Pope Leo’s addresses to the executive board of the United Nations World Food Program
Headquarters of the World Food Program (Rome) – Monday, 22 June 2026
“The World Food Program is more than a political, economic or technical actor;
it is a concrete expression of international solidarity”
Pope Leo’s addresses:
Distinguished Authorities,
Your Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,
I would like to thank Her Excellency Mrs Cindy McCain for her kind invitation to address the Executive Boards annual meeting of the United Nations World Food Program.
In particular, I greet Mr Carl Skau, Acting Executive Director, and Her Excellency Mrs Carla Barroso Carneiro, President of this important assembly.
I also greet the representatives of the member states, the distinguished guests at this meeting and the staff of this intergovernmental institution, dedicated to saving lives in emergency situations and providing food assistance amid conflicts and natural disasters.
The commitment of your institution resonates profoundly with the mission of the Catholic Church to uphold human dignity and foster fraternity, which is rooted in the Gospel’s call to love our neighbor (Mark 12:31 — “The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’
(Mark 12:31 – The second commandment is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’
There is no other commandment greater than these.”).
Together, we share the urgent task of confronting hunger and malnutrition, while also tackling the underlying structural causes that sustain them.
To effectively meet this task, we must examine the challenges before us, their underlying causes and the paths toward lasting solutions.
Today, crises have evolved from isolated events into persistent realities, marked by prolonged conflicts, chronic food insecurity, economic volatility and growing climate vulnerabilities.
This raises a fundamental question: what configuration of the global order produces, reproduces and normalizes such conditions?
The issue is no longer just how to intervene; but also, but also why the system constantly produces the very problems it is then forced to correct.
The international order has become increasingly fragmented, in part due to the crisis of the multilateral system.
As I recently noted in the Encyclical Letter Magnifica Humanitas: “the institutions established to safeguard the concept of a common future for all peoples and a global common good appear to have been weakened” .
In the absence of a shared ethical foundation to sustain genuine cooperation, the international system has shifted toward “a disorderly and conflict-ridden multipolarism with a prevailing sense of mistrust”.
Consequently, states have increasingly allocated their resources toward national security, economic growth and domestic stability, disregarding the close link between these issues and multilateral cooperation.
This trend reveals a striking paradox: unprecedented global productive capacity coexists with expanding zones of extreme vulnerability.
The same forces that drive economic growth often exacerbate exclusion and marginalization.
While alleviating human suffering is widely recognized as essential, humanitarian concerns are increasingly at risk of being relegated to a secondary priority among international concerns.
The gap between acknowledgment in principle and prioritization in practice is precisely where we witness the progressive bureaucratization of solidarity and the quiet commodification of human life.
On one hand, humanitarian action is increasingly burdened by bureaucratic procedures that can delay assistance to those in need.
On the other hand, access to essential goods, including food, is too often influenced by economic or strategic considerations.
Consequently, individuals who do not generate quantifiable value risk becoming invisible.
This twofold dynamic creates a serious ethical challenge: the human person is no longer consistently placed at the center of international action.
In this context, it is important to acknowledge that “whereas forms of aid and development projects are obstructed by involved and incomprehensible political decisions, skewed ideological visions and impenetrable customs barriers, but weaponry is not”
(Francis, Address to the Executive Board of the World Food Program, June, 13 2016).
In effect, conflicts are “fed” more readily than people are nourished.
This reality reflects not only operational shortcomings but also a fundamental imbalance in political and moral priorities.
The consequences extend well beyond those who are immediately affected.
Hunger is not just a humanitarian concern.
Hunger erodes social cohesion, heightens the risk of conflict and fuels forced migration.
Furthermore, hunger undermines the ability of states and societies to establish resilient institutions, provide quality education, and promote sustainable economic development.
In doing so, hunger perpetuates cycles of fragility that affect the broader international community.
Insted, it reflects the global community’s responsibility to strengthen solidarity, resist exclusion and recognize the inherent God-given dignity of every human person.
Therefore. beyond managing crises, international institutions embody the principle of shared responsibility, affirming that the international community is bound together by concern for the most vulnerable.
In this sense, The World Food Program is not just a political, economic, or technical entity; it is a tangible manifestation of international solidarity.
Indeed, when national institutions weaken and community networks disintegrate, its presence helps to prevent humanitarian crises from spiraling into irreversible collapse.
For this reason, a renewed commitment to multilateral cooperation is essential.
In an increasingly fragmented and multipolar world, no single State can address global challenges alone.
Lasting peace and comprehensive, sustainable human development are possible only through the participation of all, which is fostered by genuine international dialogue and cooperation oriented toward the common good.
This approach necessitates a robust political commitment that transcends short-term perspectives and invests in global public goods.
“This goal can only be achieved through the convergence of effective policies and the coordinated and synergistic implementation of interventions. The call to walk together, in fraternal harmony, must become the guiding principle” (Visit to the FAO Headquarters in Rome, 16 October 2025, 6).
In this spirit, I call on the governments and peoples of the world to renew and strengthen their commitment, to combating hunger and its root causes.
They must increase the resources dedicated to this effort and remove the obstacles that prevent aid from reaching those in need.
At the same time, this support should strengthen engagement with the Church and civil society.
Together, reinforcing the capacities of all these actors will multiply our collective effectiveness in the fight against hunger..
Effectively implementing this appeal requires reducing unnecessary bureaucracy so transparency and accountability serve people rather than impede assistance.
In situations where governments lack effective territorial control or humanitarian access is restricted, trusted local partners are indispensable.
The Catholic Church — through parishes, dioceses, Caritas agencies, and other faith-based initiatives — often reaches vulnerable populations in areas inaccessible to international actors.
I therefore encourage the World Food Program and its partners to continue supporting these efforts.
Resisting the commodification of basic human needs is equally important.
Food, water, and healthcare must not be subordinated to market considerations or geopolitical interests.
Access to adequate food is a fundamental human right,
rooted in the inherent dignity of every individual.
Meeting this need alleviates suffering
and addresses the underlying causes of geopolitical instability.
Indeed, food security is an essential component of global security.
In this regard, it is commendable that the World Food Program not only responds to emergencies, but also extends its work beyond immediate relief to long-term initiatives, such as providing meals to schoolchildren.
These investments strengthen education, human development, and social resilience. They reflect a comprehensive vision of human development that promotes dignity, opportunity, and overall well-being.
Your Excellencies, dear friends,
At stake are not only the effectiveness of an agency but also the credibility of international cooperation itself.
Your organization demonstrates that a renewed path is possible; however, It requires the resolve to simplify the overly complex, prioritize the essential, and ensure that no one is forgotten.
This commitment is grounded in the recognition that every human person possesses an inherent and inalienable dignity which remains intact regardless of circumstance, condition or social status.
Rooted in God’s unconditional and boundless love, this dignity is infinite because nothing can diminish, erase, or deny its value.
Our fidelity to this truth is precisely how the humanity of our politics and the future of the international community are measured.
With these sentiments, I ask God to bless your efforts abundantly, so that all may receive their daily bread and live in dignity.
Please be assured of my prayers for you, your loved ones and those whom you serve.
Thank you.
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Meeting with five WFP representatives from other countries
Pope Leo: Good morning, good afternoon, and good evening to all of you spread around the world.
We are happy to be here today to share this brief moment with representatives from the different member nations of the World Food Program, as well as with each one of you who represent the many people out in the field doing the difficult work of fighting hunger.
If it is appropriate, I would like to ask two or three of you to share where you are and the most difficult challenges you face.
That way, I will also be able to understand the reality of fighting hunger.
I know many of you risk your lives to work in dangerous places, and I certainly want to assure you of the prayers and support of the worldwide community, especially the Catholic Church.
We often collaborate with the programs you oversee.
Delivering aid to those most in need is often a great challenge.
Hearing a few firsthand experiences would help us understand the challenges you face.
[After the third Presenter]
Thank you, Cyril, for the work you are doing in Lebanon.
One thing people often don’t realize is the cyclical progression that brings many parts of the world to greater difficulty. Hunger often causes conflict, and conflict causes more hunger.
We continue to go around in circles, as I’m sure some of you have seen in your work.
The global migration crisis is often the result of extreme hunger and conflict that forces people to leave their homes. They don’t do it because they want to; they do it because they have to in order to survive. They do it because they have to in order to survive.
The work of each of you and all of you together at the World Food Program is extremely important. We are trying to support and promote your work because you are not only providing vital immediate aid by providing food to the hungry, but you are also looking at the root causes of hunger in the areas where you work and trying to find solutions to these problems.
Today, the world could live without hunger.
The resources should be available.
Food production capacity exists, yet resources are often spent on promoting war, conflict, and other less important outcomes, perpetuating and even increasing hunger in some parts of the world.
You are on the front lines, and it is because of you that the World Food Program can carry out its work.
I want to thank each of you and everyone you represent.
I encourage you in your work because it is important to have people assist the World Food Program in delivering aid to those in need.
Thank you for what you are doing.
May God bless you and your colleagues, and may you continue your work.
Please pass on my message to your colleagues, and may God always bless you in this very important work.
Thank you very much.
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My dear friends, good morning, good afternoon to all of you, to all those who are following online.
I am honored to be in your presence, especially those of you who represent the World Food Program workers.
You dedicate your lives to a special mission around the world, including in places that some have never heard of.
You work on the front lines in areas where you literally risk your lives to ensure food supplies reach those in need.
This mission is indeed great because it recognizes the God-given dignity that every person on this earth deserves.
Thank you so much for your service.
As I was coming out here, walking through the garden, there were a number of different values and goals of the World Food Program represented there.
I would just like to underline two words as I share these brief moments with you.
One of them is the word “community.”
It is a word that is very dear to me and, in today’s world, I think it is ever more important. We live in a polarized, divided world affected by many conflicts and wars. Human relationships continue to be destroyed for many reasons, including technology.
Rather than helping us create a better world, technology is often used as a means of war, destruction, and death.
So, your work—and perhaps even more importantly, the spirit you share as you work together to build a community and reach out to those in need—is a special gift.
I encourage you to reflect on your role in being a family and building community throughout the world. Your work and service will help people come together, be united, and solve problems that cause hunger. You will create a more just world.
The other word—the last one I saw come out—was “hope.”
In a very real way, you represent hope to the world. I think this is a mission we all share, whether we are part of the Catholic Church, believers, or people who work together because they believe in the dignity of all humans.
We say we want to build a world with hope for the future. So often, we read about young people who have lost hope.
They are not necessarily from the poorest parts of the world. They have lost a sense of meaning and vision in their lives.
They have lost the ability to look to the future and say, “This is worth doing.”
This is worth giving my life for.”
You represent hope.
The work you do, especially reaching out to those in need, is a concrete expression of the hope we all search for.
So, I thank you for that, and I want to assure you of my prayers for your work, your mission and all of those who work in the World Food Program.
May you all be strengthened and protected in carrying out that mission because we all wish to offer food to the world — not just something to eat each day, but also hope to build a better world, a world of peace, and a world in which we are all truly united. God bless you all, and thank you very much.
