Millions across the globe are facing a food crisis amid soaring prices for basic necessities, driven by COVID-19-related disruptions, extreme weather events, and a disruption in the supply chain triggered by Western sanctions against Russia.
The World Rural Forum, representing over 350 million farmer families around the world, in an open letter on Monday expressed its concern over global food security, saying that risks are pending unless the government “boosts adaptation finance for small-scale production and promotes a shift to more diverse, low-input agriculture,” India’s Times Now reported.
Read: COP27 climate talks begin as world grapples with multiple crises
The forum includes 200 million small-scale producers from Africa, the Asian Farmers’ Association for Sustainable Development, and many others.
The letter came hours before the UN Climate Summit (COP27) in Egypt, with 90 representatives of states meeting to discuss food security and climate finance.
The letter also points out that small-scale producers produce up to “80% of the food eaten in places like Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa”.
Read: Is it too late to prevent climate change?
In 2018, they contributed up to 1.7 percent (or $10 billion) of climate finance flows, as “opposed to the $240 billion they are thought to require annually to support climate change adaptation.”
Food and agriculture have been sidelined in climate negotiations and the concerns of small-holder producers ignored.
“Small-scale family farmers need a seat at the table and a say in the decisions that affect us — from secure access to land and tenure, to accessing finance — if we are to rebuild our broken food system,” Laura Lorenzo, Director of the World Rural Forum, said.
Source: United News of Bangladesh