Bilateral meeting H.E. Hajarison François Sergio, Minister for Agriculture and Livestock of Madagascar

Rome - FAO Director General QU Dongyu met today with H.E Hajarison François Sergio, Minister for Agriculture of the Republic of Madagascar on the margins of 2024 World Food Forum.

The Director-General welcomed the Minister and congratulated him on his recent appointment and noted that the meeting was an opportune moment to build on past successes, foster collaboration and to strengthen the long-standing relationship between FAO and Madagascar. He further appreciated the support he received from Madagascar over the past five years since taking office.

The Minister thanked the Director General and expressed his appreciation for the technical support that FAO continues to extend to the country. He congratulated the Director General for the successful World Food Forum and stated that Madagascar will continue to rely on FAO for the implementation of the Hand in Hand Initiative, which has provided them with the platform to meet and engage with possible investors and create new partnerships.

The Director-General stated that FAO office in Madagascar is pivotal not only Madagascar but for other small islands in the region particularly those close by. He further informed that FAO will continue to provide all the technical support needed for agrifood system transformation and food security especially to strategically boost sufficiency in the areas of rice production, aquaculture and coconut.

The Minister informed that the President had put agriculture and agrifood systems transformation as a priority area and wanted to professionalize rural farmers by strengthening agribusiness through cooperatives and mechanization.