FAO Director-General Urges Global Action on Food Security and Climate at High-Level Event

In a high-level event organised by the Permanent Delegation of Brazil to the United Nations, Rome-based agencies, and Global Citizen, FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu stressed the critical importance of prioritising food security and climate action in 2024. The event, hosted at the Brazilian Embassy in Rome, highlighted the urgent need to address the grim reality of global hunger, with 735 million people facing chronic hunger in 2022.

Global Leaders Unite to Tackle Hunger and Poverty

The event, attended by key figures such as the Brazilian Ambassador to Italy Renato Mosca, the Brazilian Ambassador to the UN Rome Based Agencies Carla Carneiro, and Global Citizen Vice President Friederike Roder, featured a high-level panel discussing how G7 and G20 presidencies, Italy and Brazil respectively, prioritise food security and agricultural adaptation. The panel delved into the recently announced G20 Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty, set to launch in November.

Among the panellists were leaders from UN Rome Based Agencies, including Alvaro Lario, President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), and Carl Skau, Deputy Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer of the World Food Programme (WFP).

FAO’s Commitment to Brazil’s G20 Presidency and Innovative Solutions

Qu Dongyu expressed FAO’s commitment to supporting the G20 Presidency under Brazil, emphasising the effective collaboration with the Government of Brazil. Addressing the alarming connection between inequality and various forms of malnutrition, he advocated for the expansion of social protection programs, citing Brazil as a successful example with its conditional cash transfers. Qu also highlighted the need for innovation in social protection, particularly in response to climate shocks.

Looking towards long-term solutions, the Director-General outlined the importance of investments in infrastructure, digitalisation, innovation, and technologies. He stressed the need for increased and targeted investments to transform global agrifood systems, estimating a required investment of $4 trillion from now to 2030 in low- and middle-income countries. Qu emphasised the role of the agrifood sector in sustainable development, including climate action, and endorsed the recently launched Global Roadmap for Achieving SDG2 without breaching the 1.5C threshold as a concrete package of solutions to support Zero Hunger and accelerate climate actions.