United Nations Radio

The Food and Agriculture Agency reports more than one billion people will go hungry this year.

The Food and Agriculture Agency reports more than one billion people will go hungry this year.

FAO blames the increase in hunger on the global economic crisis that has resulted in lower incomes and increased unemployment.

Kostas Stamoulis, Director of FAO's Agricultural Development and Economics Division, says this crisis follows another food price crisis and has had a devastating effect on the poor.

"The poor have depleted all their coping strategies during the high food prices. That is they sold assets, they cut down their diets, they cut down on health and education expenditures and now they have very little at their disposition to face another crisis. That is a very important aspect that makes this crisis unique."

FAO calls on the international community to act soon because there are more hungry people in the world than ever in the history of human kind.

This is Dianne Penn for United Nations Radio.
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