Topic:
Country: France
Delegate Name: Ella Duffner
United Nations Development Programme
Food Instability and Political Crisis
France
Ella Duffner
Food instability is a worldwide issue, caused by and leading to political crises. This is seen in Ukraine as well as many other countries in political unrest. There are many factors leading to food instability such as climate change, disruption of the food supply chain, the COVID-19 pandemic, and political unrest.
Since 2002, 2.50% of the French population has been below the minimum number of dietary energy consumption consistently to 2021. This is different than the percentage of the population which is food insecure, which has dropped from 6.8% in 2015 to 5.9% in 2020. A large cause of food instability is political instability as well as COVID-19. This is seen in Ukraine, being attacked by the Russian Federation, which has disrupted the food supply chain. The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on food security were seen all over the world, from rising prices where food is available to the unavailability of food.
In the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 25, it is said that everyone has the right to food. Many times this right is taken away by political crises and disruption of the food supply chain. It is important that feeding those in hunger is a priority for the UN. Goal 2, part of the Sustainable Development Goals, is zero hunger. Because 2.4 billion people (above 30% of our world population) were food insecure in 2020, it is a goal to end hunger by 2030. As a part of the UN, France agrees with these statements.
Alongside this, France has also developed an international strategy for food security. This plan has five parts. The first is strengthening the global governance, such as the UN, of food security and nutrition. The second is developing sustainable agricultural systems because of changes such as climate change and erosion. Thirdly, strengthening France’s action on nutrition. Fourth, supporting the structuring of sustainable agrifood chains to promote the creation of decent jobs in rural areas, and lastly enhancing food assistance actions for vulnerable populations and improving their resilience. France looks forward to working with countries planning to take similar action on this issue.
