Nourishing the Future: Strong Partnerships for Food Security and Better Nutrition in Latin America and the Caribbean

Background

The FAO Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean and the FAO Liaison Office to the European Union and Belgium are co-organizing an event to discuss challenges and opportunities in the EU-LAC partnership for food security and nutrition, in view of new pressing global challenges and considering the new proposed actions by the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) Food Security and Nutrition Plan.

The COVID-19 pandemic and its resulting economic slowdown, the subsequent conflict in Ukraine and the effects of climate change have posed critical challenges for Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) regions in their efforts to eradicate hunger and malnutrition in all its forms. These have consequently affected global supply chains and have led to an increase in food prices and services, with 133.4 million people not able to afford a healthy diet, in 2022.

The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2023 indicates that the increase in the prevalence of malnutrition and moderate, or severe food insecurity, observed in recent years has stagnated, both globally and in Latin America and the Caribbean. However, in the Caribbean region, the prevalence of moderate or severe food insecurity has increased whereas prevalence of hunger in both regions remains higher than prior to the pandemic. At the same time, no subregion is on track to achieve the stunting reduction targets set by the World Health Assembly (WHA) for 2025 and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

With the occasion of the EU-CELAC Summit in July 2023, the EU and LAC have finally agreed to place food security and nutrition as a priority of their strategic partnership, highlighting the significance of agrifood systems’ transformation for Better Production, Better Nutrition, a Better Environment, and a Better Life for all. Thereby, contributing significantly to global efforts to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 2 -Zero Hunger. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is a strategic and dedicated partner in this endeavor.

Furthermore, the Buenos Aires Declaration, adopted during the VII CELAC Summit in January 2023 reaffirms the commitment of the 33 CELAC Member States to guarantee food security and nutrition, support sustainable agriculture and promote rural development. To this end, the CELAC Plan for Food Security, Nutrition and Eradication of Hunger 2023 (CELAC FSN Plan 20301), has been updated to better reflect regional specificities, implementation, and monitoring plans, for its second phase from 2024 until 2030. This update has been

coordinated by the CELAC Pro Tempore Presidency of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines with the support of FAO, ECLAC, IICA and ALADI.

The event

Building upon this momentum, the FAO Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean and the FAO Liaison Office to the EU and Belgium are co-organizing an event to discuss challenges and opportunities on the EU-LAC partnership for food security and nutrition, in view of new pressing global challenges and considering the CELAC FSN Plan’s proposed actions.

Target audience are stakeholders from EU institutions, EU Member States, Latin America, and Caribbean representations, including parliamentarians, and non-state actors that can enrich the dialogue by exchanging best practices, actions, and model laws.