Read-out of the bilateral meeting between FAO Director-General, QU Dongyu, and H.E. Luis Planas Puchades, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food of Spain

Today, 2 March 2023, the FAO Director-General, QU Dongyu, met at FAO headquarters in Rome with H.E. Luis Planas Puchades, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food of Spain.

The Director-General appreciated the continued partnership between FAO and Spain in supporting the priorities and objectives of the Organization, particularly the support of the fisheries and aquaculture sector, and the Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS).

The pair recalled their meeting on 29 June 2022 in Lisbon, where the Director-General met with Minister Planas on the sidelines the UN Ocean Conference.

The Minister recognized FAO’s leadership in supporting agrifood systems transformation, and appreciated the high-quality data and analyses produced by FAO, mentioning specifically the importance of the FAO Food Price Index that measures the monthly change in international prices of a basket of food commodities. The pair also discussed the main challenges for achieving food security, including food availability, food accessibility and food affordability.

The Director-General also recalled his meeting in New York on 20 September 2022 on the sidelines of UNGA77 with Her Majesty Queen Letizia of the Kingdom of Spain, and FAO Special Goodwill Ambassador for Nutrition, and conveyed his appreciation for Her Majesty’s ongoing support.

Minister Planas emphasized the need for immediate action to prevent a reduction in crop yields due to the alarming increase in fertilizer prices, and updated the Director-General on Spain’s policies in that regard. The Director-General referred to the FAO Fertilizer Availability Systems that provide information about global food and fertilizer market metrics, a trade tracker for nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium fertilizer, as well as fertilizer allocation for Africa.

The Minister commended FAO’s expertise in fisheries and aquaculture, and FAO’s work related to Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) fishing, emphasizing that fisheries and aquaculture are crucial topics for Spain. He also offered Spain’s expertise related to water availability and agriculture, irrigation, drought, and water management.

The Minister mentioned that Spain will hold the Presidency of the Council of the EU from July to December 2023 and informed that one of the priorities will be cutting inflationary pressure on food through public investment in the green transition and circular economy.

The two also discussed cooperation in support of food security objectives in developing countries by building on each other's comparative advantages, especially in water management and irrigation, and making use of scientific and technological innovation for developing sustainable and productive agrifood systems.