WORLD FOOD FORUM 2025 HAND-IN-HAND INVESTMENT FORUM OFFICIAL OPENING Opening Remarks

His Excellency President Boric of Chile,

Excellences,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Welcome to the 2025 edition of the Hand-in-Hand Investment Forum.

Each year, this Forum continues to grow in reach, ambition and impact, and this year marks our largest and most dynamic edition yet.

We have 31 countries and 6 regional initiatives.

We are joined by more than 100 speakers and expert panelists, representing governments, development financial institutions, the private sector, foundations, impact funds, and other development partners – this is the highest number of speakers in the Forum’s history!

I believe in line with Chinese tradition that you need to repeat something important for three times: one thought, you have some direction; second thought, you get direction; and third thought, you can fix the direction! That is why you have to repeat something three times.

Over the next four days, these leaders and experts will engage in discussions ranging from high-level sessions on coffee and climate finance, to thematic events on systemic investing, women and youth entrepreneurship, as well as detailed country investment presentations.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

We face an unprecedented opportunity, and responsibility – I don’t want to refer to challenges too much because we need to be optimistic - working together to collectively transform global agrifood systems to be more efficient, more inclusive, more resilient, and more sustainable.

But transformation requires investment, and not just more investment, but better targeted and longer-term holistically designed value chain investment.

Current financing levels are insufficient and often misaligned with national priorities, or even environmentally friendly or long-term values.

It is not only a question of limited funds – it’s about the need to ensure that resources are strategically allocated where we can deliver the greatest impact, guided by robust data, analysis, and evidence.

Low- and lower-middle-income countries face the deepest food insecurity, the highest exposure to shocks, and the narrowest fiscal space, yet also hold the greatest potential for growth and transformation. Something not done by our predecessors is an opportunity for us to improve and do it better.

This is where the FAO Hand-in-Hand Initiative plays a vital role. We started with the lower- and middle-income countries first – the Small Island Developing States (SIDS) – because they were the ones that needed it the most.

Using state-of-the-art geospatial modeling, advanced data tools, and a unique matchmaking approach, Hand-in-Hand helps countries identify priority territories, investment gaps, and transformative opportunities,

Where targeted investment can generate the strongest impact on poverty reduction, food security, and climate resilience.

The Hand-in-Hand Investment Forum is the result of that process. And it is a platform for Members from developing countries to find the opportunity for investment through matchmaking with potential investors and innovators.

It brings all stakeholders together - governments, investors, development banks, farmers and farmers’ organizations, and private partners - to one collaborative platform, including through the FAO Investment Centre, where nationally owned, technically sound investment plans can be presented, discussed, and supported.

Through this Forum, public finance acts as the catalyst, unlocking and de-risking larger volumes of responsible private investment. FAO is a trusted and cost-effective platform for investors.

This is how transformation becomes tangible, how capital turns into crops, innovation, livestock, fisheries, among others, and livelihoods.

This is how we do Better Together!

Ladies and Gentlemen,

This year’s Forum focuses on two central themes: “Investing for Success” and “Investing for Scale”. Without scale it is only a donation. We need investment at scale for sizeable marketable commodities for ordinary farmers and consumers.

Through Hand-in-Hand, FAO supports member countries in translating their aspirations into actionable, bankable investment plans,

Promoting climate-smart agriculture, strengthening value chains, reducing food losses, and enhancing access to finance for women, youth, and smallholders.

We provide the technical backbone: data, policy support, professional facilitation, and science-based guidance, as well as a global network of experts. This is the value of FAO.

And we rely on you - the investors, the innovators, the policymakers, and more importantly the people - to bring these plans to life.

In the coming sessions, Ministers will share how Hand-in-Hand is already helping their countries attract new partnerships and innovative investments, driving transformation from the ground up.

Over the next two days, we will hear from 31 countries and six regional initiatives, each presenting their Hand-in-Hand investment plans — all aligned with national priorities, built through collaboration, and designed for measurable impact.

Especially for SIDS, which individually are very small, but with the new business model we are organizing the small islands as one solid group. This is the philosophy of building a mosaic from small fragments to create a masterpiece, which I mentioned yesterday in my opening remarks for the World Food Forum.

This is how FAO is evolving, combining science, partnerships, and investment to accelerate the transformation toward the Four Betters: Better Production, Better Nutrition, a Better Environment, and a Better Life - leaving no one behind.

This is how we are doing Better Together!

The Hand-in-Hand Initiative now supports over 80 Members and eight regional initiatives, demonstrating the power of partnership and the trust of our Members.

The Hand-in-Hand Investment Forum is not only a marketing place for investment – because without marketing you cannot have a market - it is a platform for shared vision and a catalyst for innovation.

The world is watching. The needs are urgent. And the opportunities are immense — and they are here, in this room, today! Contributed by you, from you and for you!

Let us work better together to finance a transformation that ensures food security, protects our planet, and delivers prosperity for all.

Let us engage to ensure Better Foods and a Better Future, working Better Together!

That is real solidarity to which we are committed.

Thank you.