2nd INTERNATIONAL DIALOGUE ON MIGRATION Overlapping global crises: the impacts of Food Insecurity and Climate Change on Migration and Displacement
by Dr QU Dongyu, FAO Director-General
24/10/2022
2nd INTERNATIONAL DIALOGUE ON MIGRATION
Overlapping global crises: the impacts of Food Insecurity and Climate Change on Migration and Displacement
Panel: Global food security crisis due to conflicts, weather extremes, economic shocks and impact on migration
Speaking Points
For
Dr QU Dongyu, FAO Director General
24 October 2022
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Dear Colleagues,
1. Thank you for recognizing the importance of the food security and climate change to the vulnerable.
2. Migration and climate change are both closely related to FAO’s mandate to fight hunger, improve food security, end rural poverty, and promote the sustainable management of natural resources.
3. Despite hopes that the world would emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic and food security would begin to improve, the number of people affected by hunger rose to as many as 828 million in 2021, an increase of about 150 million since the outbreak of the pandemic.
4. Around 2.3 billion people in the world were moderately or severely food insecure in 2021, meaning they did not have access to adequate food.
5. Close to 1 billion people are at risk of famine in the vulnerable countries, while at the same time 3.1 billion people cannot afford a healthy diet.
6. Food insecurity, migration and displacement are closely interconnected.
7. 80% of the world’s displaced people are in countries or territories affected by acute food insecurity and malnutrition, and that face climate risk and other disasters.
8. The impacts of the climate crisis continues to negatively impact food security through extreme weather events and slow-onset changes.
9. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Assessment points out that increasing weather and climate extremes have already exposed millions of people to acute food insecurity and reduced water security.
10. Climate exposed sectors such as agriculture, forestry, fishery and aquaculture, among others, are those most affected.
11. For example, 5 consecutive failed rainy seasons have led to the most severe drought in recent history in southern and eastern Ethiopia, affecting the fragile livelihoods of 10 million people who are already food insecure.
12. Slow-onset changes in climate and weather patterns are also affecting agrifood systems, agri-environment and people’s livelihoods
13. Productivity has been declining in many countries due to changing temperatures, severe weather and droughts.
14. Rural people are most vulnerable as their livelihoods depend on local productivity with local natural resources.
15. Irregular rainfalls affect rainfed agriculture, on more than 80% of cultivated land – even in Europe over the past years.
16. Rural people have fewer opportunities and resources to adapt to a changing climate and repeated exposure to climate events increases the risk of poverty if without resillence building and investment .
17. This is placing a lot of pressure to migrate, to be forcibly displaced, or trapped in high-risk areas unable to move.
18. FAO is working with rural populations to address the adverse drivers of migration, to ensure that migration is a choice instead of a necessity.
19. This includes mitigating the negative impacts of the climate crisis on rural livelihoods, creating alternatives to migration and strengthening anticipatory action to avert the risk of displacement.
20. Recognizing that rural areas bear the greatest burden in hosting large numbers of displaced people, one-third of FAO’s emergency and resilience funding is allocated to address the challenge of forced displacement since I took office 3 years ago as FAO Director-Geneal.
21. FAO helps rural communities to better manage climate-related risks by promoting climate adaptation practices, the sustainable use and management of natural resources, and the restoration of degraded ecosystems.
22. In El Salvador, for example, where changes in weather and climate conditions are affecting agricultural production and pushing farmers to migrate, FAO is working with the government to protect water sources for 1 million people, and enhance the climate resilience of 50,000 smallholder farmers.
Dear Colleagues,
23. It is important to also see migration as a potential positive force for the green transition, and for the development of green agrifood systems.
24. Investments in migrants' and the diaspora, and the transfer of skills and knowledge in climate-resilient livelihoods and climate-smart technologies, can contribute to promoting green agri-businesses and improve access to food.
25. New pathways for resilience should also look at creating enabling conditions to harness the potential of migration for climate change adaptation in areas of origin, transit and destination.
26. In this regard, FAO has developed, together with the United Nations University, a global guide and toolkit to facilitate the integration of human mobility into National Adaptation Plans and Nationally Determined Contributions, from a rural livelihood perspective.
27. Evidence suggests that if governments repurpose the resources they are using to incentivize the production, supply and consumption of nutritious foods, this will lead to making healthy diets more affordable and equitable for all.
28. Governments need to urgently re-examine their agricultural trade and market interventions, such as subsidies and to ensure that international trade continues to operate smoothly.
29. Investing in agrifood systems transformation and longer-term responses is key to strengthen the resilience of agrifood systems to risks, including conflict, extreme weather events and economic shocks.
30. Addressing infrastructure and input supply bottlenecks is critical to an efficient food supply system.
31. Effective and sustainable support to smallholder farmers will be vital to ensure they are part of the solution, and to localize supply chains.
32. This calls for multisectoral approaches and enhanced collaboration between policy actors at all levels.
33. FAO, with its unique technical expertise, makes an important contribution to bridge migration, agriculture and climate stakeholders, acting as a neutral platform and leveraging its wide presence on the ground for concrete results.
Dear Colleagues,
34. We need concerted efforts to achieve more efficient, more inclusive, more resilient and more sustainable agrifood systems,
35. To achieve our collective goal of the 4 Betters, at the country level, at the regional level and at the international level: better production, better nutrition, a better environment and a better life for all, leaving no one behind.
36. These objectives are set out in the FAO Strategic Framework 2022-31, and we stand ready and firmly to work with partners thorugh the Hand in Hand iniatative towards achieving these goals,
37. In support of the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals.
38. Thank you.