71st Session of the United Nations General Assembly 2nd Committee - General Debate
04/10/2016
71st Session of the United Nations General Assembly
2nd Committee - General Debate
Statement by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Delivered by the Director of the FAO Liaison Office to the UN, Carla Mucavi
October, 2016, United Nations
Mr. Chairman,
Allow me to join previous speakers by congratulating Ambassador Djani and the new bureau for your election; and thank Ambassador Logar and the previous bureau for their work in the Seventieth Session.
Rest assured of FAO’s continued support to the work of the Committee, including to the upcoming consultations on the Resolutions on Agriculture, Food Security and Nutrition and on Sustainable Mountain Development, among other issues.
Mr. Chairman,
We are one year into the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
FAO has aligned itself with the SDGs, and our strategic framework touches upon at least 14 of the 17 Goals. You can expect from us results-oriented approach to help fulfil the 2030 Agenda’s promises for people, planet, prosperity and peace.
To deliver on the 2030 agenda, FAO is working in partnerships with Governments, the UN System, communities and other development actors.
We are putting our global expertise and networks at the service of this agenda, helping identify best practices and design and implement successful policies and programs, monitor progress, and contribute concrete transformation on the ground.
Also at your service is our global network of offices in about 150 countries in which we are active members of UN Country Teams.
Mr Chairman,
Despite progress in many countries, nearly 795 million people still suffer from chronic hunger. Over 70 percent of the world’s poor and food insecure live in rural areas of developing countries.
When opportunities for a decent life are not present, rural people are often forced to leave their homes in search of better opportunities elsewhere. Many times this happens under dire conditions.
Promoting inclusive and resilient rural development and food systems is therefore central to the success of the 2030 Agenda.
Our actions should be geared at overcoming constraints in the access to markets, productive resources, financial inclusion and capacity building that many of them face, especially rural women.
They need to provide relief to those being left behind and ensure that they have the tools to become actors of their own sustainable development, transforming them from beneficiaries into protagonists.
Our actions should build resilience, promote sustainable approaches and support the adaptation and mitigation of the effects of climate change.
They have to create jobs and opportunities that rural communities need.
All of this is needed to reach Sustainable Development Goal Number 2, but also supports the entire 2030 Agenda.
Let me stress that rural development and improved food systems are also important parts of the efforts to promote sustainable production and consumption and reduce food loss and waste, increase efficiency in the use of water, and ensure sustainable management of our land and ocean resources.
There are several examples that show FAO participation in these efforts. Allow me to mention only two of them as illustrations.
At the request of the S.A.M.O.A. Pathway, FAO is working with DESA and O-H-R-L-L-S to facilitate the development of a global food and nutrition action program for Small Island Developing States.
And, in partnership with IFAD and WFP, FAO is working to transform into reality the vision of the Zero Hunger Challenge launched by the Secretary-General in 2012.
Mr Chairman,
To conclude, allow me to inform that this year’s FAO flagship publication the State of Food and Agriculture (SOFA) will focus on the linkages between climate change, agriculture and food security.
The impact of climate change in food and agriculture and the need to change our food systems is also the theme of this year’s World Food Day. I invite you to join the celebration that will take place on 17 October here in New York.
Thank you for your attention.