SIDS Retreat Session 3: Promotion of Issues of Importance to SIDS
29/09/2017
Ladies and gentlemen, good afternoon.
At the SIDS retreat two years ago I shared with you the roadmap to develop the Global Action Programme on Food Security and Nutrition in Small Island Developing States, in response to a call from the S.A.M.O.A. Pathway.
Today, I am pleased to inform that the Global Action Programme, GAP as we call it, was launched in July, at a high-level event during the FAO Conference, in Rome, with the participation of the President of Palau and the President of the 71st Session of the General Assembly.
The GAP was developed by FAO in close cooperation with DESA and OHRLLS. I would like to thank them for their engagement and partnership.
To prepare the GAP, we consulted Member States, UN System, regional organizations, SIDS partners, policy makers, and technical experts through online and in-person consultations, at the global and regional levels.
I want to thank Maldives, as Chair of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS), for their engagement throughout this process.
Ladies and gentlemen,
The GAP aims to accelerate action to improve food security and nutrition in SIDS, with a view to addressing multiple challenges.
According to the State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World, launched earlier this month by FAO in collaboration with IFAD, UNICEF, WFP, and WHO, the undernourishment rate in SIDS is falling slower than the global average.
There is also a marked increase of obesity. In the Caribbean, an estimated 33 percent of the adult population is obese. In the Pacific, three-quarters of all adult deaths are due to non-communicable diseases of which obesity is a leading factor.
SIDS have also a high exposure to extreme weather events and climate change. The 2015 World Risk Report includes five Pacific islands among the top 15 at-risk countries worldwide. The current hurricane season in the Caribbean is a painful reminder of this vulnerability and of the need to build resilience.
The GAP recommends action at the global, regional, national and local level focusing on three main goals:
First, strengthen enabling environments for food security and nutrition
Second, improve the sustainability, resilience and nutrition-sensitivity of food systems.
And, third, empower people and communities for food security and nutrition.
Ladies and gentlemen,
FAO is backing the implementation of the GAP.
FAO is increasing support to SIDS through three regional projects in the context of the Blue Growth Initiative.
FAO has also launched a specific inter-regional initiative to support delivery of the GAP. To kick-start its implementation, we are investing 4.5 million US dollars from regular program funds and voluntary contributions, including from South-South Cooperation through the Africa Solidarity Trust Fund.
Work has already begun.
Allow me to share some examples, that show the breadth of activities in motion.
Planning workshops are ongoing to support the mainstreaming of the GAP into regional and national development plans, with the participation of regional bodies. I want to stress that CARICOM, Indian Ocean Commission and the Secretariat of the Pacific Community are important partners of the GAP.
The “Pacific GAP Framework” will be discussed at the Pacific Week of Agriculture next month and incorporated in the Pacific Regional Programme Framework. An FAO-SPC project will also look into ways to improve small-scale coastal tuna supply chains and increase tuna supply for domestic markets and consumption.
In the Atlantic and Indian Ocean, work priorities identified include strengthening of coordination platforms for more coherent and efficient delivery, improving data collection for evidence-based decision making, and revising dietary guidelines to foster healthy eating habits and lifestyles.
In the Caribbean, school feeding programs are being reinforced as a driver for nutrition education and market access for local family farmers. Institutional support is also being given to Ministries of Agriculture to improve alignment between national and regional food security and nutrition plans.
But this is still only the tip of the iceberg.
I want to recall that while the GAP was developed by FAO, DESA and OHRLLS, its implementation depends on a collective effort.
Four elements are crucial.
First, national and regional ownership.
Second, mainstreaming the GAP into regional and national development plans.
Third, strengthening international cooperation and partnerships.
And, fourth, adequate investment and coordinated delivery.
The commitment of SIDS governments and their indication that implementing the GAP is a priority will send a strong signal to donors and other partners.
The UN System and regional organizations also have an important role. We have started to share the GAP with UN Country Teams, as an instrument to assist the delivery of the 2030 Agenda in SIDS.
The broader support from the UN Community is also necessary, and I appreciate the opportunity to be with you at this retreat.
Your engagement can happen in different ways. Inform capitals of the ongoing conversations; reaffirm the importance of food security and nutrition for sustainable development; join side-events and briefings on the issue; help us raise awareness and mobilize funds.
UN System entities, in particular, can reinforce the call to their regional and national offices to join the implementation of the GAP. We also can – and should – work together to map out collective next steps.
Furthermore, I want to recall that, in the spirit of the 2030 Agenda, the GAP supports and is supported by other activities that respond to the S.A.M.O.A. Pathway and aim to promote sustainable development.
For example, implementing the GAP is part of FAO’s effort to help SIDS adapt to climate change and to mainstream disaster risk reduction in lines with paragraphs 31 to 45, 51 and 52 of the S.A.M.O.A. Pathway.
This is also relevant when we consider possible funding sources, such as the Global Environment Facility and the Green Climate Fund.
We can support the preparation of project proposals to present. But once again, this process requires national leadership and partnerships.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Let me conclude by saying that, to achieve food security and nutrition in SIDS, we must move away from business as usual and make ending hunger and malnutrition everyone’s business.
I look forward to your participation in this effort.
Thank you for your attention.
Additional resources:
FAO and Small Island Developing States: http://www.fao.org/sids/en/
Global Action Programme on Food Security and Nutrition for SIDS:
http://www.fao.org/3/a-i7297e.pdf
Global Action Programme on Food Security and Nutrition for SIDS (summary version): http://www.fao.org/3/a-i7135e.pdf
FAO and the SDGs: http://www.fao.org/sustainable-development-goals/en/
FAO working for SDG14: http://www.fao.org/3/a-i7298e.pdf