One year after the Food Systems Summit: Progress and challenges in the current context

 

For more than a year, the governments of the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, assisted by the Regional technical group composed of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), and the World Food Programme (WFP), held preparations the Food Systems Summit (FSS) that took place on September 23, 2021. The countries convened 123 national and 115 independent dialogues with the participation of all sectors and actors of agri-food systems. The Summit resulted in two types of member states’ commitments: the Coalitions and the National Pathways, which are mechanisms for action based on the national dialogues that took place in the preparation for the Summit.

Task force for Food Systems in Latin America and the Caribbean

In 2022, the initial group of United Nations agencies (ECLAC, FAO, IFAD, and WFP), together with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO), was established to support the commitments adopted at the Summit, especially the implementation of the National Pathways. To this end, a Regional Task Force was formed to support the United Nations System through its Resident Coordinators and the member countries in following up on the commitments made at the Summit, to facilitate efficient and effective communication, to organize instances of dialogue with national counterparts, and to coordinate efforts with the work carried out in Rome (the Coordination Hub).

Objective of the event

The Regional Task Force organizes this high-level virtual event to present an update of the progress of the National Pathways a year after the Food Systems Summit. Its objective is to explore how the current context of the increase in food and fertilizer prices, as an effect of the war in Ukraine, and the economic and fiscal outlook in the region, have impacted on the agro-food systems and what governance mechanisms will be necessary to implement the national Pathways. The event seeks to motivate a dialogue around the current situation, raising awareness and reaffirming commitments and measures that transform food systems, promoting healthy food and protection of the planet.

Participants

This event aims to bring together government actors, United Nations agencies, civil society, academia, research centers, the private sector and different counterparts, with the participation of the media.