ISTANBUL

The first summit of the Global Alliance to Fight Hunger and Poverty opened Monday in the Qatari capital, Doha, with international participation.

“Leaders, Ministers, and CEOs from over 200 member countries and organizations are gathering at the Qatar National Convention Center for this one-day event,” the alliance said in a post on US social media company Facebook.

The meeting came ahead of the Second World Summit for Social Development, the statement said, calling the event “a pivotal moment in the global fight against hunger and poverty.”

The gathering comes nearly a year after the alliance was formally launched at the November 2024 G20 summit under Brazil’s presidency, where one of the main outcomes was Qatar’s pledge to host the coalition’s first leaders’ summit.

The meeting is also part of the program of the UN Social Development Summit, the first of its kind to be held in Doha.

On Oct. 31, Qatar’s permanent representative to the UN, Alya Ahmed bin Saif Al Thani, said the upcoming UN social development summit will be the first formal session of the UN General Assembly ever held outside New York or Geneva, in line with the Assembly’s rules of procedure.