Interview with UNSC Special Envoy of the Dominican Republic

For today's interview, we speak to José Singer, Special Envoy of the Dominican Republic to the United Nations Security Council.



You have recently presided over the United Nations Security Council. Which would you consider to be the highlights of your presidency and why? 

I think that given the unprecedented and unique circumstances that arose from the COVID-19 Pandemic, the Dominican Republic’s Presidency was truly a challenge.  We took up this challenge with dignity, humility and to the best of our abilities and the tools we had at our disposal in the context of social distancing measures in place. 

The month was full of uncertainties and sad news coming from all over the world, but particularly in New York City, as more and more people were getting infected and dying because of the virus.  

So, it took a lot of joint effort and creativity to keep the Council engaged and working, we felt we needed to show the world the Council was still operating. 

Technicians from the UN Secretariat worked around the clock to provide the Council with a virtual platform that was able to meet the needs of Council Members and to achieve the goals of transparency and inclusiveness we set up upon ourselves. 

One concrete step on this regard was to share as much information as possible to the wider UN Membership and the public, including through daily emails, social media and press elements after most meetings. To achieve this, we proposed extraordinary working methods for the month of April with which we continued the practice of conducting VTCs of the items reflected on the Programme of Work, regretting that they were not considered formal given the concerns of some delegations for instance, due to the fact that interpretation into the six official languages is still not possible on the platform.  

From the very beginning of our Presidency our goal was to make the Council’s discussions on Open VTCs, public.  Halfway through the month, after reaching consensus from members, we managed to live feed, through UN Web TV the entirety of the Open VTCs, including briefers, and UN Security Council Member statements. 

For the first time ever, in the history of the Security Council, a public virtual meeting was held and it was on April 21st, on the issue of “Protection of Civilians from conflict-induced hunger”, making this moment, one of the highlights of our Presidency.  Following the session, under the leadership of the Dominican Republic, the Council unanimously adopted a Presidential Statement reaffirming its decision to place this issue within its attention and to continue to be constructively engaged. 

We are also very pleased with other key sessions such as the one dedicated to the issue of “Youth, Peace and Security” in which we had three young briefers and the SG. It became clear during this session that there is a growing consensus on the need for the full implementation of this Agenda.

The Dominican Republic has undertaken food security as a key component of its governmental policies. Why is this topic a national priority for you? 

The Dominican Republic situates food security at the forefront of policymaking for three reasons, which are closely interlinked. One overarching principle emanates from a rights-based approach. A second pillar, which is a natural outcome of the first, is a coherent legal framework for realizing the right to food in concrete reality. A third driver is that policies for guaranteeing food security and adequate nutrition make sense.

When we speak of a right-based approach, we are making a direct reference to our involvement in the United Nations system. The Dominican Republic has a long history of investing in the common good through the UN. Indeed, ours is among the historical commitments to the noble goals of the UN, as one of the founding members. We were the third country, after the United States and France, to ratify the Un Charter back in 1945. Three years later, it was a Dominican diplomat, Minerva Bernardino, who proposed that a draft text for defining and codifying individual and social rights be titled “Universal Declaration of Human Rights”, instead of the original formulation “Rights of Man”. Article 25 of that Declaration, enacted on 10 December 1948, established the right to food. The Dominican constitution has duly incorporated the right to food, in article 54. So, this is the first reason: engaging with the UN from day one, both in supporting its global mandate and taking note of its guidance, the Dominican Republic has incorporated the general principle of a fundamental human right to food into the nation’s supreme law.

A second step was required, in order for the abstract tenet should crystallize into actions that benefit each individual and society as a whole. This is when the Dominican government stepped up to the task, abiding by the ethical imperative of translating a right proclaimed into concrete accomplishments. We devised a National Development Strategy, closely aligned with the UN-sponsored 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. In point of fact, our 2030 strategy puts food security into clear focus. Political will is paramount for transforming lofty aspirations into material reality.

We proceeded to convene an open, transparent, and inclusive process for designing a special statute to tackle the challenges of food availability, access, utilization, and stability, namely the four mainstays of food security. The resulting Law on Food and Nutrition Sovereignty and Security was passed in July 2016. It was the first major piece of legislation in four decades to win unanimous approval in both Houses of Congress. This feat was achieved because the drafting process had gone far beyond the usual parliamentary committees, to include all relevant stakeholders, from the civil society to the private sector, and, among many others, research centers, academia, municipal and local governments, as well as UN agencies, which provided crucial technical collaboration. In point of fact, the successful process mirrored that of the Committee on World Food Security, the platform hosted by FAO and supported by the other two Rome-based UN agencies, the International Fund for Agricultural Development and the World Food Programme. Such a comprehensive legal framework provides a strong base upon which several structures, such as the National Council for Food Security and Nutrition, come together for designing and implementing four-year plans. These plans, whose current iteration covers the period from 2019 through 2022, articulating a multi-sectoral, pluri-dimensional array of actors. This complex structure constitutes a second pillar of the Dominican methodology, which has won the appreciation of the UN in general and of FAO in particular.

Thirdly, it stands to simple reason that a coherent strategy for food security and adequate nutrition is, in and by itself, a good practice. The positive impact is felt throughout the economy, creating a virtuous cycle where the proverbial tide actually lifts all boats. Even before the current pandemic has laid bare the urgent need for reforming them, the food systems that operate at national, regional, and global levels had shown a positive correlation as producers and consumers interact in balanced, win-win scenarios.

In concluding, this would be a short version of the above answer: a rights-based approach is taken with the seriousness it deserves; political will then convenes an inclusive assembly of stakeholders, leading to a solid legal framework informed by good practices; the strategy is I turn applied on the ground dynamically and systematically, with clear objectives that are constantly monitored and evaluated, in a self-fueling loop of continued successes. The structures and their actions, with their in-built resilience, take the Dominican Republic closer to the Zero Hunger goal.


Today over 40 million people are suffering from hunger in Latin America and the Caribbean. Which actions would you suggest taking to improve food security and nutrition in these areas presently and in the future?

The very first step is the recognition that, despite all efforts, humanity in general and our region in particular have not yet vanquished the scourge of hunger. Also, that the various forms of malnutrition continue to slow our progress towards achieving the other Sustainable Development Goals. Indeed, while the SDGs are all closely interlinked, no two are more dependent on each other than SDG1 of eradicating poverty and SDG2 of Zero Hunger.

The challenges are formidable, and in acknowledging them the second step is obvious: investing the necessary political capital, accompanied with a forceful mobilization of human and financial resources, towards accomplishing the SDGs, which is the clearest roadmap ever devised for elevating socioeconomic levels for all citizens within every country, and for all countries in the community of nations.

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic brought instability to food systems, Latin America and the Caribbean has been dealing with enormous difficulties. Climate change, which FAO correctly addresses as the climate crisis, poses an existential threat to small island developing States and coastal communities in the Caribbean basin, because these are located in the route of hurricanes that swoop in a westbound motion from May to October each year. Climate science shows that a steady warming of the maritime surface invigorates these tropical cyclones, boosting wind speed and flooding, amplifying their destructive power. Fluctuations in climate also affect mountain communities, with subsistence farmers and indigenous peoples bearing the brunt of landslides and droughts. Climate fluctuations alter seasonal migration patterns for wild animals and distorting planting and harvesting cycles. Farm animals and plants are threatened by evolving diseases, some of which have the potential for wiping out crops, such as fungus like the fusarium that attack bananas and plantains. Soil erosion, acidification of both sea and inland fresh water sources also present towering problems for food producers. Vulnerable populations among the least socioeconomic strata, such as infants, pregnant and lactating mothers, and the elderly, are at a constant risk of being left behind, especially in times of economic uncertainty and fiscal constraints. These and other challenges brought forth —or made worse— by the climate crisis, are exacerbated by other detrimental factors that come into play, as both tariff and non-tariff trade barriers prevent exports to developed countries. Poverty-induced migrations also present an impediment for food and nutrition security, as displaced communities cease to produce for their own consumption and for supplying local markets, and their arrival in other regions or across borders add to pressure on local authorities contending with diminished resources.

Fortunately, a major driver of food insecurity around the world —violent conflict— is not present in the region. Nonetheless, concerted actions are needed both presently and in the long run to prevent Latin American and Caribbean countries from sliding towards food crises, which would rescind the progress accrued in the last several decades of growth. We do have success stories that deserve to be looked at as examples of good practices, such as the policies that the Dominican Republic has been implemented hand-in-hand with FAO and other UN agencies.

Reasoned policies for guaranteeing food security and adequate nutrition must start with guaranteeing and enforcing tenure rights. These must include a gender component, which should be cross-cutting across all policies, as the full integration of women is crucial for accomplishing sustainable development, especially in the rural areas. Youth is also key, because migration from rural areas has been shown to be primarily driven by young men and women whose economic prospects look less discouraging as city dwellers. Abandoning food production because of a perceived lack of prospects threatens to create a vicious circle.

Governments should create an enabling environment for the private sector to furnish economical high-quality seeds, fertilizers, and pesticides —and directly provide them, as needed, for jump-starting production and productivity. Access to financial resources at low rates is indispensable, so that tools, machinery, and related inputs can be acquired. It is fundamental for governments to improve and expand extension services, with a special focus on family farmers, which produce about 80% of all food, including technological advancements for providing weather, market, and related information in real time. Extension services should also provide quick responses in early warning and in risk management, and in the wide array of good practices, from incorporating proper techniques at every step of the value chain, to capacity building not just in production, but in food safety, packaging, transport, labelling, marketing, accounting, resources management, and reinvestment.

Policies must encourage associations and cooperatives, which have been proved to be multipliers of efficiency and productivity, boosting livelihoods for individuals, families, and communities. Concerted efforts at resilience in the face of the climate crisis, including measures for adaptation and mitigation, are required, as well as programs for fostering biodiversity in crops. Limited market access, both within countries and especially in the global scene, remains a tremendous obstacle for alleviating the plight of small and medium food producers in the region. In that same sense, governments must direct investments, with a preference for public-private partnerships were appropriate, to infrastructure that serves the basic purpose of connecting smallholders to markets: roads, energy grids for cold storage, and effective communications, among other elements that should be present in rural communities of all countries.

Implementing these and other measures is not an easy task. Even the governments of highly industrialized countries, which raise prodigious amounts of financial resources through fiscal policies and have potent food systems in place, are constantly facing stress in most of these areas. The countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, as we move towards the goals laid out in the 2030 Agenda, must take advantage of what we already know, what the best practices are, and focalize our policies so that producers of all levels of output are able to realize their full potential, and all consumers can be food secure, with constant access to nutritious comestibles.