LatAm leads global fight against hunger, but too many still hungry: FAO

Latin America has made the most headway than any other global region in fighting hunger, but too many people continue to go hungry, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said Monday.

"It's not normal for any citizen to suffer from hunger," FAO representative Adorinam Sanches told participants of a regional conference that opened Monday in Mexico City.

Since 1990, 17 of Latin America's 33 countries have succeeded in cutting the hunger rate from 14.7 percent to 5.5 percent, the daily La Jornada reported, citing figures from the United Nations agency.

Yet some 34.3 million Latin Americans still lack access to food, said Sanches.

The Caribbean region registers the worst hunger rate, with some 7.5 million people lacking food and proper nutrition, especially in impoverished Haiti, said the FAO.

The four-day conference aims to outline regional priorities in agriculture, food and nutrition.

The problem of hunger is being discussed "at the highest political level regionally," said the official, noting the 33 member nations of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) in January 2015 approved a plan to eradicate hunger, and boost food security and nutrition.

"The CELAC plan aims to meet the goal of creating a Latin America and Caribbean that is free of hunger, through areas of action that respect the diversity of political and social projects of each of the nations," said Sanches.

The 34th Regional FAO Conference for Latin America and the Caribbean concludes on Thursday.

Mexico's President Enrique Pena Nieto is set to address the gathering on Tuesday at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Enditem