WITHOUT THE RIGHT TO FOOD, THERE CAN BE NO HUMAN DIGNITY

Keynote at the World Food Day 2025 High-Level Roundtable

On 16 October 2025, I had the honour of speaking at the High-Level Roundtable “Faith in Action for Food Security, Human Dignity and a Sustainable Future,” held to mark World Food Day. The event brought together faith leaders, practitioners, and partners from Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean to explore how faith, science, and human rights can come together to end hunger and advance dignity for all.

WITHOUT THE RIGHT TO FOOD, THERE CAN BE NO HUMAN DIGNITY

The right to adequate food is not a slogan, and it is not charity. It is a legally recognized human right, affirmed in Article 11 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and reinforced by the Voluntary Guidelines on the Right to Food, adopted unanimously by all FAO Member States in 2004.

This right means that every person must have regular, permanent, and dignified access — physically and economically — to adequate, safe, nutritious, and culturally acceptable food, produced and consumed in a way that sustains life and respects human dignity.

In short, the right to food transforms food security from a policy aspiration into a legal duty.

If I had to summarize this right in two words, they would be dignity and entitlement. Dignity because access to food should never humiliate. The right to food affirms that every person is fully human — capable, deserving, and equal. Entitlement because it transforms moral duty into legal obligation. It defines what governments must do and must not do, turning compassion into accountability.

This shift moves the conversation from “How can we help?” to “What must we guarantee?”

TURNING PRINCIPLES INTO PRACTICE

The right to food implies that every government has three duties: to respect, to protect, and to fulfil the right to food. To respect means not to obstruct people’s access to food, land, or livelihoods. To protect means preventing others, including corporations or armed groups, from violating that access. To fulfil means taking action when people cannot feed themselves, through social protection, food assistance, or nutrition programmes.

This framework distinguishes rights-holders — all people, especially the most vulnerable — from duty-bearers such as governments and international organizations. It creates a relationship of accountability, not dependency.

THE STATE OF FOOD SECURITY — A WAKE-UP CALL

The SOFI 2025 Report shows only slight progress: global hunger fell from 8.5% in 2023 to 8.2% in 2024, yet 673 million people still face hunger. Almost half of them live in Africa, and projections suggest that by 2030, more than 500 million will still suffer chronic hunger.

About 2.3 billion people experienced food insecurity in 2024. Women and rural populations remain the most affected. The cost of a healthy diet reached 4.46 dollars per person per day, unaffordable for almost three-quarters of people in low-income countries.

Nutrition trends are mixed: while child stunting declined from 26% in 2012 to 23% in 2024, anaemia among women worsened and obesity continues to rise. Meanwhile, food price inflation — reaching up to 30% in low-income countries — has eroded wages and pushed millions deeper into food insecurity.

These numbers reveal that progress is fragile and deeply unequal.

RECOGNIZING THE RIGHT TO FOOD CHANGES EVERYTHING

Recognizing the right to food means changing how we act. It shifts focus from simply feeding people to creating conditions where everyone can feed themselves with dignity and autonomy.

It provides a governance framework where agriculture, trade, climate, and nutrition policies align toward one goal: realizing human rights. It demands accountability, transparency, and participation, turning “Zero Hunger” into an enforceable commitment.

And it aligns with what faith communities have always known — that food is sacred, and that feeding the hungry is not merely kindness, but an act of justice.

FAITH-BASED ORGANIZATIONS: PARTNERS IN DIGNITY

Faith-based organizations bring something unique to the realization of this right. Their strength lies not only in service delivery, but in their moral voice, their credibility, and the deep trust they hold within communities. They are often the first to respond and the last to leave. They mobilize people, volunteers, and networks that reach those most excluded. They bridge the gap between policies and real lives, turning the language of human rights into everyday action.

At FAO, we work hand in hand with these communities — together with Member States, the CFS, OHCHR, and the UN Special Rapporteur — to raise awareness, strengthen capacities, and turn the Right to Food Guidelines into meaningful change.

Because only together — through shared values and collective action — can we ensure that every law, every institution, and every programme truly upholds the right to food in practice.

MOVING FROM WORDS TO WILL

We are now just five years away from 2030. Hunger is not inevitable — it is a choice. And the opposite of hunger is not abundance — it is justice.

If we truly take the right to food seriously, then we must act accordingly. We must anchor it in law, treating food not as a commodity but as a human right. We must finance it, so that social protection and nutrition programmes reach every person, everywhere. We must monitor it, so that data leads to accountability — not just reports. We must protect it, even in times of conflict, crisis, or disaster. And we must teach it, so that the next generations grow up understanding that feeding others is not an act of charity, but an act of humanity.

Faith communities have always known this truth. They remind us that hope is not simply optimism — it is commitment put into action.

On this World Food Day, let us move together — faith, science, and policy — from words to will, from rights to reality, from data to dignity. Because every person, in every community, has the same right: to eat well, to live with dignity, and to belong to a world that refuses to accept hunger.