Launch of The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI) Report 2023 - “Urbanization, agrifood systems transformation, and healthy diets across the rural-urban continuum” - Statement

Launch of The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI) Report 2023

“Urbanization, agrifood systems transformation, and healthy diets across the rural-urban continuum”

Statement

By

Dr QU Dongyu, FAO Director-General 

12 July 2023

 

Xie Xie（谢谢）- Thank you!

 

Excellences,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Distinguished participants online from different locations around the world,

 

Good morning from New York.

 

I am very pleased to launch the 2023 edition of the “State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI)”, together with my colleagues from partner agencies and the Honourable President of ECOSOC, the President of the UN General Assembly and the Under Secretary-General for UN-DESA.  

 

Conservative estimates indicate that 735 million people faced hunger in 2022, but this number could be as high as 783 million based on different scenarios.

 

Global hunger remained stable between 2021 and 2022, but it has increased compared to 2019 and before the pandemic - which was the first time I came here together with the former FAO Director-General to launch the 2019 edition of SOFI.

 

Today, this means that 122 million more people faced hunger in the world compared to 2019, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, economic downturns, climate extremes and conflicts, including the war in Ukraine.

 

Moderate or severe food insecurity that had increased sharply from 2019 to 2020 as a result of the pandemic, remained unchanged in 2022.

 

2.4 billion people – approximately 30 percent of the global population - were moderately or severely food insecure in 2022.

 

More than 3.1 billion people in the world - approximately 42 percent - were unable to afford a healthy diet in 2021.

 

This represents an overall increase of 134 million people compared to 2019.

 

And millions of children under the age of five continue to suffer from malnutrition.

 

Recovery measures from the effects of the pandemic brought some positive change by 2022, such as narrowing down the gender gap from 3.8 to 2.4 percent.

 

But this is not enough.

 

Ladies and Gentlemen,

 

We have observed progress in Asia and Latin America due to targeted actions and policy decisions adopted by governments in response to multiple crises.

 

This confirms that appropriate measures, such as international solidarity and targeted social protection programmes in response to the pandemic and other crises, are effective and can lead to positive results.

 

However, recovery has been uneven around the world,

 

Africa was the worst-affected region, with one in five people facing hunger on the continent - more than twice the world average.

 

While Asia and Latin America has seen improvement last year, the situation in Africa, Middle East and the Caribbean has deteriorated.

 

Vulnerable populations and countries continue to be left behind. These regions need our support, focused attention and targeted investments.

 

To show our engagement, I organized last month at FAO a high-level ministerial event for Small Island Developing States (SIDS), Least Developed Countries (LDCs), and Land-Locked Developing Countries (LLDCs), which led to a Call for Action to harness the potential of these countries to transform agrifood systems.

 

In September, at the SDG Summit here in New York, we will be discussing how to accelerate actions to achieve the SDGs by our target of 2030.

 

We already know from SOFI projections that almost 600 million people will still be facing hunger by 2030 - and that the situation in 2022 proves that we are further, not closer, to achieving SDG2,

 

Unless we take drastic actions and make fundamental changes to the way we approach our agrifood systems.

 

We are facing a rapid rise in urbanization, with seven in ten people projected to live in cities by 2050.

 

Urbanization has already advanced in Asia and Latin America, and changes in food demand and supply across the rural–urban continuum are also accelerating in Africa.

 

We no longer have a clear divide between urban and rural areas.

 

This inter-connectivity means a greater change in societies and in agrifood systems, which represents both challenges and opportunities.

 

Without the right approach, we could risk increased malnutrition, with rural populations adopting urban habits with higher availability of cheaper, pre-prepared and fast foods.

 

We risk the exclusion of smallholder farmers from the value chain, or loss of land due to urbanization.

 

These are some of the challenges, but more importantly, there will also be opportunities.

 

Opportunities to expand income-generating activities in off-farm employment, especially for women and youth,

 

During the past 30 years, there has been a process of quicker urbanization and digitalization; now we are seeing quicker industrialization in the continent of Africa, in South Asia and also in Latin America.

 

There are four drivers for the global economy, agrifood systems and rural development: urbanization, industrialization, digitalization, and decarbonization.

 

These drivers will change the global scenario, not only for the economy, but also socially and environmentally, especially for rural areas.

 

The opportunities are there, but we have to develop enabling policies to provide better access to agricultural inputs and services, among many other benefits.

 

First, we should understand the changes happening across agrifood systems from a rural–urban perspective: from food production, food processing, and food distribution and procurement, and to consumer behaviour.

 

And more importantly, we need to introduce a green lifestyle that will help us with decarbonization, and lead to harmony between human beings, nature and the environment.

 

Leveraging science, innovation and technology is vital and will increase efficiency.

 

Closer linkages among agrifood systems sectors will create opportunities for win–win situations, higher economic development, improved food security and access to affordable healthy diets for all.

 

Ladies and Gentlemen,

 

We are living a “new normal”, where we will be facing unpredictable crises, weather and economic uncertainties, and multiple and overlapping risks - and we need to be prepared and equipped to address the unforeseen.

 

We have learned that it is critical for countries to work together to successfully overcome multiple, simultaneous crises.

 

We witnessed this during the pandemic in both the health and agrifood sectors, as well as in conflict and emergency situations, and during the war in Ukraine, to ensure food and inputs access and availability.

 

We can achieve food security and nutrition for all, and provide access to healthy diets, in the context of this new normal.

 

But we need to start adopting appropriate policy measures and governance structures that support the transformation we need.

 

Solutions and actions should be localized and adapted to the context.

 

We should transform our agrifood systems to be more efficient, more inclusive, more resilient and more sustainable through national pathways.

 

I am delighted that FAO will host, together with the Italian Government, in the coming weeks, the UN Food Systems Summit +2 Stocktaking Moment, during which Heads of State and Government and Ministers will come to share their best practices, experiences and also national pathways, so we can work together and learn together.

 

We should increase, redirect and target our investment to the needs of our new reality.

 

We need greater, wider and more equal access to science, innovation and technology.

 

Science, innovation and technology are real game changers.

 

Nowadays, people ask for more investment, which is substantial, but science and innovation are the real game changers, not only from the technological aspects, but also in terms of business model and management, among others.

 

And we need to invest in and build our human capital.

 

Dear Colleagues,

 

Last year, I called on countries to start rethinking how they can reallocate the public budget to improve food security and increase availability and affordability of healthy diets.

 

This year, I call on countries to acknowledge the new normal and change their strategies to focus on building resilience, both for prevention, as well as to increase capacity to cope with shocks, through quality investment in the transformation of agrifood systems.

 

With weather shocks becoming more frequent, mobilizing climate action to strengthen agrifood systems is more urgent than ever.

 

As discussed at the UN Water Conference organized by the Secretary General earlier this year, we are witnessing the greatest water challenges due to climate change from two sides: flooding and droughts.

 

Addressing water challenges should be central to our vision for the future, with better policies to ensure integrated and sustainable management of water resources.

 

FAO, together with our partner agencies, is committed to support our Members to transform their agrifood systems to address the food security and nutrition challenges they face.

 

For Better Production, Better Nutrition, a Better Environment and a Better Life – leaving no one behind.

 

Let’s walk the talk, and deliver more!

 

Thank you.