6 JULY 2011
Palais des Nations
Geneva, Switzerland

On the topic of "Unleashing the potential of rural people through education and training for food security and development" during the High-Level segment of the 2011 session of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) a Ministerial Luncheon Discussion was organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in collaboration with the International Labour Organization (ILO), the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), the World Food Programme (WFP) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).

FAO and its partners intervention aimed to raise awareness among Governments and other stakeholders about the importance of investing in education and training for rural people to achieve all of the MDGs, and especially MDG 1, 2 and 3.

The side event would also served as a platform to discuss key issues such as mainstreaming ERP in National Education and Rural Development plans; policies and financing needed to overcome the urban-rural knowledge barrier and education gap, the access to education and skills training for rural children and youth, the quality of education in rural areas, and the participation of rural women in education.

Innovative approaches including curriculum reform, to match rural employment prospects, distance learning and life-long learning, school feeding non formal education and application of the ICTs, could be shared during the side event.

A joint statement by the three Rome based Agencies (FAO, WFP, IFAD) was delivered during the plenary.