FAO Director-General QU Dongyu met Italy’s Minister for Ecological Transition Roberto Cingolani

Today, 11 March 2021, the FAO Director-General, QU Dongyu, and the Italian Minister for Ecological Transition, Roberto Cingolani, had a virtual meeting to exchange on areas of interest for cooperation between FAO and Italy, including the upcoming G20 presidency of Italy and COP26.

The meeting further focused on the areas of science and technology to exchange experiences between FAO and Italy and the potential of renewable energy, solar energy, green hydrogen, improved waste management and advanced global monitoring to better prevent and predict in order to protect fragile land and critical infrastructure.

The Minister outlined the concept of ecological transition for a healthy planet, healthy people and a just society to transfer to the next generation. The holistic design focussing on social, economic and environmental aspects was commended by the Director-General who underlined the close alignment to FAO’s proposed new Strategic Framework around the four betters: Better Production, Better Nutrition, a Better Environment, and a Better Life.

They noted the value to boost the autonomy of small-scale farmers through the better use of renewable energy, better waste management and through valuing biomass. They agreed that digital agriculture is key for the decade of action, and rural connectivity is a fundamental pre-condition for it.

The Director-General commended the Minister for his ambitious vision, expressed his appreciation for Italy’s longstanding contribution to FAO and invited Minister Cingolani to increase collaboration towards innovative, science-based actions that will boost sustainable agri-food systems transformation, offering the Organization’s full technical assistance, stating that the Minister’s success is also FAO’s success.