Highlights and images for 15 October 2018

On Monday, 15 October, CFS Chair Mario Arvelo (Dominican Republic) opened the 45th plenary session of the Committee on World Food Security (CFS 45). He highlighted man-made conflict and climate change as drivers of food insecurity.



In the morning, participants discussed the “State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2018 (SOFI)” report. José Graziano da Silva, FAO Director-General, emphasized the need to act on nutrition, stating that hunger will undermine the 2030 Agenda. David Beasley, Executive Director, World Food Programme (WFP), said the world must “get serious about ending war” to achieve zero hunger, noting that 80% of the WFP’s expenditure is in war zones. Cornelia Richter, Vice President, International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), called for a more systemic approach to food systems, underlining the importance of scalable technologies. Members outlined national polices, initiatives and success stories, and offered to share knowledge and experiences. 



In the afternoon, a panel of experts discussed the SOFI report’s findings, including the role of large-scale climate drivers such as the El Niño phenomenon, the need for transdisciplinary research and holistic food systems evaluation. Panelists also clarified the difference between shocks and stressors that affect food systems and stressed the need for multi-sectoral collaboration.



A second expert panel discussed the “State of Food and Agriculture 2018 (SOFA)” report, which addresses the links between agriculture, migration and rural development. Panelists discussed, among other issues:

• increases in migration between developing countries;
• the need for SDG-sensitive migration policies;
• a territorial approach and strengthening linkages between urban and rural development;
• cross border migration; and
• multidimensional poverty in rural areas.

IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB+ Meeting Coverage, has provided daily web updates and a summary report from CFS 45.

José Graziano da Silva, Director‐General, Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) ©FAO

David Beasley, Executive Director, World Food Programme (WFP) ©FAO

Cornelia Richter, Vice President, International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) ©FAO

L-R: Mark McGuire, CFS Secretary ad interim and Patrick Caron, Steering Committee Chair, High Level Panel of Experts on Food Security and Nutrition ©FAO

Julia Klöckner, Federal Minister for Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection, Germany
©FAO

Mario Arvelo (Dominican Republic), CFS Chair ©FAO

Grisada Boonrach, Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives, Thailand

Fuad bin Jafar Al Sajwani, Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Oman ©FAO

Panel discussion on the State of Food and Agriculture (SOFA)

Kostas G. Stamoulis, Assistant Director-General, FAO Department for Economic and Social Development ©FAO

Paola Alvarez, International Organization for Migration (IOM) ©FAO

Nadjirou Sall, Secretary General, Network of farmers and producers of West Africa (ROPPA)
©FAO

Hlamalani Ngwenya, University of Free State, South Africa
©FAO