Bilateral meeting with H.E. Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of the Republic of India

Rome - The FAO Director-General, Dr QU Dongyu, met at FAO headquarters in Rome with His Excellency Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of the Republic of India, on occasion of the conferment of the FAO Agricola Medal to the Prime Minister. His Excellency Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Minister of External Affairs of India, was also in attendance.

The Director-General warmly welcomed the Prime Minister to FAO headquarters and conveyed that it was indeed an honour and a privilege that he had accepted the prestigious Agricola Medal, the highest recognition awarded by the FAO Director-General. The Agricola Medal has been conferred to eminent world figures in recognition of their extraordinary role in undertaking outstanding and successful efforts in advancing the cause of global food security, poverty alleviation and rural development, in line with FAO’s mandate.

The Director-General stated that as leader of the country with the largest population in the world and a long history of civilization, the award reflected the important role India played in the international agriculture arena, and the great achievements the country had made under the leadership of the Prime Minister through a steady reform and bold innovation.

The Director-General praised India’s long-standing and fruitful relationship with FAO for more than 80 years – noting that India was one of the 42 founding members of FAO - and reiterated the Organization’s steadfast commitment to supporting Members, especially countries like India with a great number of smallholder farmers, to ensure the Four Betters: better production, better nutrition, a better environment and a better life, leaving no one behind.

The Prime Minister conveyed his deep appreciation to the Director-General for conferring the Agricola Medal to him, commending the dynamism of the Organization under the leadership of the Director-General, and the vital role it played globally. The Prime Minister further thanked FAO for the support provided towards the realization of the country’s vision, especially for the development of the agriculture sector, and emphasized that food security was more than a policy issue and needed even more aggressive measures to move beyond food security to ensure nutritious and healthy diets for all, aiming at the welfare of the next generation.

The Prime Minister underlined the linkage between climate, biodiversity and food security, and referred to India’s good practice of ensuring the protection of the environment in agricultural development, such as through natural farming with limited use of chemicals, as well as through water efficiency agriculture with the objective of producing more with less water. The Prime Minister also pointed out the importance of cash crops in improving the livelihoods of small-scale farmers, and in this regard highlighted the application of AI in the country’s livestock sector that enabled producers and veterinaries to identify the best data-based solutions.

The Director-General further stated that he had witnessed the impressive development of India over the past years, which reflected the effective, accountable, and stable leadership provided by the Prime Minister. The Director-General also emphasized that package solutions were needed for agrifood systems to adapt to climate change, including through the development of resilient species and the cultivation of resistant crops like millets and rice. In this regard, he commended India for having championed the International Year of Millets in 2023. He also recognized the country’s abundant experience in AI and its application in agrifood systems, which aligned with the Digital FAO reform since he had taken office in 2019. Finally, the Director-General recommended that the India experience be shared more widely with the Global South.

The pair agreed to keep fostering strong relations between FAO and India for the transformation of agrifood systems and ensuring no one is left behind.