Ms Ketty Okello at her sunflower farm in Apac District. She is one of the farmers FAO has trained on post-harvest loss reduction.

Governmental representatives, the UN family, producers organizations and civil society representatives, the business community, and representatives of international development partners met in Kampala to discuss key drivers and joint actions in support of food systems transformation in Uganda. 

Under the aegis of the One Planet Multi-Partner Trust Fund, national stakeholders convened in Kampala on 21 April to discuss challenges faced by Uganda’s food system and map national policies and frameworks to identify key priorities and interventions.  The meeting also served as a forum to hear from stakeholders and confirm their commitment to Uganda’s transition to more sustainable and resilient food systems leading to the realization of the right to food and poverty eradication, while ensuring the conservation, restoration, and sustainable use of the nature base.

Rosa Malango, the United Nations Resident Coordinator, officially opened the event on behalf of FAO, UNEP, and UNDP, reiterating the full commitment of the UN family to join forces in support of national priorities, emphasizing the importance of the contribution by the youth to transformation.

Stronger cooperation

In his keynote speech, Máximo Torero, FAO Chief Economist, set the stage, presenting the complex challenges and opportunities faced by the global food system. He strongly emphasized the importance of fostering multisectoral approaches to advance progress across economic, environmental, and social sustainability, as well as mapping and addressing key trade-offs. He also stressed the importance of policy decisions to be based on robust data and analysis, which will support the tailoring of innovation and technology to local needs. Investing in governance was also underscored in order to allow maximum interaction among stakeholders, and strengthen institutional capacity to lead change. The Chief Economist closed by stating that “the way forward is stronger cooperation, new forms of governance, and value and behavioral change.”

Pius Wakabi, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries, and high ranking officials from the  National Planning Authority representing the Office of the Prime Minister, reiterated the country’s commitment to agri-food systems transformation to achieve sustainable development. They presented the National Development Plan III 2021-2025, the National Zero Hunger Strategy 2020-2030, and the National Agro-industrialization Action Plan 2021-2025.  Collectively, the instruments covered all the priority objectives and activities required for food systems transformation, and the Government called on the actors present at the workshop to support their implementation in order to accelerate transformation.

Working together for Uganda

Participants actively engaged in discussions, sharing ideas and mapping critical areas for coordinated work, with a reaffirmed commitment to work together to eradicate poverty and hunger in Uganda.

In his closing remark Antonio Querido, FAO Representative, summarized the key issues that emerged from the discussion, in particular: improving access to evidence and capacities to analyze data for informed decision-making and proper adjustments of interventions based on monitored progress;  addressing critical gaps in food systems, including tailored solutions to reduce losses in agriculture; mobilizing public and private investments, in a transparent way, including incentives for inclusivity of vulnerable actors; building the capacity of stakeholders to contribute to the identification of interventions and priorities, and reinforcing their effectiveness and accountability.

The meeting provided timely deliberations for the Independent Food Systems Dialogue expected to take place in Entebbe in early May, around the theme of the key role of cities in food systems transformation. The conversations at the event also marked important contributions for Uganda’s response to the UN Secretary-General’s call “to launch bold new actions to transform the way the world produces and consumes food” and reiterated commitments of all stakeholders to engage at all levels to realize an Uganda free from hunger and poverty, where food systems are inclusive, resilient and sustainable.