WFP takes part in event with International Relations students

On Saturday, April 17^th, the Director of the WFP Centre of Excellence against Hunger Brazil, Daniel Balaban, participated in the 25^th edition of the Brazilian International Relations Students Conference (ENERI). He took part in a panel discussion on Food Security and the Challenges of Hunger in the Global South, moderated by International Relations student Vladimir Sá. Maria Elisa Huber, professor at Unifacs; Paulo Vaz, professor at the Institute of Humanities and Literature at the University of International Integration of Afro-Brazilian Lusophony (UNILAB); and Ruth Pucheta, South-South Cooperation Manager at the Inter-American Institute Cooperation for Agriculture were also part of the discussion.

In his speech, Daniel Balaban provoked the audience with these questions: how is it that in the 21^st century we still have 690 million people without food for themselves and their family? Are we unable to solve the problem of hunger or are there other reasons behind this issue? He recalled that hunger is the result of misery and inequality, which, in turn, are the result of income inequalities. “The problem is that we started to reduce the extreme poverty curve until 2015. And, from 2015 on, that decrease stopped and now in 2020 the curve started to rise again”, warned Daniel Balaban.

He also mentioned some key moments that reinforced the importance of cooperation work between countries to solve complex problems, such as ECO 92, the creation of the Millennium Development Goals and, later, the creation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015. “Cooperation is essential for us to achieve the SDG goals. We must also count on the participation of the private sector, which has a significant share of the world economy”, said Daniel Balaban. At the end of his speech, he invited International Relations students to further discuss issues related to the future of the planet and the fight against hunger.

The 25^th International Relations Students Conference (ENERI) was organized by students from UNILAB and UNIFACS. The lectures are available on this link.