Photo: ©FAO

Ankara – The Economic Cooperation Organization-Regional Coordination Centre (ECO-RCC) has created an ongoing series of webinars within the framework of sustainable food systems. The second webinar in the series entitled “Sustainable Food Systems: Concept and Practices in ECO Countries” took place on 1 June 2021. The webinar was organized within the scope of an FTPP II project that aims to strengthen the ECO Regional Coordination Centre for Food Security (ECO-RCCFS). At the present time, food security in the ECO region is facing multiple challenges linked to high food prices, locust infestations, drought and the COVID-19 pandemic, among other reasons.

The goal of the webinar, which was held in English, Russian and Turkish, was to assist member countries of ECO in better understanding the food systems concept and approach as well as the objectives and processes of the UN Food Systems Summit 2021.

The webinar was opened by Volkan Güngören, ECO-RCC Coordinator and Deputy General Director for the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Turkey, and Sumiter Broca, Senior Policy Officer, FAO Sub-regional Office for Central Asia. Highlighting the fact that the ECO covers a region with more than 460 million inhabitants, Güngören explained that making the food systems of this region more sustainable would have a huge impact with the potential to touch nearly a half billion lives. Güngören also noted that the capacity of the ECO-RCC is growing day by day, and that the Centre will play a significant role in facilitating regional endeavours to improve food security and develop sustainable food systems.

Broca emphasized the importance of a strong partnership between ECO-RCC and FAO and recalled that this partnership was made possible by generous funding provided by the Government of Turkey within the framework of the FAO-Turkey Partnership Programme on Food and Agriculture. Broca also informed the participants about the upcoming 2021 UN Food Systems Summit in July.

Following the opening remarks, Jessica Fanzo, the Bloomberg Distinguished Professor of Global Food Policy and Ethics at the Berman Institute of Bioethics, Johns Hopkins University, delivered an introductory lecture focusing on the food systems approach and illustrating the basic concepts. Following Fanzo’s lecture, the webinar continued with sessions on the UN Food Systems Summit 2021 and case studies on a food systems approach to addressing the negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The webinar provided the participants with comprehensive information about the food systems approach and related concepts and practices. Several more ECO-RCC and FAO training sessions aimed at capacity development are planned for the coming months.

About the FAO-Turkey Partnership Programmes

The objectives of the FAO-Turkey Partnership Programmes are to provide support to ensure food security, rural poverty reduction and sustainable forest management; combat desertification; and preserve ecosystems in Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, and other countries of mutual interest.

Established in 2007, the first phase of the FAO Turkey Partnership Programme on Food and Agriculture (FTPP) has benefited from trust fund contributions totalling USD 10 million, financed by the Government of Turkey and represented by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. During the first phase of the programme, 28 projects were implemented in 16 countries between 2009 and 2015.

In 2014, Turkey and FAO commenced the second phase of the FTPP along with the first phase of the FAO-Turkey Forestry Partnership Programme (FTFP) with an additional fund of USD 20 million, bringing Turkey’s total contribution to USD 30 million.