III 

110TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. CON. RES. 344 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 11, 2008 

Received and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 

Recognizing the disproportionate impact of the global food 

crisis on children in the developing world. 

Whereas according to the United Nations, over 850,000,000 

people in the world are chronically or acutely malnourished, and over 300,000,000 of these are children; 

Whereas the 2000 United Nations Millennium Development 

Summit called for halving the proportion of hungry people in the world by the year 2015, but progress reaching 

this goal has been slow, and, according to 


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HCON 344 RFS 

the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization, 

only the Latin American and Caribbean region has been 

reducing the prevalence of hunger quickly enough to 

reach this target; 

Whereas every year, malnutrition caused by chronic hunger 

leads to the death of an estimated 5,600,000 children 

under 5 years old; 

Whereas, according to UNICEF, an estimated 146,000,000 

children, or roughly one in every four children under 5 

years old, are underweight; 

Whereas hunger and malnutrition weaken the immune system, and as a result treatable diseases pose a greater risk 

to malnourished children; 

Whereas even temporary deprivation of essential nutrients 

can have a lasting impact on children’s physical growth 

and intellectual potential; 

Whereas children who are only mildly underweight are twice 

as likely to die of infectious diseases as children who are 

better nourished, and children who are moderately or severely underweight are 5 to 8 times more likely to die of 

infectious diseases; 

Whereas according to a study conducted by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, 45 percent of 

children who died after contracting measles were malnourished, as were 60 percent of children who died after 

contracting severe diarrhea; 

Whereas chronic hunger and undernutrition can lead to 

growth retardation (stunting), affecting an estimated 

168,000,000 children under the age of 5 in developing 

countries; 


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HCON 344 RFS 

Whereas some 42 percent of children under the age of 5 are 

stunted in the least developed countries, compared to 30 

percent globally; 

Whereas women whose growth was stunted face ongoing 

health complications as adults, are more likely to have 

obstructed labor, are at greater risk of dying during 

childbirth, and are more likely to deliver children who are 

premature and stunted; 

Whereas stunted growth has also been linked to diminished 

work capacity and higher propensity to diseases, including diabetes and heart disease, in adults; 

Whereas the global community is currently facing a food crisis, with food prices doubling over the past 3 years and 

rising 65 percent between January and April 2007 alone, 

and the World Bank has estimated that the emergency 

situation could push 100,000,000 people in low-income 

countries deeper into poverty; 

Whereas in times of food crisis, families often must cut more 

expensive foods, such as meat, fruit, and vegetables, from 

their diets, instead relying on less nutritious staples such 

as rice and maize, foods without the nutrients necessary 

for proper child growth; 

Whereas, on June 3, 2008, through June 5, 2008, more than 

180 countries, including more than 40 heads of state and 

more than 100 ministers, attended and participated in 

the High Level Conference on World Food Security in 

Rome, Italy; 

Whereas at the High Level Conference on World Food Security, the participating countries pledged to increase their 

assistance for developing countries, in particular least deVerDate Aug 31 2005 04:39 Sep 12, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HC344.RFS HC344

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HCON 344 RFS 

veloped countries and those that are most negatively affected by high food prices; and 

Whereas the G8 member states declared at the 2008 

Hokkaido Toyko Summit their commitment to addressing 

urgent needs of the most vulnerable people suffering from 

the global food crisis and to increasing investment in 

long-term agricultural development and for programs 

that respond to the underlying causes of food insecurity: 

Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 

2 concurring), That it is the sense of Congress that— 

3 (1) in emergency situations, children have dif4 ferent needs than those of adults, and nutritional de5 ficiencies disproportionately affect children; 

6 (2) in the context of the current global food cri7 sis, the nutritional needs of children must be a hu8 manitarian priority; and 

9 (3) the United States and the other G8 member 

10 states should continue to monitor the impact of the 

11 global food crisis on children and commit to increas12 ing their assistance to respond to the global food criVerDate Aug 31 2005 04:39 Sep 12, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HC344.RFS HC344

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HCON 344 RFS 

1 sis, and specifically, responding to the needs of chil2 dren impacted by the global food crisis. 

Passed the House of Representatives September 9, 

2008. 

Attest: LORRAINE C. MILLER, 

Clerk. 


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