With the recent financial crisis, poverty is skyrocketing in poorer countries, with 1 in 6 people on the planet now facing life-threatening hunger.

Next week, leaders will meet at the World Food Summit in Rome to address this growing crisis. The best solution is funding to boost sustainable agriculture in poorer countries, but Germany and other countries are backing out on a $20 billion promise made earlier this year.

Millions of lives are on the line. Sign the petition below for rich countries to keep their promises, and it will be delivered directly to world leaders through a spectacular stunt at the Roman Colosseum on the eve of the Summit:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/world_hunger_pledges

The world produces enough food to feed everyone. Yet the number of people suffering from chronic hunger across the planet has reached the record-high figure of 1 billion this year.

Hundreds of billions are spent by wealthy governments to bail out banks and financial institutions, but the G8 countries are trying to cut a promised $20 billion commitment to agricultural investment to only $3 billion in new money. With literally millions of lives on the line, this is a scandal.

The Rome summit is also our best opportunity to push governments to promote small holder agricultural production -- growing evidence shows that intensive farming models are not effectively countering hunger and have a highly damaging impact on our environment.

We are teaming up with anti-poverty organisation ActionAid and global farmers networks to show our governments that we refuse to accept a world where people die every minute from hunger. Sign the petition to the Rome Summit -- every signature will be represented at a stunning delivery event at Rome's Colloseum:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/world_hunger_pledges  

With hope,

Luis, Alice, Benjamin, Graziela, Ricken, Pascal, Iain, Paula, Paul, Veronique and the entire Avaaz Team

Sources  

Global Hunger worsening, warns UN:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/8306556.stm  

Only 15% of G8 pledge is new money, Reuters:
http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSL3424540

ActionAid's HungerFREE Scorecard: Small scale farming systems critical in tackling hunger and poverty:
http://www.hungerfreeplanet.org/what-we-do/world-food-day

More information about ActionAid´s HungerFREE global campaign at:
http://www.hungerfreeplanet.org/

World Food Day: There is enough food grown in the world for everyone (Op-ed), Oxfam International:
http://www.oxfam.org/en/pressroom/pressrelease/2009-10-16/world-food-day

About the World Food Summit:
http://www.un-ngls.org/spip.php?article1399