JOINT FAO-IAEA MEETING WITH THE AFRICA GROUPS IN VIENNA AND ROME What further role can the FAO-IAEA partnership play? Opening Remarks

 JOINT FAO-IAEA MEETING WITH THE AFRICA GROUPS IN VIENNA AND ROME 

What further role can the FAO-IAEA partnership play? 

Opening Remarks

By

Dr QU Dongyu, FAO Director-General 

11 May 2023

 

Chairpersons of the Africa Groups,

My dear colleague Rafael Mariano Grossi, IAEA Director-General,

Excellences,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Dear Colleagues,

 

Good morning from Rome.

 

I wish to welcome the Chairs of the Africa Group based in Rome, Ambassador Jezile of South Africa, and the Chair of the Africa Group based in Vienna, Ambassador Johnson of Ghana, and Members of the two duty stations from ONE continent!

 

I also wish to thank my dear friend Rafael Mariano Grossi, Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, as well as our colleagues from FAO and the IAEA, and the Joint FAO/IAEA Centre of Nuclear Techniques for Food and Agriculture, for organizing this first ever and important meeting.

 

Our joint efforts and contributions have made this happen!

 

Africa has always been a priority for me, and continues to be.

 

Together, we have achieved a lot during this past challenging time, and we will continue to achieve even more, together.

 

Guided by the FAO Strategic Framework 2022-31, as well as through the updated MoU with the IAEA, we continue to focus our efforts on the Four Betters: Better Production, Better Nutrition, a Better Environment and a Better Life for all – especially on the African Continent, leaving no one behind.

 

We are here today to talk about the unique role that the FAO-IAEA partnership can play for a better future for all in Africa.

 

Through the Joint FAO/IAEA Centre (or division as previously called) our value added and longstanding partnership has been playing a critical role in addressing Members’ needs related to food and nutrition security, and all related technologies.

 

This strategic partnership, established in 1964 and further strengthened in 2022 through a MoU, optimizes innovative research and development, and strengthens the capacities of both UN specialized organizations. This is also a reflection of the strengthened collaboration between UN agencies – we are walking the talk!

 

Together, we conduct innovative research to help Members address complex challenges such as the impacts of genetics, biodiversity, soil and water by the climate crisis.

 

For example, in late 2022 the Joint Centre launched its first astrobiology project to understand the effects of cosmic radiation and microgravity in outer space in generating novel genetic changes in plant seeds for better adaptation to climate change. 

 

The seeds were recently received in the laboratories for in-depth research on the genetics and biology of the plants grown from them.

 

Over the past decades, the Joint FAO/IAEA Centre has helped African countries develop capacity to optimise the use of nuclear and related technologies, such as biotechnologies for food and agricultural development. Innovations in the fields of soil and water management, crop nutrition, plant breeding, animal production and health, insect pest control, and food safety have brought us a step closer to achieving the SDGs,

 

Through the transformation of Africa’s agrifood systems to be more efficient, more inclusive, more resilient and more sustainable.

 

Furthermore, technical collaboration and activities between the Joint Centre and other FAO technical divisions have been strengthened, including among others in the control of transboundary animal diseases and pests, and the work of the Codex Alimentarius.

 

In West Africa, science, technology and innovation underpin several of our successes. For instance, last year, to boost research for development, 10 national agricultural research institutions in West Africa benefited from the Joint Centre’s global network of 400 research institutes and experimental stations.

 

To achieve optimal results on the ground, we strive to link science with farmers, and farmers with science.

 

In Tunisia, for example, we promote the use of isotope techniques to provide precise information on soil erosion rates and land degradation, and to evaluate the effectiveness of soil conservation practices.

 

In Nigeria, isotopic techniques resulted in a 1.5-fold increase in cucumber yield, while saving 70% of water use.

 

Increased requests to provide services from the FAO/IAEA Agriculture & Biotechnology Laboratories, reflects the importance of these services to Members.

 

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

 

World hunger is on the rise. According to the latest Global Report on Food Crises at least 1 in 5 Africans goes to bed hungry, and an estimated 140 million people in Africa face acute food insecurity. 

 

Science, technology and innovation can help address - and reverse - these daunting figures.

 

The new FAO Strategy on Science and Innovation further strengthens our work in this area for the transformation of global agrifood systems, and the Joint Centre and its Laboratories is well prepared to contribute to achieving these goals and addressing the challenges.

 

It is high time to make use of the comparative advantages of each of our organizations for the benefit of Members – this is our real onus.

 

I look forward to today’s discussions and to your proposals for further improving and intensifying our activities and presence across Africa. Africa is our future, and Africa has a great potential for the future.

 

We will continue to work together, hand-in-hand with Africa, and with our counterparts at the IAEA, in an efficient, effective and coherent manner to ensure a better future for all on the African Continent, and globally.

 

Thank you.