[MUSIC] There is a great diversity of inequalities in our world. Inequalities are made of many different parameters. We have of course to discriminate between inequalities among states and inequalities inside states, that's not the same. But let's focus on inequalities among states at this international global level, and if we take into account this inequalities among states, we have also to distinguish between political inequalities among states, which are less or more powerful, economic inequalities, social inequalities, natural inequalities and so on. These inequalities can be considered through the concept of human security. You know that UNDP distinguished seven human securities that's to say, food securities, health securities, environment security, political security, cultural security, economic security, individual security, and these securities are more or less achieved. And when one of these securities is not properly achieved there is a source of inequalities among states. Let's give the priority to the food security. Why? For to reasons, the first one that probably and certainly even food insecurity is the most relevant factor of disaster in our world causing starvation as you know, but causing also political, social, and economic instability. And the second reason, is that food insecurity is revealing when we observe it a lot of the main factors which are also working for the other insecurities. About food security. Let's first forget some common places. First of all, the Earth, our Earth, is able to feed these seven billion of people which are composing humanity, but it does it badly, and this is the problem. It can, but it does it badly. The second point that we have to take into account is that feeding capacity of our world has been multiplies by 2.4 in 40 years, that is probably something really efficient but, but pesticide, artificial fertilizers deep profiting, GMO are in the meantime more and more endangering humanity. Turnpoint we count 800, 900 million starving people in the world the same amount which is stable when however the global population is increasing, that is apparently the evidence that situation has improved. And that's true. In proportion, starvation is fortunately decreasing. But, ladies and gentlemen, by now, currently six million people die of starvation per year. But also hunger makes two billion of people handicapped, or with very severe nutritional deficiencies. And last point, starvation changes. Formerly, it was rural. Now it's more and more urban, and starvation in urban environment has particular consequences that starvation in rural societies didn't have. And starvation is more and more centered on one continent. That's to say, on Africa. If we say that, if we keep that in mind, we have three remarks, very important remarks to make. First of all, starvation, hunger are economic problems. That's to say the main factor of starvation is to be found in poverty for a very simple reason. That's to say, poor people use about 60, 70, 90% of the family budget for food. If the price of food is increasing, they have just to reduce their own consumption. That's to say, first of all, the source, the main factor of hunger is to be found in poverty. But it's also, as I said on point, a political problem. That's to say, this poverty is itself related to lack of willingness and to the misconception of global public policies. But it's also a systemic problem. That's to say crisis in the south, as to say in countries which are suffering of starvation depends on change in the laws and in the ways of consuming in northern developed countries. Let's now focus on these factors of hunger in our present world. I will distinguish seven factors which help to understand why our global world is not working well. The first one is, as I mentioned, overconsumption in northern countries. That's to say inequality, ladies and gentlemen. Inequality is triggering starvation. In his life, a Frenchman, like me, will eat 7 bull ox, 33 pigs, 9 sheep, 60 rabbits, 1,300 chickens. This overconsumption implies massive importation of soya in our developed countries, which has taken away from the southern consumption, in order to provide for this overconsumption for us. For instance, needs it's own area of farmland multiplied by 1.6. China needs its own farmland multiplied by 2.5. Japan needs its own farmland multiplied by 7.1, and US by 1.9. That explains this process of land grabbing, which is taking place in the world. And which deprives especially African countries from a vital part of their own agricultural resources. The second factor is environment. Global warming, drought, desertifications, create difficulties for promoting a modern agriculture in thousand and developing countries. And this climate change is much more negative for developing countries, than for developed countries. It creates new areas of farmland in Canada or in Russia. But it creates desertification in south which is as you know one of the main factors of starvation in this part of the world. Third factor, urbanization, urbanization obviously implies regression of farm lands. In developing countries, and the transformation of the server over this new towns which is pushing away farmlands out of the main places of urbanization. Fourth factor, biofuels. Biofuels which take every year about 100 million tons of cereals. Fifth factors, wars. Political instability, bad governance, corruption. Sixth factor, global policies. It's not very clear that the world could define the right global policies, which would meet properly this hunger challenge. Especially our global market is marginalizing small producers. When small producers in developing countries are probably in the new individual flavor, the main factor of development and of reducing starvation. Seventh factor may be the more critical is speculation. Keeping the mind, for instance, that rice price was multiplied by 20% within two weeks in 2007. When rice is the main food for many poor people, we can imagine the consequences of this speculation. But the problem with that, if the price is decreasing, the risk is the same, that's to say in this case small producers are ruined, which is another factor of aggravation and worsening of this situation. Solutions are very difficult to find but however, however, some countries could do the job. China now is almost, no more suffering of starvation. And the same for Brazil, after the famous former zero policy which was defined by the president Lula da Silva who gave, his cabinet gave vouchers for food purchase to people in condition to send their children to school. And this program could cut the number of starving people by 20 million, from 99 to 2009. That's why this issue is not a desperate plan, but this issue will be really challenged if there is political willingness to do that. [MUSIC]
