At a ceremony to mark 30 years of World Food Day (October 16) in Phu Tho province on October 11, Yuriko Shoji said this year’s topic is “United against hunger” and she called for joint efforts from individuals, agencies and countries throughout the world towards hunger eradication and poverty reduction.

FAO has reported that about one billion people, or one sixth of the world’s population, are starving. In the context that cultivated land becomes more scarce, food production will have to increase by 75 percent in order to meet food demand for nine billion people in 2050, the organisation warned.

According to Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Thi Xuan Thu, Vietnam-a country with 70 percent of its population living in rural areas, has made efforts to ensure an adequate food supply for the population which is increasing by one million people every year.

Vietnam seeks further FAO assistance in agriculture production, especially in a new rural development programme in the future, Thu said.

To develop sustainable agriculture, a food security plan developed by the Ministries of Agriculture and Rural Development and Natural Resources and Environment put forward a target of maintaining 3.8 million hectares of land for agricultural production by 2030.

The ministries also help farmers develop food production cooperatives, with priority given to rice growing areas, together with increasing investment in infrastructure.