FAO official: 137 million people worldwide suffer from hunger

Viorel Gutu, Assistant Director-General, Regional Representative for Europe and Central Asia at Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), has revealed that 137 million people around the world are currently living in hunger.

Speaking at the "Baku Harmoniya Climate Initiative for Farmers" event held during COP29, Gutu highlighted the critical role that food systems play in addressing global hunger, Caliber.Az reports, citing local media.

"Numerous calls for action towards food systems are essential," Gutu stated.

"The food sector is currently lacking sufficient funding, with investments having fallen below 37 percent."

He also expressed hope that the Baku Harmoniya Initiative for farmers would help accelerate climate financing efforts and ultimately contribute to achieving the global food security goals.

"We hope that the Baku Harmoniya Climate Initiative for Farmers will help speed up climate financing and meet our objectives," he added.

Notably, Baku Harmoniya Climate Initiative for Farmers is set to become a pivotal platform uniting efforts in agriculture, food security, and water resources, said Majnun Mammadov, Azerbaijan's Minister of Agriculture, during the launch of the Climate Initiative for Farmers on November 19.

The platform aims to address the vulnerability of farmers to climate change, who face direct impacts such as rising temperatures, erratic rainfall, soil degradation, and water shortages. Despite being on the frontlines of climate change, farmers often receive inadequate support.

The initiative seeks to provide farmers with practical knowledge, digital tools, and global best practices to help them make sustainable decisions for their farms.

The announcement was made during COP29, hosted by Azerbaijan at the Baku Olympic Stadium, where world leaders gathered to discuss climate action.

A key outcome expected from the conference is the establishment of a New Collective Quantitative Goal on climate finance to support global climate efforts.

By Aghakazim Guliyev