The United Nations World Food Conference closed in Rome on Sunday (17 November) with a final session in which the 1,000 delegates approved more than 20 resolutions ranging from Tsetse fly eradication to water management.

But these were few hard commitments at the end of the twelve-day Conference to feed the more than 500 million people going hungry throughout the World.

Conference Chairman, Giuaippe Medici of Italy stressed in his closing speech, that the success of the meeting depended on member states translating plane into action.

One of the main Conference resolutions called for the establishment of on international fund to finance farm development so that poor countries could feed themselves. But the United States, West Germany and France have made it clear that they are not yet ready to put money into the fund, which organisers hoped to start at 1,000 million US dollars (about 400 million pounds sterling). And the oil-producing countries have made it equally clear that, although they will match any contributions made by the developed countries, they expect the western world to make the first move.

Other decision relate to the founding of an international "insurance policy" against hunger on the basis of co-ordination of national food stocks. A further scheme for an "early warning system" of harvest information to anticipate food shortages has roused great reluctance on the part of several countries to reveal such information on the grounds of national sovereignty and security.

SYNOPSIS: The United Nations World Food Conference closed in Rome on Sunday. At the final session, the one thousand delegates approved more than twenty resolutions ranging from Tsetse fly eradication to water management.

But as the twelve-day Conference ended, there were few hard commitments to feed the five-hundred million hungry people throughout the world. Much depends on ow words are translated into action.

One of the main resolutions called for the establishment of an international fund to assist farm development. The scheme would enable poor countries to feed themselves. But France, the United States and West Germany have indicated that they're not yet ready to put money into the fund... And the oil-producing countries feel that the developed nations should take the initiative. So the situation remains uncertain.

Other resolutions have evoked a similar hesitant response.

In his closing speech, Conference Chairman Giuseppe Medici of Italy said that detailed negotiations were urgently needed in the next few months ... Otherwise the Conference's decisions would become void. One thing is certain: it needs more tan talk to establish a viable scheme to feed the worlds hungry.