Training Attendees

Baghdad, Iraq, July 18, 2017-  FAO announced today the near approval of the Prime Minister’s Secretariat to launch the Iraqi National Food Security Committee. The committee will discuss and recommend best practices on how to achieve food security at the national level.

This came during a training sesssion organized by The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in Iraq, in collaboration with the Regional Food Security Analysis Network (RFSAN), for the Iraqi National Food Security Committee.

The training focused on food security concepts, main approaches, methodologies, survey instruments, and indicators for measuring food insecurity in Iraq, as well as the theory and practice of national early warning systems and its implications for future needs in capacity development.

Fadel El-Zubi, FAO Representative in Iraq, highlighted the importatnt role of civil society organizations and the private sector in the achievement of food security and nutrition for all.

“FAO is our main partner in the ministry and we appreciate its continuous efforts to accomplish an integrated food security system in Iraq. The establishment of the Food Security Committee in Iraq is a significant step for future sustainable development in food security," stated Hussein Ali Saud, Ministry of Agriculture Adviser for Animal Resources Activity.

Rene Verduijn, FAO Chief Technical Advisor of RFSAN, mentioned that considering the recent developments in Mosul and the immediate needs of the large number of internally displaced people in Iraq, it seems that the country is closer to entering a reconstruction phase.

“The establishment of the Iraqi National Food Security Committee comes at an opportune time. Inter-ministerial cooperation is required to achieve food security at the national level, particularly given the constraints facing the country, but it also requires participation from international, national, and subnational partners. FAO is pleased to be part of this process, working on concrete steps towards achieving food security and nutrition for all,” said Verduijn. 

To conclude the training, members set a list of recommendations, including planning for further capacity development, strengthening food security monitoring and information management, and drafting a new food security policy.

RFSAN, a partnership between FAO and iMMAP, provides technical support in identifying priority areas of food security information and early warning systems and in delivering consensus-based food security and nutrition data to support humanitarian and resilience-based programming in Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria.