RADAR • POPE TO G20

IMMEDIATE AND DECISIVE ACTION NEEDED TO ERADICATE WORLD HUNGER

Pope Francis addressed the G20 Summit for international economic cooperation, hosted in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 18 to 19 November 2024. The meeting was attended by the leaders of the 19 member countries,
plus delegates from the African Union and the European Union. The Pope’s words, read by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican Secretary of State, called for immediate efforts by all to eradicate world hunger and poverty.

BY VATICAN NEWS

POPE FRANCIS called attention to the scandal of world hunger, worsened by the armed conflicts in today’s world, while huge amounts of money are spent on weapons and armaments rather than helping to feed three billion people who have no access to food or adequate nutrition. 

Ending the scandal of world hunger 

While congratulating President Lula da Silva for facilitating the meeting in its role as current chair of the Group of 20, the Pope expressed his hope that the discussions and the outcomes from those participating would truly contribute to creating a better world and a prosperous future for the next generations. 

The Pope underscored the immediate and primary necessity of eliminating hunger, as many millions in our world continue to suffer and die from hunger, while tons and tons of food are discarded, quoting from his Encyclical Letter Fratelli Tutti (FT), how “this constitutes a genuine scandal” and stressing that “hunger is criminal; food is an inalienable right” (§189). 

Halting wars, building lasting peace

Acknowledging the problems caused by wars, conflicts, and the persistence of injustices, the Pope underscored the importance of finding new ways to achieve “a stable and lasting peace in all conflict-related areas, with the objective of restoring the dignity of those affected.” The death and destruction caused by these wars is also contributing to increasing famine and poverty, even affecting places far removed from the actual conflicts, as a result of the disruption of supply chains and huge amounts of money being spent on weapons and armaments. 

The Pope writes that it is of great concern how the world has still not found ways to deal with the tragedy of starvation, and that this “silent acceptance” by society is “a scandalous injustice and a grave offence.” This is especially true when usury or greed by some cause the starvation of their brothers and sisters, in fact “committing homicide.” Therefore, he stresses, “no effort should be spared to lift people out of poverty and hunger.” 

Poverty contributing to hunger crisis 

Social and economic injustices exacerbate the reality of hunger and poverty, and this can perpetuate “a cycle of economic and social inequalities that are pervasive in our global society”, the Pope added. 

“It is thus evident that immediate and decisive action must be taken to eradicate the scourge of hunger and poverty. Such action must be undertaken in a joint and collaborative manner, with the involvement of the entire international community.” 

Effective measures require “a concrete commitment from governments, international organisations and society as a whole”, and these include access to basic goods and the fair distribution of vital resources that respects “the God-given human dignity of every individual.” 

Tackling food waste 

The Pope also pointed out that collective action is needed to address the scandal of food waste, as there is actually enough food to feed everyone today, but this is distributed unequally for various reasons. Efforts to address these challenges will require a “long-term vision and strategy… necessary to effectively combat malnutrition.” 

To this end, the Pope offered his support to the Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty, which can play a key role in addressing hunger and poverty, and also by implementing a long-standing proposal of the Holy See calling for “redirecting funds currently allocated to weapons and other military expenditures towards a global fund designed to address hunger and promote development in the most impoverished countries.” 

Avoiding ‘ideological colonisation’ 

The Pope also underscored the need for projects that are not imposed from the outside, but “planned and implemented in response to the needs of the people and their communities.” 

In conclusion, the Pope gave the assurance that the Holy See would continue its efforts to promote human dignity and offer its own contribution through the sharing of experiences and engagement of Catholic institutions worldwide, “so that in our world no human being, as a person loved by God, be deprived of his or her daily bread.” 

Source: https://www.vaticannews.va/en/ pope/news/2024-11/pope-to-g20-immediate-action-needed-to-eradicate-world-hunger.html