Dominican President Leonel Fernández was unanimously elected to be the vice-president of the High Level Conference on World Food Security, Challenges of Climate Change and Biofuels, welcoming a proposal from the Group of Latin American and Caribbean Countries (GRULAC).

President Fernández was praised by the representatives of the GRULAC member countries due to his successful diplomatic effort at the 10th Rio Group Summit that took place in Santo Domingo...

GRULAC-Rome president, Jorge Chen, FAO representative from Mexico, presented the initiative to the 33 member states of the regional Latin-American organization within the framework of the preparatory meeting held on Sunday.

Chen immediately reported this decision to FAO deputy secretary general Alexander Muller. The United Nations will meet from Tuesday June 3-5 in this city to analyze and take decisions in the face of the world food crisis.

President Fernández, who arrived here on Monday at 2:15, was praised by the representatives of the GRULAC member countries due to his successful diplomatic effort at the 10th Rio Group Summit that took place in Santo Domingo last March 5-7 especially in view of the crisis that had surfaced between Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela.

More than 60 presidents, heads of state and ministers from around the world have confirmed their participation in World Food Crisis and Biofuels Summit where they will discuss the rising cost of food and its connection to skyrocketing oil prices.

Tackling world hunger, malnutrition, poverty, food production, biofuels, water and land scarcity are some of the issues on the agenda at the summit, called by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

In preparation for the High Level Conference, several meetings have taken place involving experts and consultants whose previously-produced documents will serve as a basis for discussion.

President Fernández, speaking at a September 2007 plenary session of the United Nations (UN) in New York, emphasized the need to have a meaningful discussion of the problems facing many countries in the face of escalating fuel and food costs, according to the President’s Office of Information, Press and Publicity.

He underscored the danger this crisis poses for emerging, non-oil-producing economies as they face the high cost of crude oil on the world market.

Following President Fernández’s speech last year, he sent a letter to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon proposing the creation of two special funds earmarked for poor countries who are confronting this food and energy crisis.

More recently, during the Central American Integration System Summit (SICA) which took place in El Salvador last month, the Dominican President proposed that this regional organization call on the UN to convoke a series of extraordinary sessions to deal with the gravity of this situation. The proposal was accepted by the Heads of State and Presidents.