News archive 2015

Singapore and FAO will work together to improve food and nutrition security in Southeast Asia, with a special focus on food safety and fisheries, according to a new agreement signed today – the first since the city-state joined the Organization in 2013.

Poverty lies at the root of hunger, and active state policies directed at eradicating inequality are the most effective way to eradicate malnutrition, Argentina President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner said in a speech to FAO’s biannual Conference.

An international awards ceremony today recognized the great effort made by countries around the world which has led to the near achievement of the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) target to halve the proportion of hungry people by a 2015 deadline, or bringing it below the 5 percent threshold.

China and FAO today signed a $50 million agreement to support developing countries in building sustainable food systems and inclusive agricultural value chains, recognizing the growing importance of collaboration between Southern countries in the fight against extreme hunger and poverty.

Incumbent FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva was today re-elected to a second term in the Organization's top post with the highest number of votes ever in the history of the Organization.

FAO's 39th Conference opened today, with representatives from 194 countries including more than 130 ministers gathered to discuss the Organization's future workplan, set a new two-year budget, and elect the next FAO Director-General.

FAO and the African Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP) deepened their ties with a new Memorandum of Understanding aimed at bolstering national capacities to cope with climate change, bolster food security and the production of food for export.

“We need to change the way we produce food,” FAO Director-General Jose Graziano da Silva said today in a World Environment Day speech advocating “creating positive connections” between food, agriculture and the environment.” He called for a “new and holistic way of thinking and acting.”

The FAO Food Price Index averaged 166.8 points in May, down 1.4 percent from April and as much as 20.7 percent from a year earlier. FAO also upgraded its May 2015 forecast for global production of wheat, coarse grains and rice.

“The entire world is called to join in a global movement to end hunger and malnutrition once and for all,” FAO Director-General Jose Graziano da Silva said at the International Agricultural Forum at EXPO Milan, attended by more than 50 agriculture ministers.