Established three regional priorities for Latin America and the Caribbean FAO

In large letters.- Latin America and the Caribbean have established regional priorities that will guide the work of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in the region over the next two years.

The FAO Regional Conference concluded today in Quito, Ecuador, after five days of discussions attended by the President of Ecuador Guillermo Lasso, the Prime Minister of Haiti Ariel Henry, the Vice President of Ecuador Alfredo Borero, 41 Ministers and 41 Ministers. 23 Deputy Ministers and Director General of the FAO, QU Dongyu.

“Latin America and the Caribbean must be able to meet its challenges and take the lead in global food and agriculture. This is what the world needs for food security,” said QU Dongyu. . ”

At the conference, countries shared their findings and the steps they are taking to change their agricultural diets. “I am pleased to announce that this Regional Conference concludes with great success. They have clearly mapped out their regional map to move towards this big change in the three regional priorities they have recognized, ”QU said.

“I would like to thank the Representatives of the Member States for taking the time to meet with us in Ecuador and to exchange views on the most important issues for the region in the field of agriculture and food,” he said. Regional, Ecuador Minister of Agriculture, Pedro Alva.

The conference was attended by 586 people, including members of the private sector, academics, members of civil society and the United Nations, and 34 thousand people followed the broadcast of the regional conference. The member states have chosen Guyana as the host country for the next regional conference in 2024.

Three regional priorities

Creating sustainable agricultural diets to ensure healthy diets is one of the priorities established by the Regional Conference. The FAO will ensure the physical and economic access to safe and nutritious food, promote healthy diets and policies and programs, and support the 104 million people living with obesity and the 60 million people living with hunger.

“There is no hunger in Latin America and the Caribbean because of food shortages. Farmers are not hungry because they do not do homework. There is more inequality and poverty, ”explained Julio Berdegu, FAO Regional Representative.

The FAO’s second regional priority is affluent and inclusive rural communities, “half of the population in Latin America and the Caribbean is poor, one-fourth live in extreme poverty, and 82% of them work. Agriculture and fishing, they do it in informal conditions,” Berdegu explained. .

Agriculture, which is resilient to climate change, is the FAO’s third regional priority. “We are committed to stopping deforestation, promoting sustainable and low emissions livestock, and re-carbonating the soil and restoring degraded agro-ecosystems,” Berdegu said.

Innovation and digitalization

According to the FAO Regional Representative, there is a prerequisite for all regional priorities: innovation. “Our commitment is that every FAO regional initiative is a motor of innovation, and every project is a digitalization experience. Digitalization of agro-food systems and rural communities is absolutely essential,” Berdegu said.

FAO Strategic Framework 2022-2031’s Innovation Center: It seeks to promote better productivity, better nutrition, better environment and better living, leaves no one, and was analyzed by countries during the conference to adapt it to your needs. And conditions.

“Your regional priorities are the roots that carry the FAO strategic framework 2022-2031 deep into the fertile soil of this wonderful land. As the FAO is your organization, you must take the lead. You govern us, and we are fully committed to working for your priorities,” QU concluded.