Welcome to the Club! Brazil Builds a New G20 Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty

Is there still a common denominator that the world's most important heads of state can agree on? The good news is: yes, the fight against hunger and poverty is one. At least on paper.

Brazil's President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva wrested this commitment from the Heads of State of the most important industrialized and emerging countries at the most recent G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro at the end of November. Lula persuaded 88 countries and 67 organizations to join the new Global Alliance Against Hunger.

“733 million people in the world suffer from hunger,” he declared in his opening statement. “In a world that produces almost six billion tons of food every year, this is unacceptable. We who sit around this table have the inescapable task of putting an end to this scourge that shames humanity.”

An alliance with Russia and Ukraine

Among the participants at the G20 summit were the world's largest cereal producers: China, the USA, India, Russia and Brazil. They all signed accession statements in which they pledged to fight hunger and poverty – globally and in their own countries. Ukraine, which is also a leader in cereal production, also joined the alliance, even though it was not represented at the summit in Rio.

Countries that are not yet members include North Korea, Libya, Israel, Iran, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Zimbabwe, Syria and Afghanistan. The last four countries are among the 59 countries worldwide in which the population suffers from hunger according to the Global Network Against Food Crises (GNAFC).

Russia, which by attacking Ukraine since 2022 and blocking grain exports has contributed to the growing global hunger crisis. It stated in its declaration of commitment, among other things: “Coordination in the fight against hunger is urgently needed. That is why Russia supports the Global Alliance against Hunger and Poverty and its mission.”

In the declaration, the Kremlin offered international cooperation in adapting the agricultural sector to climate change. The analyses of the Eurasian Center for Food Security at Lomonosov State University in Moscow on the most important changes in crop yields due to climate change could be made available to interested countries.

Recipes from the “policy basket”

Host Brazil referred to its successful programs for transfer payments, school meals and the promotion of smallholder agriculture. These have contributed to the fact that, since 2014, the country no longer appears on the World Food Organization's (FAO) so-called Hunger Map. However, in 2022, after the end of the coronavirus pandemic, it reappeared on the list.

This is exactly what the new initiative is about: the knowledge and projects that have proven successful in the fight against hunger and poverty are to be collected and passed on in a so-called “policy basket”. The aim is to lift 500 million people out of poverty by 2030 through cash transfers and social security systems.

Money to finance the programs plays a role, but not the decisive one. Brazil wants to promote the development and organization of the initiative at the FAO. The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has pledged 25 billion dollars to finance the initiative's projects. And EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has also announced a European contribution.

Confident South

If hostile states such as Russia and Ukraine, which are at war with each other, join forces in a global alliance against hunger, does this constitute a real breakthrough? Can the new initiative really make a contribution to reducing famine, which has increased again due to wars and climate crises? Or is the new alliance even a kind of declaration of opposition by the so-called Global South to the current international fight against poverty?

Lin Hua, researcher at the Institute of Latin American Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, suggests this in an article for the Chinese Center for Global Poverty Reduction (IPRCC). “Although China and Brazil are at different stages of poverty reduction, both countries are actively working in their own way to eradicate poverty and hunger for the benefit of their people,” it says. This was “not only an example of poverty reduction in the Global South, but also forms the basis for changes in the international system of poverty reduction”.

The expert is convinced that the exchange of experience and cooperation between China and Brazil will not only benefit the two countries. It would also have a positive impact on the global fight against hunger and poverty and could drive innovation.

“Supplement for existing projects”

Martin Frick, Director of the World Food Program (WFP) in Germany, is cautiously optimistic: “We are pleased that the Brazilian G20 initiative will keep the global hunger crisis on the political agenda,” he told this journal. “As the largest humanitarian organization, we are a founding member of this platform to which we bring more than 60 years of expertise.”

According to Frick, every initiative must ultimately be measured by its success. But: “Supported by an alliance of affected countries, Brazil's idea can credibly complement existing projects,” says the WFP Director. “It makes sense that the country is also hosting the next COP30 climate conference, because the fight against hunger and the climate crisis must be considered together if we want to give a final push to achieving the UN sustainability goals by 2030.”

FAO, where the new alliance is based, is still dealing with organizational issues. “The alliance has just been founded, it is still too early to implement measures,” clarifies FAO expert Christopher Emsden. The alliance should be seen as a kind of collection point where requests are received, bundled and then forwarded.

Pioneer and role model China

Many organizations can then be considered as recipients of such “forwarding”, as numerous global alliances against hunger and poverty already exist. In addition to the FAO in Rome and the aforementioned WFP, the best-known players include the Global Network Against Food Crises (GNAFC). Its partner organisation, the Global Alliance for Food Security, was founded in May 2022 within the G7 group by German Development Minister Svenja Schulze after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. It will now be merged with the new G20 alliance. According to Schulze, the products of its efforts, which were supported by the World Bank, will be passed on. These include prevention plans and coordination tools for numerous countries across the world that aim to avoid hunger shocks in the future.

Additional major players are the Mo Ibrahim Foundation and the African Center for Sustainable Development Goals (SDG Center for Africa). And, of course, China's International Poverty Reduction Center in China (IPRCC). The website states without modesty: “China's success story is proof that developing countries can eradicate poverty if they pursue this goal persistently and with perseverance. If China can do it, so can other developing countries.”

On the African continent, the achievements of the emerging economy of the communist country are seen as the ultimate example of success. “China's ability to produce enough cereals to feed its 1.4 billion people is seen as one of the main reasons why the country has been able to combat food insecurity,” Nathalie Delapalme, Director of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, told this journal.

The foundation of the British-Sudanese telecommunications entrepreneur promotes good governance and leadership in Africa. The Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG) published by the foundation provides some of the most accurate statistics and data on the situation on the African continent.

Hope and despair in Africa

In contrast to China, which according to government figures “completely eradicated absolute poverty” in 2021 and lifted 800 million people out of extreme poverty through social programs, extreme poverty and famine continue to prevail in many African countries.

“Food security in 2023 was worse for 77.5 percent of the continent's population than in 2014, and the overall security situation was worse for 78 percent of the population,” according to the recently published 2024 IIAG Index. ”This is a vicious circle, as armed conflict and persistent insecurity are the main causes of food insecurity.”

But there have also been positive developments. According to the index, 27 out of 54 countries improved their performance on the “poverty reduction policy” indicator between 2014 and 2023.  The five countries that made the most progress were Côte d'Ivoire (+16.0), Somalia (+16.0), Togo (+7.9), Eswatini (+7.2) and Guinea (+7.2).

For Foundation Director Delapalme, the key to success lies in international cooperation and strengthening agriculture. “It is crucial to build bridges between agriculture, climate and policies to resolve conflicts,” she explains. She believes that the African continent has a key role to play when it comes to food security, despite the many crises. “In a globalized world where demand for food is constantly increasing and agricultural production is shrinking, Africa, with its wealth of biodiversity and uncultivated farmland, has the potential to become an important player,” she says.

Less cereal, more hunger

The forecasts of cereal production falling are currently causing concern worldwide. According to estimates by the International Grains Council (IGC), “the overall global supply and demand for grains (wheat and coarse grains) for 2024/25 points to a further worsening of the outlook”. The reason: demand is rising, production falling.

According to the IGC, the forecast for global grain production in 2024/2025 was 2.311 billion tons in November of this year. In October, it had still been 2.314 billion tons, which represents a decline of over four million tons. At the same time, expected consumption is predicted to rise from 2.328 to 2.332 billion tons in the same period.

WFP Director Martin Frick sounds the alarm: “Never since the Second World War have there been so many wars and conflicts as in the current period. Climate change is leading to drastic crop failures; countries such as Zambia and Zimbabwe have lost 50 percent of their maize harvest. In Sudan alone, more than 25 million people are dependent on humanitarian aid.”

While food prices had doubled in 25 countries, the WFP's two largest donors, the USA and Germany, had reduced their aid, he said. Germany's contribution has fallen from 1.7 billion euros (2022) to just under 1 billion euros this year. The USA has reduced its aid from 7.25 to 4.2 billion dollars within two years. “It’s a major crisis,” says Frick.

In this critical situation, the new alliance had come at just the right moment, said Delapalme. She points to the need to link agriculture, climate and conflict management. “It is crucial to bring together various stakeholders on common platforms. President Lula's initiative could play a key role.”