RES/9/6 Follow-up to the seventh special session of the Human Rights Council on the negative impact of the worsening of the world food crisis on the realization of the right to food for all

Human Rights Council

Resolution 9/6. Follow-up to the seventh special session of the Human Rights Council on the negative impact of the worsening of the world food crisis on the realization of the right to food for all

The Human Rights Council,

Reaffirming all previous resolutions and decisions on the right to food adopted in the

framework of the United Nations, in particular Council resolution S-7/1 of 22 May 2008,

Recalling the United Nations Millennium Declaration, in particular the first Millennium

Development Goal of eradicating hunger and extreme poverty by 2015,

Noting the outcome of the High-level Conference on World Food Security: the Challenges

of Climate Change and Bioenergy, held from 3 to 5 June 2008, in Rome,

Resolved to act to ensure that the human rights perspective is taken into account at the

national, regional and international levels in measures to address the current world food crisis,

Welcoming the holding of the panel discussion entitled “The human right to food and the

global food crisis: root causes and responses”, held in New York, on 29 August 2008,

Acknowledging the task force established by the Secretary-General, and supporting the

Secretary-General to continue his efforts in this regard,

Recognizing the complex character of the current global food crisis, as a combination of

several major factors, both structural and conjunctural, also impacted negatively by, inter alia,

environmental degradation, drought and desertification, global climate change, natural disasters

and the lack of the necessary technology, and recognizing also that a strong commitment from

national Governments and the international community as a whole is required to confront the

major threats to food security,

page 2 1. Acknowledges with appreciation the report of the Special Rapporteur on the right to

food (A/HRC/9/23), and takes note of his recommendations;

2. Expresses grave concern at the fact that the current world food crisis still seriously

undermines the realization of the right to food for all, and especially for one sixth of the world

population, mainly in developing and least developed countries, suffering from hunger,

malnutrition and food insecurity;

3. Encourages States to mainstream the human rights perspective in building and

reviewing their national strategies for the realization of the right to adequate food for all, which

could include, inter alia, the mapping of the food insecure, the adoption of relevant legislation

and policies with a right to food framework, the establishment of mechanisms to ensure

accountability so that rights-holders are able to claim their right to food, and the establishment

of mechanisms and processes which ensure participation of rights-holders, particularly the most

vulnerable, in the design and monitoring of such legislation and policies;

4. Also encourages all States to invest or promote investment in agriculture and rural

infrastructure in a manner that empowers the most vulnerable and affected by the current crisis in

order to ensure their realization of the right to food;

5. Calls upon States, individually and through international cooperation and assistance,

relevant multilateral institutions and other relevant stakeholders, to take all necessary measures

to ensure the realization of the right to food as an essential human rights objective, and to

consider reviewing any policy or measure that could have a negative impact on the realization of

the right to food, particularly the right of everyone to be free from hunger, before instituting such

a policy or measure;

6. Stresses that States have a primary obligation to make their best efforts to meet the

vital food needs of their own populations, especially of vulnerable groups and households, such

as by enhancing programmes to combat mother-child malnutrition, and to increase local

production for this purpose, while the international community should provide, through a

coordinated response and upon request, support for national and regional efforts by providing the

necessary assistance for increasing food production, particularly through agricultural

A/HRC/9/L.12 page 3 development assistance, the transfer of technology, food crop rehabilitation assistance and food

aid, with a special focus on the gender-sensitive dimension;

7. Encourages all relevant international organizations and agencies to bring to their

studies, research, reports and resolutions on the issue of food security a human rights perspective

and the need for the realization of the right to food for all;

8. Requests the Special Rapporteur on the right to food to continue the promotion of the

right to food and the follow-up to the current world food crisis in all relevant forums, especially

in the framework of the United Nations and all the relevant international organizations and

agencies of the United Nations system, in order to contribute to identifying means to implement

the right to food;

9. Also requests the Special Rapporteur to report on the implementation of the present

resolution to the Council at its twelfth session, including on the progress made and obstacles

encountered in relation with the implementation at the national level of the measures and best

practices adopted by States to respond to the global food crisis;

10. Requests the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to bring the

present resolution to the attention of all relevant international organizations and agencies;

11. Decides to remain seized of the implementation of the present resolution.

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