The Human Right to Food
The human right to food is recognized in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. National governments have a duty to respect this right in their own actions, to protect the right from the actions of others, and to fulfill the right for their citizens.
What are we trying to do?
The Canadian government has ratified the United Nations declarations on the human right to food and Canada’s Overseas Development Assistance Accountability Act stipulates that all foreign aid must be consistent with international human rights standards. The Foodgrains Bank encourages Canada to take this commitment seriously in its foreign policy, which includes not only aid, but also its actions on international trade and investment.
What have we accomplished?
To date, there is little indication that Canada is actively seeking to implement the human right to food in its foreign policy.
The Foodgrains Bank supports two international projects on the human right to food, and Public Policy staff work closely with International Program staff on these projects. In India, advocacy work at village level is helping lower caste and tribal people to gain access to welfare programs from their own government. A local organization in Malawi is urging its national government to adopt legislation on the human right to food. These two projects are profiled in our
2009 Annual Report.
The Foodgrains Bank (working as part of the Mennonite Committee on Human Rights) has developed an art exhibit to explore the interface between food, faith and human rights. The
Just Food exhibit weaves together commissioned artworks from Canadian and international artists, with biblical quotations about food and justice, and declarations about the human right to food. The exhibit opened in Manitoba in May 2010, and will tour across Canada until 2012. A digital version is also being prepared for use outside of gallery settings.
What are we still working on?
The Foodgrains Bank continues to promote the human right to food in our dialogue with CIDA and other government officials, pointing out how a human right approach can be beneficial in prioritizing the needs of vulnerable people. We have conducted several workshops with constituents across Canada, to help them understand what the human right to food means, and how it can help in ending hunger.
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