On Tuesday 14 November, the Director of the World Food Programme (WFP) Centre of Excellence against Hunger in Brazil took part in the webinar “The Human Right to Adequate Food and the Role of the Public Ministry” promoted by the São Paulo’s Public Ministry. The event aimed to promote a debate with members of the Public Prosecutor’s Office and society in general on the right to food and nutrition security.
The debate centred on the importance of understanding hunger and food insecurity as issues that are widely affected by public policies and sought to meet the demand for the promotion of food and nutritional security policies raised by social surveys carried out throughout the state of São Paulo.
In his speech, the Director of the Centre of Excellence, Daniel Balaban, showed how Brazilian public policies have been a reference for the creation of laws and incentives for food security in countries in Africa, Latin America and Asia through South-South Cooperation. “Brazil is one of the most unequal countries in the world. In order for a country to overcome inequality, extreme poverty and hunger, public policies must include income transfer and social protection policies,” he said.
The webinar also responds to a determination by the National Council of Public Prosecutors, which demands that Public Prosecutor’s Offices all over Brazil work together with the public authorities and organised civil society to ensure that states and municipalities join the National Food and Nutrition Security System (SISAN).
Also taking part in the debate were Public Prosecutor Eduardo Ferreira Valerio and José Giacomo Baccarin, Professor of Agroindustrial Development and Agricultural Policy at Paulista State University. A full recording of the webinar is available here.