22 - Regularly monitoring the progress made in the realization of the right to food; and - Establishing recourse mechanisms which can provide remedies for violations of the right to food. c. Prohibition of Retrogressive Measures States should not take any measure that undermines the existing level of fulfillment of the right to food unless there are strong justifications for it.67 d. Protection of minimum essential level of the right to food Under the ICESCR, there are obligations considered to be of immediate effect to meet the minimum essential levels of each of the rights, including the right to food. They are called minimum core obligations. For the right to food, States have to ensure the satisfaction of the minimum essential level required to be free from hunger, even in times of natural or other disasters. If a State fails to meet these obligations owing to resource restraints, it must demonstrate that it has made every effort to use all available resources to satisfy, as a matter of priority, these core obligations.68 12. Implementation of the Right to Food at the National Level 12.1 Legal and Institutional Framework on the Right to Food The national legal and institutional framework is decisive for the implementation of the right to food. Many countries have included the right to food in their constitutions, either specifically or as part of the provisions on the right to an adequate standard of living. Several countries are developing a framework law on the right to food. A framework law is essential for clarifying rights and obligations, as well as elaborating on institutional roles and coordination for the realization of the right to food.69 It can also provide for remedies for violations of the right to food and strengthen the mandates of national human rights institutions. The framework law should include provisions on its purpose; the targets or goals to be achieved and the time frame to be set for the achievement of those targets.70 There is a general recognition that establishing a framework law may significantly contribute to the realization of the right to food, in a number of ways: (a) by ensuring that governmental bodies 67 Fact Sheet, p. 21. Fact Sheet 34, p. 22. 69 Para 29 of the General Comment 12. 70 Para 29. 68