The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and General Economic Division (GED) joining organized Regional workshop on Implementation of the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Food and Agriculture during 2-3 December 2017 at Hotel Amari Hotel, Gulshan Dhaka.   This is the first ever South Asian Nations’ regional workshop on Food and agriculture organized with aim to promote awareness and knowledge sharing among the SAARC countries on the key role of food and agriculture in achieving the SDGs and arrive at common perspectives on key steps for the way forward. Obtaining a better understanding of the roles and responsibilities of the various stakeholders in enhancing coordination for better implementation of the 2030 Agenda in particular to help promoting broad ownership of the Agenda. 

Inaugural Session
Begum Matia Chowdhury, MP, Minister for Agriculture joined the inaugural session as the chief guest and Dr Abul Kalam Azad, Principal Coordinator (SDG Affairs) as the chairperson. Hon’ble Minister mentioned in her speech, Government of Bangladesh has placed strong commitment in implementing the SDGs and progressing through sectoral approach.  She also mentioned that Ministry of Agriculture has taken various initiatives not only to meet the target of SDGs but achieve the food and nutrition security in all segments. She appreciate the initiative of FAO to bring together all SAARC countries promote awareness and knowledge sharing on key issues of Food and Agriculture.  Dr Abul Kalam Azad, Principal Coordinator (SDG Affairs) mentioned that food and agriculture are key to achieving the entire set of SDGs and to achieve the SDGs—collective effort need to be ensured.  He stressed on formation of SAARC SDG forum to collective effort and better coordination. Mr R M D B Meegasmulla, Secretary, Ministry of Sustainable Development and Wildlife, Government of Sri-Lanka,  Ms Mia Seppo, UN Resident Coordinator, Bangladesh were also present at the session as the ‘guest of honour’. Ms Xiangjun Yao,  Regional Programme Leader, FAO Regional Office for Asia and Pacific, Thailand and Dr Shamsul Alam, Member (Senior Secretary), GED, Planning Commission provided the welcome address.

Closing session
Mr AHM Mostafa Kamal, MP, Minister of Planning was present at the closing session as the chief guest and Dr Shamsul Alam, Member (Senior Secretary), GED joined as the chairperson.  The chief guest mentioned in his speech – Bangladesh government has taken a number of achieving the SDGs and will be successful in meeting the targets as the country achieved for MDGs. He stressed on the regional approached—not single country but all countries in the region need to act together to meet the challenges of achieving SGDs targets. Dr David Doolan, FAO Representative in Bangladesh a.i was also present and mentioned in his speech -- focus on rural development and investment in agriculture - crops, livestock, forestry, fisheries and aquaculture – are powerful tools to end poverty and hunger, and bring about sustainable development. And FAO is providing technical support to the Government in each of these areas and to achieve the SDG targets.

Dr Shamsul Alam, Member (Senior Secretary), General Economics Division (GED), Planning Commission presented the status of Bangladesh  in terms of meeting the SDG targets and took lead in welcoming the participant.

Participants: More than  100  government officials from the eight SAARC countries, each representing  (agriculture, forestry, fisheries and environment, social protection, labour, rural development, finance or investment, National Statistics offices) joined the two days long regional workshop.  Officials of the General Economic Division and  FAO also joined the event.

Outcome of the regional workshop
There was widespread agreement that this workshop, the first such workshop ever held in the region, had played a very role in bringing the SAARC countries together to share ideas, good practices, and resources and to learn from one another, as they all face very similar issues in enhancing food and nutrition security and developing sustainable agriculture.

The key lessons drawn from the session on global and regional drivers of progress on SDGs related to food and agriculture was that while the countries of the region still had a long way to go to attain SDG 2, they had made very good progress in reducing food insecurity and malnutrition, particularly stunting and underweight in children in the past quarter century.

To continue to make progress, however, each country will have to request the relevant ministries and departments to prepare implementation plans using a common framework, consolidate these plans and then follow up with an action plan and investment plan. Raising awareness about the SDGs in all sections of society will play a key role in motivating governments to implement the SDGs

Participants appreciated the pioneering approach of the government of Bangladesh in this regard. Its efforts to build sustainability of food systems in such a densely populated country was also noted with appreciation as well as its extensive outreach to the whole of society. Participants also welcomed FAO’s initiative in bringing countries together for the first time ever that countries got together like this. Expressed desire for creating mechanism, perhaps based on existing SAARC mechanisms, such as a SAARC forum for continuing the exchange.

The workshop stressed the importance of partnerships for developing capacity in the SAARC countries for e.g. measurement of indicators, without which progress is very difficult. Partnerships and collaboration should also make it easier to raise resources needed for implementing the SDGs. The financing needs are huge, and innovative funding mechanisms will have to be found.