Read-out of the Director-General’s bilateral meeting with H.E. Samuel Žbogar, State Secretary for Political and Multilateral Affairs, Economic Diplomacy and Development Cooperation of Slovenia

The FAO Director-General, QU Dongyu, met at FAO headquarters in Rome with H.E. Samuel Žbogar, State Secretary for Political and Multilateral Affairs, Economic Diplomacy and Development Cooperation of Slovenia.

The Director-General conveyed his appreciated to the State Secretary for the long history of friendship and cooperation between Slovenia and FAO.

The State Secretary thanked FAO for the longstanding collaboration, in particular with regard to World Bee Day, and looked forward to the celebration of World Bee Day 2023 on Friday 19 May 2023 at FAO Headquarters in Rome.

The pair discussed the importance of beekeeping, not just to produce honey, and the State Secretary referred to Slovenia’s strong network of beekeepers noting that bees are one of the most important pollinators and contribute to biodiversity, food security and sustainable agrifood systems.

They also discussed the various challenges for achieving food security, not just food availability, but also around issues of accessibility and affordability.

The Director-General and the State Secretary also discussed the importance of science and innovation, and how more high-quality seeds, better agriculture machinery, better soil management, water use, and more investments in rural infrastructure can help accelerate agrifood systems transformation.