As FAO and Government of Zimbabwe participate at the World Food Forum 2023 Flagship Event in Rome, Italy

Water is essential to life on earth. It makes up over 50 percent of our bodies and covers about 71 percent of the earth's surface. Only 3 percent of the world’s water is fresh, making it suitable for drinking, agriculture, and most industrial uses. Without water, there will be no food. Without food there will be no life.

Zimbabwe joins the world in commemorating the 2023 World Food Day under the theme, “Water is life, Water is Food – leaving no one behind.” World Food Day is observed annually on 16 October, marking the anniversary of the founding of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The main objective is to heighten public awareness of the nature and dimensions of the long-term world food challenges, and to develop further national and international solidarity in the struggle against hunger, malnutrition and poverty.  

“The Government of Zimbabwe and development partners such as FAO are significantly contributing to the design and implementation of science and evidence-based policies that capitalize on data, innovation and cross-sectoral coordination to better plan and manage water. As we commemorate world food day, I would like to encourage Zimbabweans to make a difference by taking urgent action to manage water resources more diligently, to conserve this precious resource, and use it wisely for the future of food, people, and the planet,” said Honourable Dr Anxious Jongwe Masuka, Minister of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development (MLAFWRD).

The World Food Day celebrations are coinciding with the World Food Forum (WFF) taking place from 16 – 20 October 2023 in Rome, Italy, where FAO Representatives from Zimbabwe and the Government led by the Deputy Minister of MLAFWRD, Hon Vangelis Haritatos, will highlight Zimbabwe’s prioritized investment plans under the Hand-in-Hand Initiative as well as share the country’s progress in the transformation of agrifood systems. The WFF is being held under the theme “Agrifood systems transformation accelerates climate action.”  

“As the world commemorates world food day, it is imperative to strengthen and accelerate efforts to manage water wisely. We need to produce more food and other essential agricultural commodities more efficiently and with less water, while ensuring that water is distributed equally and equitably, and that our aquatic food systems are preserved, and no one is left behind,” said Dr Patrice Talla, FAO Subregional Coordinator for Southern Africa and Representative to Zimbabwe, on the sidelines of the WFF in Rome.

In commemorating world food day, it is important to recognize FAO’s support to Zimbabwe’s role and contribution towards the global water action agenda. In February this year, Zimbabwe hosted the first FAO Africa Regional Conference on National Water Roadmaps which informed African countries about the overall role of water in sustainable development. The Conference also provided a platform for governments, international organizations, civil society, the private sector and academia to discuss and develop country-specific water plans. Zimbabwe subsequently participated and presented the country’s water roadmap at the UN Water Conference in New York in April 2023.

Aligned to realizing the symbiotic relationship between water and food, FAO and the Government of Zimbabwe participated at the UN Food Systems Summit Stocktaking Moment in Italy in July 2023. FAO and the Government of Zimbabwe played a key role in developing national pathways contributing to the global food systems transformation in support of the UN Sustainable Development Agenda in line with the National Development Strategy 1 and the Agriculture and Food Systems Transformation Strategy.

In Zimbabwe, the World Food Day celebrations will be held on 25 October 2023 in Manicaland province. The celebrations are being led by the MLAFWRD, with support from FAO, the World Food Programme (WFP) and other development partners. The celebrations will amplify and reinforce the message that water is essential for the sustenance of food, life, nature, and industry, therefore a water secure future requires collaboration between governments, the private sector, academia, and civil society.