Mr. President,

We thank both Special Rapporteurs for their reports and valuable presentations.

The right to food is of particular importance today as there has been a radical increase in the recent years in the number of people affected by hunger. An increasing number of countries are facing today famine due to ongoing conflicts, humanitarian crises, climate change and finally disasters, which is the main focus of the Special Rapporteur Ms. Hilal Enver in her final report.

As rightfully stressed by the Special Rapporteur Ms. Hilal Elver in her report, drastic climate change due to global warming causes significant effects on food security in various regions of the world. The right to food obligates States to implement protective measures and food safety requirements, including the provision of disaster relief and humanitarian assistance in times of emergency.

Being the host of the World Humanitarian Summit in 2016, Turkey, with many other countries, has pledged to address shortcomings of humanitarian assistance in times of disasters. However, it is important to underline that a multi-dimensional work is needed, with the involvement of all actors at international, regional and national levels in this area.

We commend the good practices already applied by many states and hope that, in line with the calls of the Special Rapporteur, Ms. Hilal Elver, efforts to increase the food security and assistance during emergencies due to disasters will be strengthened in the future.

Thank you.