ROME — Pope Benedict XVI on Monday decried the steadily worsening tragedy of world hunger after a global summit rebuffed a U.N. call to commit billions of dollars a year for a new strategy to help poor countries feed themselves.
The meeting at the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization did unite nearly 200 countries behind a pledge to increase aid to farmers in poor countries to help the developing world lessen its dependence on foreign food aid.
Only hours after the three- day summit began, about 60 heads of state and dozens of ministers rejected the U.N.’s call to commit $44 billion annually for agricultural development in these nations.
The final declaration also omitted a pledge, sought by the United Nations, to eradicate hunger by 2025.
“Hunger is the most cruel and concrete sign of poverty,” Benedict told the delegates after the document was approved. “Opulence and waste are no longer acceptable when the tragedy of hunger is assuming ever-greater proportions.”
The last previous papal appearance at a food summit in Rome came in 1996, when Pope John Paul II delivered a speech.
U.N. officials say roughly 1 billion people — one of every six people on the planet — don’t get enough to eat.
As the conference opened, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon told participants it was unacceptable that so many go hungry even though the world has enough food.
Helping the poor become self-sufficient lies at the core of food security, he said.
“Our job is not just to feed the hungry but to empower the hungry to feed themselves,” he said.
FAO, which is hosting the conference, says the share of international aid that is allocated to agriculture has steadily declined over the past three decades. Helping the hungry has largely entailed rich countries sending food assistance rather than technology, irrigation help, fertilizer or high-yield seed.
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