Global finance chiefs tackle soaring food prices

WASHINGTON－Global finance leaders are putting the growing crisis over food insecurity and skyrocketing food prices at center stage as members of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank meet in Washington and grapple with the brutal effects of the ongoing crisis in Ukraine.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen convened a Tuesday morning meeting with leaders from the IMF, World Bank, G7 and G20 to "call on international financial institutions to accelerate and deepen their response" to countries affected by food issues exacerbated by the conflict, the US Treasury Department said.

This year's G20 meetings start from Wednesday, and include a mix of virtual and in-person events.

Yellen plans to meet with Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal during G20's big meetings.

Russia's Finance Minister Anton Siluanov will lead Russia's delegation, the ministry confirmed on Tuesday.

Russia and Ukraine produce 14 percent of the world's wheat supply, according to the United Nations, and the loss of commodities due to the conflict has resulted in soaring food prices and uncertainty about the future of food security globally, especially in impoverished countries.

The Food and Agriculture Organization Food Price Index has made its biggest jump since its inception in 1990, reflecting an all-time high in the costs of vegetable oils and meat.

A late March report from the organization stated that the global number of undernourished people could increase by 8 million to 13 million people into 2023, "with the most pronounced increases taking place in Asia-Pacific, followed by sub-Saharan Africa, and the Near East and North Africa. If the war lasts, impacts will go well beyond 2022/23".

Hunger catastrophe

Anna Nagurney, a crisis management specialist at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, said Tuesday's meeting of global leaders was significant and "speaks to the growing fear and the increasing understanding that the world may be on the verge of a hunger catastrophe".

US Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo said on Monday that the international coalition of countries imposing sanctions on Russia and its allies takes the food security threat seriously.

"One of the things we have to do is take practical steps to demonstrate that this system is helping the people who need it the most," he said, which includes a "focus on those countries that are struggling to pay for things like bread for their people in light of the increase in commodities prices". Russia is a member of the G20, which is made up of representatives of industrial and emerging-market nations.

Agencies Via Xinhua