New York (Union)
The UAE highlighted several examples of conflict situations that lead to increased food insecurity, including the prolonged suffering in Yemen, and stressed, in particular, the need for the Houthis to stop and fully implement all violations of the current humanitarian truce.
In a statement before the Security Council on the protection of civilians in armed conflict delivered by Ambassador Lana Nusseibeh, the country’s permanent representative to the United Nations, the UAE said: “In the context of our discussion on the impact of food insecurity on some of the conflict situations we are dealing with, we reiterate the need to stop the Houthis For all their violations of the current humanitarian truce and its full implementation, so that we can see our way through it.”
Ambassador Lana Nusseibeh added: “The memorandum of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs confirmed that the Houthi closure of roads in and out of Taiz is prolonging the severe suffering of the civilian population, as this purely humanitarian issue affects the lives of millions of Yemenis, and needs to be addressed. Find a solution to it without delay.
And she continued: “The memorandum also clarified how urgent economic support contributes to improving the living conditions of the population.”
In the Horn of Africa, including Ethiopia and Somalia, the ambassador said: “Agricultural activity continues to be affected by climate change and phenomena such as water scarcity, agricultural land degradation, and devastating cycles of drought and floods, and these effects are exacerbated dramatically with the outbreak of conflicts, violence and displacement across the region, Therefore, it is important to ensure that millions of people vulnerable to starvation have access to food.”
She called on the international community to support the efforts of local and regional partners in the Horn of Africa to develop mechanisms that help communities enhance their resilience to mitigate the risks of increasing food insecurity.
“Ethiopia, in particular, should take advantage of recent developments in maintaining the indefinite humanitarian truce, which has helped restore humanitarian access,” she said.
She noted the complex dynamics and challenges facing South Sudan, including rising intercommunal tensions, the implications of climate change and underdeveloped infrastructure, which make collective efforts to address the humanitarian needs of the people of South Sudan more important than ever.
As for the repercussions of food insecurity at the global level, Ambassador Lana Nusseibeh said, according to the statement: “We know that a short-term unilateral approach is not sufficient to address the effects of armed conflict, high food prices, stunted economic growth, and disruption of global supply chains.” All parties to the conflict should engage constructively in formulating a framework for continued cooperation on issues related to humanitarian access, security challenges, and food distribution.
She noted that food insecurity in part was a reflection of deep divisions, stressing that the added advantage of this approach is that cooperation between parties to address food security at the technical level can really help build the confidence needed to achieve broader political progress on the issues underlying the conflict. .
She added: “Today, we need to make more effort to mitigate the effects of the global food crisis, which has accumulated as a result of the recent conflict, as Ukraine and Russia account for 12 percent of the food trade in the world, and about 26 countries depend on them to meet 50 percent of their needs. of grain.”
Nusseibeh said, in the statement: “The UAE, which imports the majority of its food, is aware of the risks that food importers are exposed to, and what has worsened the situation is the high fertilizer prices, which have created more pressures on food producers, high costs, and lack of crops. This threatens its unavailability in the future.
She stressed the need for Ukraine’s grain and other foodstuffs to reach those who need it most, not just those who can pay for it.
She noted that fertilizers play an important role in preserving crops in the future, and that Russian fertilizers must be available in global markets, to ensure that agricultural production is not exposed to more danger in the future.
Ambassador Lana Nusseibeh noted that the current food security crisis is a clear example that climate change contributes to insecurity, as developing countries, especially fragile ones, are more vulnerable to climate-induced natural disasters, which in turn leads to reduced agricultural production, which affects the lives of and livelihoods of millions of people around the world.
“Current per capita climate finance is still only $2 per capita in fragile countries, which is 80 times lower than other developing countries that are also underserved,” she said.
“Therefore, priority must be given to investing in early warning systems, proactive action, and building resilience in the agricultural sector, and international financial institutions must be encouraged to finance risks,” she added.
She explained that the UAE has always called, in the Security Council, to take into account systematically the unconventional motives for conflicts, by receiving regular updates on risk factors in fragile environments, and this in turn will help the Council to take preventive measures, to confront any worrying deterioration of the security and humanitarian conditions. .
Climate and food security are closely interrelated, and both are essential to maintaining international peace and security, Nusseibeh emphasized, adding: “From this standpoint, the UAE looks forward to working with all members of the Council, and with all Member States, to ensure that the issue of food security receives global attention. who deserves it.”
She noted the briefing of David Beasley, Executive Director of the World Food Program and Mr. Maximus Torero, Chief Economist at the Food and Agriculture Organization, noting that, according to their description of the scale of the food insecurity crisis, it is of catastrophic proportions and raises deep concern, especially as it exposes hundreds of thousands of People suffer from catastrophic levels of food insecurity, and this call for action to mitigate the scale of that disaster should not be ignored.
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