Bilateral meeting with Mr Andreas Gregoriou, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment of Cyprus

Rome - On the margins of the World Food Forum 2024 and on World Food Day 2024, FAO Director-General QU Dongyu met with Mr Andreas Gregoriou, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment of Cyprus. The Permanent Secretary was accompanied by Ambassador George Poulides, Permanent Representative of Cyprus to FAO. 

The Permanent Secretary indicated the high ambition of Cyprus to move the dial on the transformation to sustainable agrifood systems and discussed the deepening of engagement with FAO in this regard,

The pair discussed the diversity of food and agriculture in Cyprus and the Permanent Secretary mentioned some of the high-quality foods that are typical of Cyprus including the traditional haloumi cheese. The Director-General recalled a recent conversation with Ambassador Poulides and referred to the unique biological diversity in Cyprus because of the varied bioclimates and altitudes.

In closing, the Director-General thanked the Cypriot delegation for attending the World Food Forum and welcomed the continued strong engagement to advance the 2030 Agenda by achieving FAO’s Four Betters: Better Production, Better Nutrition, a Better Environment and a Better Life – leaving no one behind.