Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdulla Shahid has said the world's food supply chain has been disrupted by natural disasters and wars and it is time for the international community to work together to overcome the challenges. He made the statement while speaking at the 50th plenary session of the Committee on World Food Security (CFS).
In his speech, Minister Shahid said the session is being held at a time when the world is facing many disasters adding the risk of disasters is increasing including the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change disasters, and conflicts such as the Russia-Ukraine war. The minister noted that these factors have threatened the world's food security and deteriorated the living conditions of many lives. He said the international community should work together to resolve the shocks in the global food supply chain and stabilise food prices and stressed that these should be sustainable solutions.
Furthermore, Minister Shahid said he met the CFS in his capacity as President of the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and held a high-level meeting as he recognised the need for immediate and permanent solutions to the food crisis. He also said that the meeting provided a platform for member states, civil society, the private sector, and other relevant stakeholders to meet in one place to formulate policies and shape actionable policies at the global level.
In addition to the impact of the pandemic on the economy, Minister Shahid said that the cost of living reduction has had a significant impact on the Maldives like any other small island nation dependent on imports. He said it will be difficult for the Maldives to sustain the schemes without additional income although there are schemes to provide financial assistance to those affected by income.
Highlighting the Maldives is dependent on global supply chains due to the lack of large land suitable for agriculture unlike many countries in the world, he said that the country's goal of switching to renewable energy can only be achieved with the necessary financial support and the whole world needs to work together to control climate change.
Speaking at the meeting, Minister Shahid expressed concern over the increasing number of people suffering from hunger due to disasters and wars facing the world. He said the number of people facing extreme food insecurity has increased from 135 million to 276 million in the past two years, and the figure is expected to rise to 323 million in 2022 due to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
In conclusion, Minister Shahid said the whole world is facing challenging days. Therefore, he said that everyone should unite and in the same spirit work with renewed determination to meet the cost of living, reduce global food inequality and address all remaining challenges.