A/HRC/16/40 I. Introduction 1. While governments have pledged to fulfil the Millennium Development Goals, notably to reduce extreme poverty and hunger, the bleak reality shows that an infamous record was broken in 2009: 1 billion people were found to suffer from undernourishment.1 Many of the hungry are unable to realize their right to food because of underlying patterns of discrimination: for example, article 139 of the Labour Code of Guatemala describes rural women as “helpers” of the male agricultural workers rather than as workers entitled to receive their own salary.2 Such de jure discrimination of rural women in Guatemala has a significant impact on their capacity to feed themselves and their families. At the same time, many children living in extreme poverty throughout sub-Saharan Africa, in parts of Asia and Latin America are affected by noma, a disease that devours the face and is fatal in up to 90 per cent of cases. This dreadful disease, last encountered in Europe in Nazi concentration camps, has malnutrition and poor sanitation as key risk factors. Children with noma are victims of de facto discrimination in the context of the right to food. 2. In its resolution 10/12, the Human Rights Council mandated the Advisory Committee to undertake a study on discrimination in the context of the right to food, including identification of good practices of anti-discriminatory policies and strategies. 3. At its first session, the Advisory Committee established a drafting group on the right to food, consisting of José Bengoa Cabello, Chinsung Chung, Latif Hüseynov, Jean Ziegler and Mona Zulficar3 and mandated it to draft a study on discrimination in the context of the right to food. The drafting group had several drafting meetings and prepared working papers. The preliminary study on discrimination in the context of the right to food was endorsed by the Committee at its fourth session and submitted to the Council for its consideration (A/HRC/13/32). 4. In its resolution 13/4, the Human Right Council welcomed the above-mentioned preliminary study and requested the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) to collect the views and comments of all States, all relevant United Nations special agencies and programmes and all other relevant stakeholders on the good practices of anti-discriminatory policies and strategies set out in the preliminary study so that the Advisory Committee could take them into account for the conclusion of the study. 5. The present study is the outcome of a thorough research process and consultations among the members of the Advisory Committee and was endorsed by the Committee at its sixth session, for submission to the Human Rights Council at its sixteenth session. The study takes into consideration the comments and suggestions made by States, United Nations special agencies, international organizations and other relevant stakeholders, including national human rights institutions and non-governmental organizations. 1 2 3 Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO), “1.02 billion people hungry”, Rome, 19 June 2009. FIAN, “The right to adequate food of rural and indigenous women in Guatemala”, written submission to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women. See also E/CN.4/2006/44/Add.1. The members of the drafting group on the right to food thank Christophe Golay and Ioana Cismas from the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights for their important contribution during the drafting of the present study. 3