6 March 2009: Speaking at the annual UN International School’s UNIS-UN conference, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon discussed the linkages between food security and climate change. The conference, which gathered students from around the world, convened from 5-6 March 2009, at UN Headquarters in New York, US, under the theme “The Food Crisis: A Global Challenge.”

Ban explained that rising food prices have increased the number of people suffering from hunger to more than one billion worldwide, and that climate change could lead to a further decline of agricultural production in Southern Africa and Asia. Underlining that realizing every person’s right to food is a moral and humanitarian imperative, he described the activities of the UN High Level Task Force on the Food Security Crisis, including partnerships, food assistance, distribution of seeds and fertilizers, infrastructure development, and assistance for climate change adaptation. He also noted that helping communities around the world adapt to climate change will be a key issue to be discussed at the UN Climate Change Conference in December 2009. [The Statement] [UNIS-UN Conference Website]