Taskforce to focus on tackling world hunger

A "Hunger Taskforce" was launched by the Government yesterday to recommend the best contribution the State can make to efforts to end world hunger.

The establishment of the group was called for in last year's White Paper on Irish Aid, and was introduced by Conor Lenihan, Minister of State for Irish Aid and Human Rights.

It will be chaired by former minister for agriculture and Fianna Fáil deputy Joe Walsh. Other members include economist Jeffrey Sachs, Sheila Sisulu of the World Food Programme and Tom Arnold of Concern.

Mr Lenihan said the taskforce would meet during the summer and would deliver its report before the end of the year.

The taskforce will make a series of recommendations on how Irish Aid can best fulfil its mandate on issues such as food insecurity, malnutrition and poor outcomes in farm production.

In 2005, the United Nations taskforce on hunger drew up a plan to halve world hunger by 2015. "What we are now doing with our own Irish Hunger Taskforce is seeing how those global recommendations made by the UN taskforce on hunger can be localised into our own bilateral aid programme in such a way that is both practicable and implementable," Mr Lenihan said.

The report would not "lie on the Government bookcase gathering dust", and implementation of recommendations would begin next January, Mr Lenihan said.

He added that the general election should not change the work of the taskforce as this was "a genuine committee of experts" and he did not think anyone could take issue with a single appointment. "The hope is that no matter who is in charge of this portfolio, the work of this [ taskforce] will continue and will be delivered on time at the end of the year."

This State is the sixth-largest donor of overseas aid per capita in the world. Its aid budget will increase from €800 million today to more than €1.5 billion by 2012.

Joe Walsh said Ireland's experience in improving the lot of small farmers meant we could make "a very useful contribution" in the medium and long term. "Over 800 million people in the developing world go to bed hungry each night and 300 million of those are children," he said.

The State's experience in increasing yields and improving food quality meant we had an opportunity "of boxing well above our weight in this regard", he added.

Nine members of the taskforce were revealed yesterday and four more will be appointed in the coming weeks.

The nine members are: Prof Jeffrey Sachs of Columbia University; Justin Kilcullen, director of Trócaire; Sheila Sisulu, deputy director of the World Food Programme; Kevin Farrell of the World Food Programme; Nancy Aburi of the charity Self Help; Michael Gibney, professor of food and health at UCD; Tom Arnold, chief executive of Concern; Aidan O'Driscoll of the Department of Agriculture; and Brendan McMahon, head of the emergency and recovery section of Irish Aid.