Monica Schuster
Global Coordinator CCA/ UNSDCF Support Mechanism, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

Khaled El Taweel
Senior Programme Officer, UN Food Systems Coordination Hub

Renato Domith Godinho
Special Advisor for International Affairs, Ministry for Social Development and Assistance, Family and Fight Against Hunger, Brazil

Towards stronger collaboration with UN Resident Coordinators and Country Teams: leveraging FAO’s Analytical Support Mechanism to inform UN country programming to accelerate agrifood systems transformation, and bridge the science–policy interface at global scale

Acting together to transform agrifood systems: the role of the UNFSS Hub in promoting the use of CFS policy products, informing the work of National Convenors as well as the development and implementation of National Pathways

The Global Alliance against Hunger and Poverty: the potential of the Alliance to promote uptake of CFS policy products through the country-level implementation of evidence-based programs in its policy basket, and how to reinforce communication about the concrete links between CFS products and the policy basket

Short bio: Monica Schuster is the Global Coordinator of FAO’s CCA/UNSDCF Support Mechanism, an initiative designed to scale up technical expertise across FAO in support of United Nations programming processes, based in the Office of the Chief Economist. Monica brings over 15 years of experience with international organizations and NGOs, including FAO, IFPRI, GIZ, and WWF. Her work spans research, technical assistance, capacity development, and policy advocacy, with a focus on fostering resilient, inclusive, and sustainable agrifood systems. Throughout her work, her primary objective has been to bridge the gap between scientific knowledge and practical policy implementation, and between environmental sustainability and economic development. Monica has published in several peer-reviewed journals and brings extensive field experience from Burundi, Colombia, Ghana, Guatemala, Honduras, India, Mexico, Peru, and Uganda. She holds a PhD in Agricultural and Development Economics from the University of Leuven (Belgium) and an MSc in Economics from Bocconi University (Italy).

Short bio: Khaled Eltaweel has more than twenty years of professional experience in Development and International Law at the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Currently, he also serves as Regional Coordinator at the Office of the Director-General of FAO. Khaled served as Chair of the FAO Committee on Commodity Problems (CCP) from 2016-2018 and Chair of the Committee on Food Security (CFS) Working Group on Nutrition 2015-2018. He co-led the implementation of the CFS evaluation. He was elected vice president of the Group of G77 and China in Rome in 2017 and the UNIDROIT General Assembly in 2016. He holds a PhD in International Law from the University of Pretoria, South Africa, and a Master of International Business Administration from ESLSCA Business school in Paris. He authored several academic books and articles and is a visiting lecturer of International Law.

Short bio: Renato Godinho is a Brazilian diplomat with a background in journalism and a master’s degree in international diplomacy. In his 22 years as a diplomat, he served in Brazil and abroad with a focus on multilateral governance, social development, renewable energy, sustainability, and food and nutrition security. As Alternate Permanent Representative of Brazil to FAO from 2009 to 2012, Renato played a key role in reforming the UN Committee on World Food Security (CFS), helping to conceive, draft and negotiate the CFS Reform Document, as well as a number of major CFS policy products, while guiding the reform implementation as a Bureau member. From 2015 to 2022, he led the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Division for Renewable Energy, when he conceived and led the Biofuture Platform, a twenty country coalition promoting sustainable, advanced low-carbon solutions as its first Chair, and successfully led Biofuture’s transition to being hosted by the International Energy Agency as its permanent secretariat. Since 2023, as Special Advisor for International Affairs in Brazil’s Ministry of Social Development (MDS), he has worked to elevate SDGs 1 and 2 in the global agenda. From December 2023 he was tasked with co-chairing of the G20 Task Force which successfully conceived, negotiated and launched the Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty in November 2024, going on to currently include 185 member countries and organizations. Renato currently coordinates the Alliance´s interim Support Team on top of his duties at MDS.

Anna Horner
UN Nutrition Senior Coordinator

Alejandra Safa Barraza
Programme Officer, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

Overview of the work undertaken by UN Nutrition to promote the uptake of the CFS Voluntary Guidelines on Food Systems and Nutrition

The FAO Programme to promote the dissemination and uptake of the CFS Voluntary Guidelines on Gender Equality and Women’s and Girls’ Empowerment in the context of Food Security and Nutrition

Short bio: Anna Horner is a Public Health Nutritionist with more than 20 years of experience working in international nutrition within the UN system. In January 2024, she took up duties as the UN-Nutrition Senior Coordinator. She has worked primarily for WFP and UNICEF with a particular focus on the West Africa region. Anna has worked at the national level on nutrition in Niger, Guinea, and Mali (with shorter periods of work in Cote d'Ivoire, India, Pakistan, and Haiti) as well as for 10 years as the Regional Nutrition Advisor for the West Africa region for WFP. For the past 5 years, Anna has been heading up the Strategic Partnership Engagement for Nutrition team at WFP's HQ, leading engagement on all strategic partnerships, global events, and innovative financing opportunities from the nutrition side. During this time, she also led on strategic staffing for nutrition globally for WFP. Anna holds a BA in Gender and French from Vassar College, an MA in International Studies and Diplomacy from the University of London's School of Oriental and African Studies, a Masters' degree in International Development and International Organisations from Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris, and a MSc in Public Health Nutrition from the University of London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. She is a US-UK-French citizen and mother of two young girls.

Short bio: Alejandra is a national from Mexico and holds degrees in social work, adult education, and gender and social policies. Currently she serves as Programme Officer -Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment- in the Food and Agriculture of the United Nations (FAO), and as Global Coordinator of the Programme on Promoting the dissemination and uptake of the CFS Voluntary Guidelines on Gender Equality and Women’s and Girls’ Empowerment in the context of Food Security and Nutrition. Alejandra has extensive experience in inclusive food systems and gender equality and women’s empowerment in the context of food security and nutrition. She has built both technical and organizational capacities by working for national counterparts such as governmental institutions, NGOs and producers’ organizations, as well as for international development partners, focusing on rural communities and Indigenous Peoples. Over the past twelve years, Alejandra has been working at FAO’s headquarters in the Inclusive Rural Transformation and Gender Equality Division as a gender expert. In this role, she coordinated a UN joint programme and projects working closely with FAO regional and country offices. She also played an active role in the preparation of the UN Food Systems Summit 2021 and in the Coalition for Action for Making Food Systems Work for Women and Girls.

Lisa Jäckering
Senior Policy Officer, Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Regional Identity, Germany

Emilio Colonnelli
Food Security Officer, Secretariat of the Committee on World Food Security (CFS)

The importance of recognizing CFS uptake as a collective responsibility that requires an integrated approach and coordination: a donor perspective

Establishment of an Umbrella Programme to facilitate financing of uptake-related activities by different donors

Short bio:  Lisa Jäckering is a senior policy officer at the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Regional Identity in Berlin (BMEL), Germany. She is part of the Right to Food Unit of BMLEH and responsible for the Bilateral Trust Fund with FAO, international research cooperation and bilateral cooperation with the African Union. Prior to her role at BMLEH, she worked for the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) in Rome. Ms Jäckering holds a PhD in agricultural economics from the University of Göttingen.

Short bio: Emilio Colonnelli is a Food Security Officer in the Secretariat of the Committee on World Food Security (CFS) where he coordinates the workstream on the promotion of uptake of CFS policy products. This process is intended to contribute to strengthen linkages between CFS and relevant actors and platforms to promote the use and facilitate the integration of CFS policy products into regional and national policies, strategies and programmes. In the course of the years in the CFS Secretariat, Mr Colonnelli also coordinated policy processes that led to the development and endorsement of different CFS policy products, such as the Voluntary Guidelines on Food Systems and Nutrition, the Policy Recommendations on Connecting Smallholders to Markets, on Promoting Youth Engagement and Employment in Agriculture, and on Sustainable Forestry. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Master’s degrees in International Relations as well as in Human Development and Food Security.

Inmaculada del Pino Álvarez
Food Systems, Food Security and Nutrition Expert, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

Advancing global right to food monitoring efforts: ongoing process and reflections

Short bio:  Inmaculada del Pino Álvarez works as Food Systems, Food Security and Nutrition Expert in the Right to Food Team of the Rural Development and Gender Equality Division of FAO. Inmaculada is a senior professional in international development with two decades of experience. Her career has focused on evidence-based food systems policy and normative analysis and development. Notably devoted to strengthening national data generation capacities, she has coordinated national food security assessments and facilitated legal and institutional analyses in areas such as school food and nutrition, rural extension, access to markets, food systems governance, and right to food legislation. She has worked across regions including long-term assignments across Africa and working extensively in different countries across Latin America, the Sahel, and the Near East countries. She has led and contributed to evidence-based policy development through robust use of statistics, assessments, and evaluations—ensuring that national strategies, programmes, and legal frameworks are grounded in data and aligned with human rights principles. Her work spans institutions such as INGOs, UNDP, IDLO and FAO where she has supported governments and stakeholders in translating complex food systems challenges into actionable, rights-based policies. She has played a key role in global policy spaces, including the Committee on World Food Security (CFS), where she contributed to policy convergence processes and in plenary sessions. Inmaculada’s hands-on field experience from school nutrition programmes to resilience-building and land governance, has shaped her holistic and systemic approach. She is recognized for her strategic thinking, technical rigor, and commitment to inclusive and sustainable food systems transformation—anchored in justice, dignity, and the right to food for all. Inmaculada holds dual MA´s degrees in Migration and Development Studies (pre-PhD), by the University of Almeria, and in International Cooperation, from the Catholic University of Milan. Additionally, she possesses postgraduate specializations in Food Security Assessment and Analysis, from the Open University of Catalonia: Agroecology, from the Polytechnical University of Valencia: and Responsible Investments in Agriculture, from the Columbia University.