Reporting from Rome — After a personal appeal from President Obama, world leaders agreed this morning to come up with $20 billion to fight world hunger -- money over and above what they already spend in emergency humanitarian aid.
At the beginning of the Group of 8 summit here this week, leaders of the most developed nations had planned to raise $15 billion toward the effort, but decided over the course of two days to increase the amount each nation will direct to promoting food security.
The decision comes as Obama closes out his first G-8 session and heads to Ghana, the African American president's first trip to sub-Saharan Africa since his election last year.
In a news conference after the close of the summit this morning, Obama also defended his administration's work at home to pass healthcare reform, an effort that has come under fire from some on Capitol Hill as he takes his fourth foreign trip while lawmakers wrestle with his proposal.
He also called on leaders of Iran to take note of the G-8 statement condemning its treatment of peaceful protests, Holocaust denial and defiance of international nuclear standards.
As leaders discussed the problem of world hunger, according to people who were present, Obama at one point rose to make a personal appeal for a more substantial commitment to food security.
When his father left Kenya five decades ago, his home country had a higher per capita income and gross domestic product than did South Korea. Today, South Korea is prosperous and Kenya still struggles with poverty, a state Obama attributes to stronger social institutions in South Korea.
At his news conference, Obama acknowledged relying on his own history in arguing for extra aid.
"My father traveled to the United States a mere 50 years ago," he said. "Yet now I have family members who . . . live in villages where hunger is real."
The question he raised in the meeting, he said, was, "Why is that?"
"If you talk to people on the ground in Africa, certainly in Kenya, they will say that, part of the issue here is the institutions aren't working for ordinary people," he said. For instance, he said, many people know they can't get jobs and other opportunities without paying bribes.
Strengthening democracies and social institutions will be a key theme Obama emphasizes when he travels to Africa today. While there, he is expected to emphasize the responsibility of developing nations to use international assistance in a transparent and accountable way.
