Conflict, climate extremes, and economic shocks are pushing people into hunger. The war in Ukraine has added further pressure on our already fragile agrifood systems and supply chains. Energy, fertilizer and food prices have increased. Today, the magnitude and severity of acute food insecurity is daunting. We need to work together and develop concrete solutions to tackle global challenges.

The FAO Strategic Framework 2022-31 seeks to support the UN 2030 Agenda through the transformation to MORE efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable agrifood systems for better production, better nutrition, a better environment, and a better life for all, leaving no one behind. The FAO Regional Conferences, which took place earlier this year, have provided additional perspective on FAO's strategies and concrete recommendations to meet their needs and challenges specific to the region – solutions that can be adapted to local conditions.

In North America, a long-enduring and intensive drought has been impacting western United States. The last two decades have been the driest in over 1 000 years. The Colorado River is drying up, and the nation’s largest reservoirs are draining at an alarming rate. The Colorado River supplies water to about 40 million people, and while it flows through the state of Arizona, at least six cities have declared water shortages.

Agriculture is the first sector to suffer the effects when drought hits. It absorbs up to 80 percent of all direct impacts – affecting agricultural production, food security and rural livelihoods.

FAO Director-General QU Dongyu joined Ambassador Cindy McCain, Permanent Representative of the U.S. Mission to the UN Agencies, to visit drought-stricken areas in Arizona. They had the opportunity to speak to farmers at Rousseau Farms who are seeing first-hand the effects of drought on their crops and productivity and are adapting their planting decisions and irrigation practices.

They also visited the Salt River Project, a water and electricity provider working to ensure access to safe water, and the Central Arizona Project, a 336-mile system that serves 80 percent of the state’s population with a renewable water supply. These projects are not only securing water for city dwellers and rural farmers but also focusing on the health of the Colorado River.

During their visit to Arizona State University (ASU), the FAO Director-General spoke with academia and researchers who focus on policy and governance issues related to water. Through the use of science, innovation and technologies, ASU’s Kyl Center for Water Policy is using sophisticated modelling and digital visualization tools to generate data-driven solutions and policy recommendations to combat drought, and ultimately to achieve food security. Qu welcomed them to collaborate with FAO’s Hand-in-Hand Initiative and to share their experiences and best practices with other drought-stricken regions and nations.

The FAO Director-General and Ambassador McCain agreed that droughts know no borders. A joint response and bold actions are needed now. Data, innovation, good governance and policy have proven to be central to generating sustainable solutions. The FAO Director-General also expressed appreciation to various stakeholders and to the United States government for its long-term commitment and continuous contribution to FAO at a global scale. Through the FAO Science and Innovation Strategy, Strategy on Climate Change 2022-2031 and Strategy for Private Sector Engagement 2021-2025, the FAO Director-General seeks an even closer cooperation with the United States to better assist other Members to achieve food security, tackle malnutrition and advance rural development for the benefit of farmers across the world.