FAO promises agrarian reform for the landless

The human rights organisation FoodFirst Information and Action Network (FIAN International) welcomes the announcement by the community of states to strengthen their efforts to implement agrarian reforms and combat hunger.

On March 6th to 10th the UN international organisation for food and agriculture (FAO) and the Brazilian government hosted the International Conference on Agrarian Reform and Rural Development (ICARRD) in Porto Alegre, Brazil. “Finally FAO has recognized that the fight against hunger will not succeed without a comprehensive agrarian reform,” commented Sofia Monsalve from FIAN International to the final declaration of the conference. At the same time, FIAN International criticises the decreasing support to combat of hunger, through the budgetary cuts of FAO and the cut of many governments to programs of rural development and agrarian reform. 2/3 of the world’s hungry people live in rural areas. Most of them lack access to sufficient land, and are unable to feed themselves.

The final declaration of the conference stresses the eminent role of agrarian reforms to combat hunger, the need for a model of sustainable development and the implementation of human rights. It states that agrarian reforms should promote economic, social and cultural rights, especially for women, marginalised and vulnerable groups. Especially in areas with strong social disparities, poverty and hunger, agrarian reform should broaden and secure access to, and control over, land and other resources. States should have a crucial role in the implementation of agrarian reform. Furthermore, international solidarity and support for organisations of small farmers, rural workers and landless should be increased. In order to support agrarian reforms, FAO wants to establish a lasting platform for a social dialogue, corporation, monitoring and evaluation of progresses.

FIAN criticises many of the Northern government for their weak participation in the conference and their decreasing engagement to combat hunger. FIAN urges the governments in the future to engage more actively in the implementation of the results of the conference. A good opportunity to do so is offered in September, when FAO will evaluate the progress in the combat against hunger. In 1996, at the World Food Summit, governments committed themselves to half the number of hungry people from then 814 millions before 2015. Ten years later the number has increased to 852 millions.

Parallel to the FAO Conference, social movements of landless, artesian fishers, small peasants, indigenous peoples, pastoralists and forest people of all continents gathered for the forum “Land, Territory and Dignity.” The two conferences interacted through a debate between civil society and states, and with the handing over of a civil society declaration by a large representation of civil society organisations. The declaration was read out loud and is available with the other documents of the conference at www.icarrd.org.