LONDON (AP) 鈥 British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Monday that the U.K. is setting up a new science initiative to help develop flood-tolerant rice, disease-resistant wheat and other crops that are more resilient to climate change.
Sunak was joined by ministers, diplomats and philanthropists from about 20 countries at a one-day Global Food Security Summit in London, where he urged world leaders to harness and other cutting-edge technology to end malnutrition around the globe.
Sunak told delegates that a 鈥渇undamental shift鈥 is needed to confront a food-security crisis that is being worsened by climate change. He focused on the role of science and said the U.K. would set up a 鈥渧irtual science hub鈥 linking international researchers working on more resilient crops. The U.K. hub will be part of a global research partnership known as CGIAR.
鈥淐limate change, conflict and population rise mean ever greater challenges to food supplies," Sunak said. 鈥淪o we need a fundamental shift in the way we approach food security, with a focus on long-term solutions to stop food crises before they start. And we need to harness the full power of science and technology to ensure supplies are resilient to threats like conflict, drought and floods.鈥
The event was co-hosted by Somalia and the United Arab Emirates alongside the Children鈥檚 Investment Fund Foundation and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
The summit coincided with publication of a 鈥渞e-energized鈥 U.K. development strategy aimed at ending extreme poverty and tackling climate change and biodiversity loss.
The document sets out the U.K.'s aid plans through 2030, and confirms Britain will not restore development aid to 0.7% of gross national income 鈥 after it was cut to 0.5% during the coronavirus pandemic 鈥 until 鈥渢he fiscal situation allows.鈥 Instead, the U.K. says it will spend smarter, earmarking money to help countries strengthen their defenses against natural disasters, raising more private-sector money for development and building 鈥渕utually respectful鈥 relationships with developing nations.
鈥淭oday鈥檚 answer cannot be about rich countries 鈥榙oing development鈥 to others,鈥 Foreign Secretary David Cameron wrote in an introduction. 鈥淲e need to work together as partners, shaping narratives which developing countries own and deliver.鈥
The Lancaster House conference venue was picketed by activists from Medical Aid for Palestinians calling for a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war to get urgently needed food and humanitarian aid into Gaza.
鈥淚t is good that they are talking about addressing food and security in the world. But if they鈥檙e going to do that seriously, they cannot ignore the situation in Gaza, where 2.2 million people are at risk of starvation,鈥 said the group鈥檚 chief executive, Melanie Ward.
鈥淏ecause of the siege that鈥檚 been imposed on Gaza, the amount of aid that鈥檚 gotten in the last month is only enough for about two normal days in Gaza. So less than 10% of the food needed to keep people in Gaza alive is actually getting in.鈥
Like the United States, the U.K. has not called for a cease-fire, but Sunak urged Israel to agree to 鈥渦rgent and substantive humanitarian pauses鈥 to get in food, fuel and medicine.
鈥淭he situation on the ground is truly tragic and getting worse,鈥 he said.
