The newly-established UN task force on global food crisis convened its first meeting Monday here, bringing together UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and other senior officials from relevant UN agencies.
In a statement issued after the closed meeting, the UN chief said the focus was "the development of a comprehensive framework for tackling the challenges posed by the food price crisis."
"This strategy is expected to outline short and longer-term actions, such as food aid, social protection initiatives and agricultural boosts, which will help counter the negative consequences of the food crisis for the most affected," he said.
Ban did not disclose the content of the strategy, only saying that they agreed to "present the elements of such a strategy at the High Level Conference on World Food Security in Rome on 3-5 June."
Members of the task force "appeal to countries around the world to ensure that their policies, for example regarding exports of food, do not exacerbate the current structural rise in food prices and its consequences," he said.
"In particular, they appeal to all countries to allow food supplies needed for humanitarian purposes, for example by the World Food Program, to be provided without hindrance," he said.
Ban said that Under-Secretary-General John Holmes, the coordinator of the task force, and Assistant Secretary-General David Nabarro, the deputy coordinator, will be consulting with UN member states during the next few weeks.
The task force will also be meeting on an ad-hoc basis as needed, he added.
In late April, the UN chief announced the new international task force whose "primary aim" is to "promote a comprehensive and unified response to the global food price challenge in support of governments and affected populations."
Source:Xinhua
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