11/18/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 11/18/2024 21:51
Responding to the official launch today of the Global Alliance against Hunger and Poverty proposed by Brazil's G20 presidency, Oxfam Brazil's Director of Programs, Advocacy and Campaigns Maitê Gauto said:
"The Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty could be a turning point in the battle against hunger and extreme poverty. Sharing proven policy solutions like cash transfers and school meals is important, but the Alliance must go further still by prioritizing transformative agriculture, racial and gender equity, land rights, and small-scale farming. It must also urgently address the devastating impacts of climate change on food systems in the Global South and confront the weaponization of hunger. Only by embracing these deeper, structural changes can we hope to tackle the root causes of hunger and poverty effectively."
"The Alliance's success hinges on being more than a platform for top-down solutions. It needs transparent governance rooted in food security as a human right, with clear safeguards against excessive private-sector influence over decision-making and dedicated spaces for civil society. As it stands, the Alliance's governance structure raises concerns about civil society's ability to engage meaningfully, with apparently no dedicated seat for civil society on key decision-making bodies like the Board of Champions. Financing is equally crucial -beyond the Inter-American Development Bank's $25 billion pledge, G20 countries and other Alliance members must make significant public investments in small-scale agriculture. It's time for governments to take real steps, like taxing the super-rich to raise trillions of dollars for people and the planet."