Op-ed by the UN High Representative for the LDCs, LLDCs and SIDS

An Opportunity for Transformation

by Fekitamoeloa Katoa 'Utoikamanu, United Nations High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States

There is a saying, “May you live in interesting times.” As 2020 continues its weary path around the sun, we can all agree that when times get too interesting, we all yearn for the calmer days before. Though life was far from perfect before the pandemic, events have made things far worse for most.
 
More than half of the world’s population is under some form of confinement, which for many means constant fear about where the next meal or paycheck is coming from, or when they can visit a loved one.
 
When the Coronavirus began spreading across the planet, it was described as a ‘great equalizer’, one that didn’t discriminate between the poor and the rich, regardless of where they live. We are all equally vulnerable – or so the claims went.
 
But now we know the truth, and it shouldn’t surprise us. Deep economic, social and institutional disparities that pre-existed the virus cracked into fault lines where the most vulnerable continue to fall, leading to even greater poverty and food insecurity.
 
The pandemic struck at a time of gross inequality. The richest man on earth has seen his wealth increased so far this year by the equivalent of the annual GDP of the 20 smallest least-developed country economies, which are home to more than 120 million people. But even as his wealth exploded during lockdown, people living in the most vulnerable countries – Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries, and Small Island Developing States – desperately need emergency financial relief commensurate with the challenges they face.
 
Without significant investment flow, this crisis could induce a major food emergency and set back years of development in some of these regions. If this happens, several of the Sustainable Development Goals will slip from aspiration to pipe dream, and the global agenda for 2030 will be sidelined, leaving billions behind.
 
Before the pandemic, hunger had already begun to rise. That problem has worsened, in part due to disruptions in food supply chains and losses of jobs and incomes. Now there is a good chance that 2020 could be the first year since 1998 to record a net global rise in poverty.
 
To meet an unprecedented crisis, we need an unprecedented policy response. Now is the time for solidarity in action between development partners, the United Nations, the International Financial Institutions, and other international organizations. Now is the time to work for one shared goal: supporting the most vulnerable countries to expand health and social protection programmes and mitigate the challenges presented by the pandemic. Now is the time to strengthen already weakened food supply chains, and promote measures to facilitate access to affordable food. Now is the time to offer immediate and substantial, official and commercial debt relief, as an essential aspect of a comprehensive support package.
 
In the medium-term, we also keep trade channels open and facilitate free movement of goods to avoid piling an unnecessary food price crisis on the current health and economic disasters facing the world.
 
Getting through – and past – this crisis will undoubtedly require innovative solutions to produce more food, reduce post-harvest losses and ensure those who need food can get it, and improve nutrition around the world.
 
We need to harness technology in pursuit of these goals in areas like genetic selection, biosecurity and disease control; invest in the needed infrastructure, including roads and storages;  provide digital agricultural extension services; but also remain proactive to mitigate the impact of our diets on the environment. And we must further focus our attentions on the most vulnerable countries where population growth, climate change and the pandemic are all hitting people the hardest.
 
The FAO Hand-in-Hand Initiative is an ideal model for this moment that aims to meet food challenges with innovation and sustainability in mind. The future of all development interventions will likely look like this programme: data-driven and country-owned. The initiative prioritises the most vulnerable countries and builds collaborations that result in better development indicators, as well as skills and technology transfers.
 
The pandemic has exposed some serious fault lines in the world, especially for the most vulnerable. But, much like the Marshall Plan that helped rebuild Europe after World War II, we now have an opportunity to remodel our systems – including food and agriculture – to better meet the needs of a rapidly changing world.
 
Could the pandemic actually lead to the transformations required to finally rid us of the hunger and malnutrition scourges? These are interesting times indeed.