Readout of the bilateral meetings between FAO Director-General, QU Dongyu, and the Ministers for Foreign Affairs of Nicaragua and Guatemala and the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade of Jamaica

27 October 2021, Rome – The FAO Director-General, QU Dongyu, today had bilateral meetings with the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Nicaragua, H.E. Denis Ronaldo Moncada Colindres; the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of Jamaica, H.E. Kamina Elizabeth Johnson-Smith, and the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Guatemala, H.E. Pedro Brolo Vila.

The Minister for Foreign Affairs of Nicaragua thanked the Director-General for FAO’s assistance, noting that the Organization is currently implementing around 25 programmes and projects in that country, and stressed that food security is a priority issue for the Nicaraguan government. He also mentioned national efforts to promote innovation, empower rural women, include youth and preserve the environment.

The Director-General conveyed his appreciation for the support by the Government of Nicaragua for having hosted the last FAO Regional Conference for Latin America and the Caribbean, and also recognized Nicaragua’s challenge in terms of ensuring food security for its people. He noted that some financial facilities, such as the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and the Global Environment Facility (GEF), might provide further resources if the country prepared further projects combining agri-food production and environment conservation. The Director-General said that enabling policies and a stable political situation are key to attract investments. He also referred to the launch of FAO’s One Country One Priority Product (OCOP) initiative, which could assist Nicaragua expand market access.

The Minister for Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of Jamaica highlighted the importance of providing digital tools and training capacity to smallholder and traditional farmers, as well as promoting the standardization of food products, in order to improve market access and enhance exports. She also thanked FAO for the support to elaborate and implement school feeding programmes in Jamaica.

The Director-General noted that FAO has established a dedicated office for Small Island Developing States (SIDS), Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs) and said that improving international market access for those countries is one of the priorities. For that, he stressed that innovation and digital tools are crucial. The Director-General also noted that the 1000 Digital Villages and the One Country One Priority Product (OCOP) initiatives could also help SIDS to develop rural areas and support farmers.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Guatemala noted that his country is committed to make agri-food systems more efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable, as well as to promote the Four Betters: better production, better nutrition, a better environment and a better life. He noted that the Guatemalan government has been focused on improving the livelihoods of farmers hard affected during the last hurricane season in Central America, as well as by the impacts of drought.

The Director-General recognized the challenges of the Dry Corridor and stressed the importance of designing projects to tackle poverty and create jobs. He noted that FAO is committed to support Central America to build resilience and infrastructure based on international partnerships and

available funding. The Director-General also highlighted that the One Country One Priority Product (OCOP) initiative can support Guatemala to better access international markets.