Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2000-05-03-Speech-3-149"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| dcterms:Language | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20000503.9.3-149"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:spokenAs | |
| lpv:translated text |
".
Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, first of all I want to sincerely thank all those who helped me draft this report, and especially the committee members for adopting it unanimously. Day after day, over the last few weeks, we have seen pictures of the dreadful famine in Ethiopia all over the media. While we all sit at home, replete after a good supper, our TV screens show us depressing new evidence of the sufferings of a people plagued by drought and hunger. This afternoon, in response to precisely that situation, the European Parliament adopted a resolution on the famine in Ethiopia.
To finish, a word about the forthcoming WTO talks. Let me express my very serious reservations about linking the liberalisation of world trade to food aid provision, for that would be at the cost of the starving people, which can be in nobody’s interest.
The European Parliament, one of the most important political institutions in the European Union, has a duty to take a stance on the matter and it is important that we do not remain silent in the face of such disasters but offer political, moral and financial support, given also that the EU is one of the biggest donor countries. The international Food Aid Convention we are discussing in plenary today could not take place against a more topical background, and its importance and necessity could not be demonstrated more clearly. The objective of this international convention is to contribute towards world food security, but also to make it possible to respond to acute food crises with different food requirements.
By and large, I welcome the new convention for I believe it incorporates some very good ideas and covers a wider range of products. But let me add a few general comments.
Firstly, we must at all events continue to provide food for emergencies such as drought and other climatic disasters. Here we need to ensure it is delivered rapidly and minus the bureaucracy, because aid can only save lives if it reaches the suffering people rapidly and in time. A binding strategy for closer coordination between the donor countries will help ensure that the aid really is effective.
Secondly, we should set a long-term objective in our food policy, which is to create food security in every part of the world, so that the supply of food aid can be confined to emergencies. Food aid consignments should gradually be replaced by measures to improve food security in these countries.
Thirdly, it is extremely important in food policy to take account of the repercussions on local food production and markets. These repercussions must be monitored and, as I said, local production must not be jeopardised, for I believe that would be counterproductive.
Fourthly, the Commission has been asked to evaluate food aid to ensure that it is fully consistent with other development cooperation sectors and their principles. Naturally, the findings will have to be incorporated in our future activities, otherwise the evaluation would presumably be pointless.
My fifth point is that we must be extremely careful to ensure that the aid actually reaches the target groups who are genuinely in need. In this connection, I am particularly keen to see women involved in the planning and execution of the programmes, for I think that would be a good step in the right direction.
Allow me to mention another point, namely the problem of food aid on the basis of credit. I welcome the restrictions in the new convention, for our long-term aim must be to abolish the credit system completely. Instead, we should increase still further the share of food aid in the form of grants. In that context, let me also say that I fully and wholeheartedly support the amendment Mr Fiori tabled for the plenary."@en1
|
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples