Above: President Leonel Fernandez (Photo: CIG)

By the Caribbean Journal staff

Dominican Republic President Leonel Fernandez is proposing the creation of a multidisciplinary group to analyze the factors affecting the volatility of food and oil prices.

The group would work in coordination with the G-20, the United Nations General Assembly and all organizations concerned with the problem of food security, he said.

The next step will be to create a draft regulation ensuring transparency and access to information on prices and markets.

Fernandez, who was speaking at the closing of the High-Level Debate on the Volatility of Food and Oil Prices at UN Headquarters in New York, urged the international community and the UN on the need for regulatory mechanisms and policies to avoid excessive volatility in these markets.

He also mentioned the important factor of geopolitical tensions generated by Iran, and the potential for the country to block the Straits of Hormuz, which would generate an increase in oil demand.

Fernandez said the international community should take action to ensure food security for a world population projected to be 9 billion by 2050.