WORLD FOOD FORUM 2023 Hand-in-Hand Investment Forum: Building Resilience in the Dry Corridor and Arid Zones in the region of the Central American Integration System (SICA) Opening Remarks

WORLD FOOD FORUM 2023

Hand-in-Hand Investment Forum:

Building Resilience in the Dry Corridor and Arid Zones in the region of the Central American Integration System (SICA)

Opening Remarks

By

Dr QU Dongyu, FAO Director-General

17 October 2023

 

His Excellency the Vice President of El Salvador,

Excellences,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

 

I have always been an amigo of this region, since 1985 – it is a long commitment.

 

With time, I have realized how much I have been influenced by your culture, your way of thinking, of speaking.

 

Since the beginning of my first term as FAO Director-General when I launched the FAO Hand in Hand Initiative, I have given a special focus to territorial approach.

 

First and foremost, to support the most vulnerable Members using modern cutting-edge technology.

 

At the beginning, many Permanent Representatives asked me “how much money are you giving to my country?” I replied that the FAO was not like the World Bank, or the Asian Development Bank, but if they followed my guidance, I would assist them to create big money.

 

Look at the examples of Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Ecuador, and some others.

 

Banks must work through FAO as a UN specialized agency for food and agriculture to provide the feasibility studies on agrifood systems. This is why we have the FAO Investment Centre, working in close collaboration with the World Bank and other IFIs.

 

Focusing on territories with the highest rates of inequalities is essential considering the potential prosperity that they offer, and which can contribute to achieving several SDGs, including SDG1 No Poverty, SDG2 Zero Hunger and SDG10 Reduced Inequalities.

 

Your sub-region, especially SICA, as well as for historical reason, and due to the impacts of natural disasters, is lagging behind. For this reason, we need the support of big donors like the United States, or middle-income economies like Costa Rica, or international organizations like FAO, the World Bank, and others, to all work together.

 

I said to the Ambassador of Costa Rica, as you are now a member of the OECD, having graduated from developing to developed country, you should offer support to countries like El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, and Nicaragua, and among others.

 

Ladies and Gentlemen,

 

In addition to 67 countries working actively on the Hand in Hand Initiative, we also have regional initiatives focusing on the Sahel in Africa and one the Dry Corridor in your region.

 

Both initiatives seek to address common problems with joint solutions for a group of countries.

 

Because if we work on individual Members, it is too small, FAO operates globally. But with a group of countries with similarities and it makes it easier to promote you to bigger donors. That is the way to change the business and to get more support in the future.

 

That is why this year we proposed USD 300 million in packages. This is big money for your region.

 

FAO has mobilized its technical capacity to contribute to the preparation of the proposal and feasibility studies by technical experts - that is why I said that even the World Bank, the IMF and regional development banks, depend on FAO.

 

Also, Members use FAO’s technical capacity to provide authoritative assessments and consultation to build accountability and attract more investments.

 

For that, I hope all the colleagues use FAO as a meeting point and as an open platform to share, to learn and to promote each other. That is the value of FAO, beyond money.

 

If we change the business, if you change the way of doing business, you will have more reliable and responsible investments for the future for your people.

 

Thank you. Thank you for your participation and for taking ownership of the FAO Hand-in-Hand Initiative.