World leaders to discuss food shortages, climate change

Updated July 9, 2008 08:03:00

Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, U.S. President George W. Bush, Prime Minister of Japan Yasuo Fukuda, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, and President of European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso pose for the official G8 Summit photo in Toyako, Japan. [Reuters]

The leaders of the Group of Eight nations, meeting in Japan this week, will sit down with the leaders of other major economies including Australia to discuss climate change and world food shortages.

The G8 leaders haven't agreed to firm targets for cutting greenhouse gas emissions but have agreed to what's being described as a shared visions for cutting emissions by 50 per cent by 2050 and pursuing aggressive medium term goals.

But the United States is still reluctant to commit to firm targets without those being signed up to by China and India.

Both of these developing countries will sit down with G8 leaders along with the leaders of six other nations including Australia to discuss the matter as well as economic and food security issues.

Meanwhile, the head of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation is urging the G8 leaders to honour their pledges of aid to poor countries struggling to cope with soaring food prices.

Nearly $US24 billion in aid was pledged to Africa alone, during a high-level summit in Rome last month.

The UNFAO has also praised the G8's call on all nations with sufficient food stocks to release some of their reserves to countries in need.

The organisation is planning to distribute seed and fertiliser to 54 countries affected by the food crisis to safeguard next year's harvests and wants the international community to fund the program.