Brasília - Minister of Social Development and Hunger Combat, Patrus Ananias, will travel to New York on Sunday, along with president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, for the meeting on hunger and poverty at the United Nations. Ananias says he intends to present a report on Brazil's Zero Hunger program, an effort he sees as giving the country the high moral ground in the debate.

The Zero Hunger program run by the government seeks to eradicate hunger and social exclusion by emancipating poor families.

Ananias declared that the New York meeting will add another dimension to the Zero Hunger program. At the moment, its main line of action is the Family Voucher program that gives families cash and access to healthcare, food, education and social assistance. At the moment, the program reaches some 5 million families.

Another important part of the program is the purchase of farm produce by the government from family farms for distribution to the needy and charitable institutions. In the 18 months that the Lula administration has been in office, it has spent US$41.3 million (R$120 million) on such purchases.

Agência Brasil
Reporter: Juliana Cézar Nunes
Translator: Allen Bennett
09/16/2004