A Global Thematic Event (GTE) was held on18th October 2018 within the Committee on World Food Security (CFS)  to review on-the-ground experiences related to the Voluntary Guidelines to Support the Progressive Realization of the Right to Adequate Food in the Context of National Food Security.

It provided an opportunity for an inclusive, multistakeholder dialogue (governments, UN Organizations, civil society and non-governmental organizations and academia) to share national, regional and global experiences and good practices. A total of 56 contributions from CFS stakeholders from Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean informed the event.

It marked the first attempt by United Nations Member States to commit to integrating human rights into food and agriculture issue. Indeed, as it was discussed during the event, the Guidelines are highly relevant to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), including SDG 16 (on governance) which will be reviewed by the High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) in July 2019. They also facilitate an overall framework to assess the governance of policies in the area of the food, agriculture and nutrition sectors. 

The GTE built on previous work at the 41st Session of the CFS in October 2014, where three Member States (El Salvador, India and Jordan) shared their national experiences. A Ten-Year Retrospective on the Right to Food Guidelines was produced in 2014 to enable stakeholders to understand what has worked, where the bottlenecks lie and how governments and their partners can be most effective in the fight against hunger and malnutrition.

Speakers

The GTE opened with an introduction from the CFS Chair, Mario Arvelo, followed by remarks from Kostas Stamouslis, Assistant Director-General of FAO´s Economic and Social Development Department.

Keynote speech were conveyed by Hilal Elver, Special Rapporteur on the right to Food, and Livia Pomodoro, UNESCO Chair dedicated to the right and access to food and President of the Milan Center for Food Law and Policy.

It was followed by a panel discussion that counted with the participation of:

Badrul Arefin, Director General, Food Planning and Monitoring Unit, Ministry of Food, Bangladesh

Issiaka Bictogo, Executive Secretary of the Food Security and National Council, Burkina Faso

Elisa María Cadena Gaona, Deputy Director of Nutritional Health, Food and Beverage, Ministry of Health and Social Protection, Colombia

Peter Schmidt, President of the European Economic and Social Committee’s Sustainable Development Observatory

Ramona Duminicioiu, Member of the CSM Coordination Committee and Coordinator of the CSM Working Group on Monitoring