FACTBOX-G8 farm ministers meet in Italy
April 16 (Reuters) - Agriculture ministers from the Group of Eight industrialised countries and major developing nations will seek a common strategy to boost farm output, food security and fight hunger when they meet in Italy this weekend [ID:nLF285709].
Following are some facts about the meeting provided by Italy's Agriculture Ministry which will host the event in northern province of Treviso on April 18-20:
WHY FOOD EMERGENCY TOPS THE AGENDA
* The first-ever G8 farm ministers meeting was called after the G8 leaders at a summit in 2008 urged the group's agriculture ministers to work out "concrete and sound proposals on world food security" to prevent a repetition of last year's food crisis
* Almost one billion people suffer from hunger worldwide. According to the World Health Organisation estimate, 3 million underweight babies die every year.
* So-called "hidden hunger" -- survival on a very limited diet eating the same food almost every day without sufficient vitamins and minerals -- affects over 2 billion people. Around 100-140 million children suffer from vitamin A and D deficiency.
ISSUES TO DISCUSS, MEASURES TO TAKE
* Returning agriculture to a leading role on the international economic and political scene; boosting the share of farm support in overall aid to poor countries.
* Increasing farm productivity in developing and developed countries to reduce the gap between food demand and supply.
* Strengthening the economy of rural areas.
* Improvement of price and labelling transparency on the international markets.
* Coordinated management of international stocks, either through using the reserves of bigger producing countries or through coordinated interventions on futures markets.
* Fight against speculative trading.
* Combat climate change and push for better management of water resources.
PARTICIPANTS
Agriculture ministers of the G8: Italy which holds the G8 rotating presidency in 2009, Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Russia and the United States
Agriculture ministers of Brazil, China, India, Mexico, South Africa, Argentina, Australia and Egypt.
Also invited: the deputy minister of agriculture of the Czech Republic in his capacity as vice-president in the Office of the EU Council, the EU Commissioner for Agriculture Mariann Fischer Boel; the African Union, FAO, U.N. High Level Task Force on Food Security, IFAD, OECD, World Bank and WFP.
(Reporting by Svetlana Kovalyova)
Following are some facts about the meeting provided by Italy's Agriculture Ministry which will host the event in northern province of Treviso on April 18-20:
WHY FOOD EMERGENCY TOPS THE AGENDA
* The first-ever G8 farm ministers meeting was called after the G8 leaders at a summit in 2008 urged the group's agriculture ministers to work out "concrete and sound proposals on world food security" to prevent a repetition of last year's food crisis
* Almost one billion people suffer from hunger worldwide. According to the World Health Organisation estimate, 3 million underweight babies die every year.
* So-called "hidden hunger" -- survival on a very limited diet eating the same food almost every day without sufficient vitamins and minerals -- affects over 2 billion people. Around 100-140 million children suffer from vitamin A and D deficiency.
ISSUES TO DISCUSS, MEASURES TO TAKE
* Returning agriculture to a leading role on the international economic and political scene; boosting the share of farm support in overall aid to poor countries.
* Increasing farm productivity in developing and developed countries to reduce the gap between food demand and supply.
* Strengthening the economy of rural areas.
* Improvement of price and labelling transparency on the international markets.
* Coordinated management of international stocks, either through using the reserves of bigger producing countries or through coordinated interventions on futures markets.
* Fight against speculative trading.
* Combat climate change and push for better management of water resources.
PARTICIPANTS
Agriculture ministers of the G8: Italy which holds the G8 rotating presidency in 2009, Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Russia and the United States
Agriculture ministers of Brazil, China, India, Mexico, South Africa, Argentina, Australia and Egypt.
Also invited: the deputy minister of agriculture of the Czech Republic in his capacity as vice-president in the Office of the EU Council, the EU Commissioner for Agriculture Mariann Fischer Boel; the African Union, FAO, U.N. High Level Task Force on Food Security, IFAD, OECD, World Bank and WFP.
(Reporting by Svetlana Kovalyova)
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