Call to include right to food as fundamental right in Constitution

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Experts, academics and human rights activists at a discussion meet urged the government for taking necessary steps to include the right to food as a fundamental right in the Constitution with a view to ensuring food security for all, reports UNB.
They said as the right to food is not a constitutional right in the country, people could not compel the government to provide them with food although at present many African countries have been providing food to the people as a fundamental right.
Actionaid Bangladesh, an NGO, organised the discussion on 'Right to Food as a Fundamental Right' at the city's CIRDAP auditorium Saturday.
Chaired by Actionaid Country Director Farah Kabir, the discussion meeting was addressed, among others, by economist Prof Qazi Kholiquzzaman Ahmad, Dhaka University teacher Prof Asif Nazrul, Rasheda K Chowdhury, Rokeya Kabir and Ashraf Kaysar.
Prof Kholiquzzaman said the government should take measures to hand over khas land to the landless and ultra poor people for utilisation of the land in achieving food security.
He laid emphasis on rearranging the existing market economy system as well as creating employment opportunities for removing poverty and attaining food security.
Kholiquzzaman also stressed the need for taking integrated steps for creating employment opportunities to remove poverty. "If we cannot create employment opportunities, we cannot be able to go ahead."
Apart from food security, he called upon the government to take steps for ensuring water, power and housing security for the countrymen.
Prof Asif Nazrul said the rights to food, cloth, accommodation and employment must be considered as the fundamental rights in the Constitution so that people could ask question about the government's role.
Meanwhile, a BSS report adds: Speakers at a national seminar underscored the need for integrated efforts to attain food security for the increasing population.
"The country is facing new challenges in food production for its additional 2.2 million people every year", they added.
The seminar on 'United against Hunger' was held at Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council (BARC) in the city Saturday marking the World Food Day.
They said the country's population is increasing at the rate of 1.41 per cent a year and at the same time, the cultivable land is being depleted at a rate of one per cent from the total land.
Quazi Akhter Hossain, acting secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture, attended the seminar as the chief guest, while executive chairman of the BARC Wais Kabir presided over the seminar.
Additional Secretary and Chairman of Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation (BADC) Nazmul Hossain and Director-General of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) Sayeed Ali attended the seminar as special guests.
Additional Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture Anwar Faruque gave the address of welcome, while Director of Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS) M Asaduzzaman presented the keynote paper.
The cultivable land of the country was around 9.2 million hectares in 1972, and now it has declined to 8.2 million hectares and it has been identified as a big threat to maintaining food security, they said.
Mr Asaduzzaman said there are more or less a billion people worldwide who go to sleep with empty or partially empty stomach every night.
The seminar was informed that the real budgetary allocations for research and technology generation, extension and marketing services were still low and more attention should be paid to this.
Earlier, Quazi Akhter inaugurated a two-day agricultural commodity fair on the premises of Krishibid Institution.
Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI), Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation (BADC) and Food and Agricultural Organisation of the United Nations took part in the fair with latest technology in food production.