foundations for ensuring food security. And as a result, over the past 15 years, the area of irrigated land per capita has decreased by more than a quarter.
According to the World Bank studies, for the conditions of the Central Asian region, the direct impact of temperature and precipitation, as a result of future climate change, will contribute to a decrease in the yield of major crops by 6-10% Plus, a steady trend in recent years is an increase in food prices.
The time has come for a phased transition from providing humanitarian assistance to taking joint action and directing everyone's efforts to develop effective mechanisms for the development of uninterrupted livelihoods and food for all population groups.
Particular attention should be paid to the creation of a single commodity distribution system, the organization of joint agricultural clusters, taking into account the territories, climatic conditions, experience and other opportunities.
The adoption of a joint resolution of the UN General Assembly on ensuring food security in a pandemic could serve as a start for the development of joint effective measures to ensure decent living conditions for the peoples of our countries.
Ares Bayazitov is Chief Research Fellow at the International Institute of Central Asia.
18/04/2024Read more
18/04/2024Read more
$ 1 | 12667.00 | +0.022% |
1 | 13481.49 | -2.022% |
₽ 1 | 135.77 | -0.506% |