The L'Aquila Food Security Initiative was launched at the G8 summit in L'Aquila, Italy, in 2009. At that meeting the international community pledged 22 billion US dollars to tackle hunger worldwide over the subsequent three years. In autumn 2010 the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development will publish its new strategy on rural areas. The strategy's aim is to ensure that the funds pledged are used as effectively as possible. The article outlines the strategy's key points and identifies the reform processes that are needed for rural areas to become the basis for sustainable development and guarantor of food security.

Stefan Schmitz
Head of Division: Rural Development and Global Food Security
Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)
Bonn, Germany
Stefan.Schmitz@bmz.bund.de