Bilateral meeting between the FAO Director-General with The Right Honourable Samuel Ntsokoane Matekane, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Lesotho

Maseru - The Prime Minister welcomed the Director-General and thanked him for honouring the King’s invitation to visit Lesotho during this historic moment. He further thanked him for the renewal of His Majesty’s role as Special Goodwill Ambassador for Nutrition for FAO and expressed the need for the Office of the King to be capacitated with the technical assistance to enable him to execute this mandate optimally.

The Prime Minister appreciated the longstanding partnership between Lesotho and FAO, which prompted the signing of several agreements to promote digital agriculture under the FAO Digital Villages Initiative, Green Cities Initiative and for the promotion of aquaculture.

The Director-General stated that it was an opportune time for Lesotho and FAO to speed up the impetus for agrifood systems transformation. He further conveyed FAO’s deep appreciation for the King’s support as Special Goodwill Ambassador for Nutrition, and also recognized the fruitful work undertaken by the FAO Country Team together with the Government of Lesotho.

The Director-General stated that the Technical Cooperation Programmes and the Country Programming Framework that had been signed were an indication of the joint commitment to further strengthen cooperation between Lesotho and FAO. He stated that the TCPs would progress the Lesotho development agenda in the right direction as they were key economy drivers.

Both agreed to continue working together towards the transformation of Lesotho’s agrifood systems.