Issue paper
Legislative developments and challenges in the time of COVID-19. The parliamentary sector as a key stakeholder in building a new normal
Evidence shows that the improvement in food and nutrition security is mostly due to policies, programs and frameworks that are anchored in legislation. Parliamentarians play a key role in promoting and approving laws and policies to eradicate hunger and malnutrition. Despite the various challenges to be faced, as those posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, parliamentarians reiterated their commitment to learning from each other’s, sharing their experiences, strengthening collaboration between countries and regions, thus stimulating the adoption of laws, policies and programs, but also, the allocation and supervision of public budgets. In addition, the parliamentary sector plays a fundamental role in the implementation of the United Nations Decade of Family Farming 2019-2028 (UNDFF). This publication is dedicated to the Virtual Parliamentary Dialogues that took place between March and November 2021, and is aimed at sharing the effective results of legislative initiatives that aimed at reducing and mitigating the negative impacts of COVID-19 on food security and nutrition (FSN).
This made clear the importance of parliamentary action, and how it is fundamental in the development of legal frameworks, in the exercise of political oversight, and in ensuring appropriate budget allocations able to pave the way for a faster and more lasting recovery. As time goes by, even in this time of crisis, ad hoc measures and capacities to better manage the impacts of the pandemic on food security and nutrition are emerging with greater force. It is encouraging to see the commitment and innovative thinking that parliamentarians have shown.