Enhancing the Dialogue: Private Sector Pre-Consultation – on the road to the 34th FAO European Regional Conference

Brussels, 15 April – The FAO Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia (REU), supported by the FAO Liaison Office in Brussels, organized a pre-consultation with private sector representatives in Brussels ahead of the Forty-fourth session of the FAO Regional Conference for Europe (ERC34). Scheduled to take place in Rome, Italy, from 14 to 17 May 2024 the ERC34 will set the roadmap and priorities for FAO's work in Europe and Central Asia for the next two years. The event was generously hosted by Copa-Cogeca.  

Raschad Al-Khafaji, Director of the FAO Liaison Office in Brussels, Raimund Jehle, Regional Programme Leader from the REU office, and Patrick Pagani, Deputy –Secretary-General at Copa-Cogeca, opened the session and welcomed participants.  

Carlos Watson, Chief of the Private Sector Unit at FAO briefed the audience on various ways for private sector companies to collaborate with the Organization. He highlighted FAO's focus on establishing transparent and accessible communication platforms for the private sector to engage, collaborate, and jointly identify investment opportunities.  

The pre-consultation, held at Copa-Cogeca premises, provided an opportunity to ensure that private sector perspectives on FAO's regional work priorities are heard and incorporated. It was also an excellent occasion for an exchange of views on current common priorities in food and agriculture between FAO and the private sector. Additionally, it aimed to explore potential contributions, interests, and roles of companies in driving the transformation of agrifood systems while considering the current crisis and challenges. 

About the ERC34 

The 34th Session of the FAO Regional Conference for Europe (ERC), which will be held at FAO headquarters in Rome, will be hosted by the Republic of Moldova.  

Attendees will include FAO Members from Europe and Central Asia, as well as representatives from UN agencies, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, academia, the private sector, and civil society. The agenda will feature a review of FAO's work in the region in the past two years within the FAO Strategic Framework 2022-2031 as well as discussions on future priorities, considering global and regional challenges