“There is already sufficient food to feed all the people on our planet,” reminded Pope Francis in a message he addressed to participants at the G20 summit taking place in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) on November 18 and 19, 2024. In the text, which Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin read to world leaders, the Pope suggests that the newly-created Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty take action to redirect funds allocated to weapons towards the fight against hunger.
The Holy See, represented by its “number 2,” Cardinal Parolin, is a guest at this forum for economic cooperation between the world's major powers. Participating entities account for 85% of the planet's GDP.
The two-day meeting’s theme is “Building a just world and a sustainable planet.” Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who holds the rotating presidency of the G20 this year, is the host and chairman of the event.
Too much money spent on weapons
In his message dedicated to the elimination of famine, Pope Francis expresses his concern at the “significant pressures currently being exerted on the international system” in food distribution.
He blames conflicts, which disrupt supply chains, and the “exorbitant amount of money” spent on armaments.
The Pope suggests that the new Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty, launched with 147 members, “could begin by implementing the long-standing proposal of the Holy See."
It calls 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.”
“No effort should be spared to lift people out of poverty and hunger,” Francis insists. He goes on to protest against “the silent acceptance of famine by human society, [...] a scandalous injustice and a grave offense. Those who, through usury and greed, cause the starvation and death of their brothers and sisters in the human family are indirectly committing a homicide, which is imputable to them."
A problem of unequal distribution
The problem of hunger is not a question of the quantity of food production, he pointed out.
“There is already sufficient food to feed all the people on our planet; it is merely unequally distributed,” he explains.
In addition to combating food waste, he advocates a reorganization of systems to put an end to the “paradox” whereby over 3 billion people have no access to a nutritious diet, while almost 2 billion are overweight “due to poor nutrition and a sedentary lifestyle.”
Once again, the head of the Catholic Church warns the leaders of the most powerful countries against any “ideological colonization” with programs that ignore or undermine “the cultural and traditional richness of peoples.”
Projects must respond “to the needs of the people and their communities, and not [be] imposed from above or by entities that seek only their own interests or profit,” warns the Pope.
