Q&A with Eriko Hibi, FAO Sub-Regional Coordinator for the Pacific and Representative to thirteen Pacific States, talks about emerging and longstanding efforts in the Pacific to ensure food security and nutrition (FSN).

27 August 2020, Apia- In the Pacific Islands agriculture is driving the change for multi-sectoral approach to food systems and make it more nutrition-sensitive. The Strategic Development Plan 2019 -2023 of the Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) for Fiji is a reference in the region.

The Pacific stands out as a zone where the overall approach to human rights laws and principles is markedly positive. Yet the right to adequate food navigates some challenges related to institutional framework, resources mobilization or gender equality. FAO is helping those countries to reinforce and strengthening policies in food security.

The Right to Food Guidelines recommend that States adopt a human-rights based strategy for the progressive realization of the right to adequate food as part of an overarching national development strategy. To which extend does this conceptual framework underpin the political agenda in the Pacific Islands?

Eriko Hibi: The overall approach to human rights laws and principles in the region is markedly positive, with increasing ratification of core human rights treaties and substantial efforts to align national legislations frameworks with international human rights standards by many Pacific Islands Countries (PICs). The Sustainable Development Agenda, which highlights the importance of leaving no one behind, has been adopted and formally endorsed by most of the countries, putting everybody’s rights at the core of the national development efforts.

The Right to Food is specifically acknowledged in the Samoa pathway and even some countries include it at the highest level of national agendas. As an example, the Fijian national Constitution explicitly guarantees the “right to every person to be free from hunger, to have adequate food of acceptable quality and to clean and safe water in adequate quantities”. However, putting the Human Rights agenda including the Right to Food in practice and addressing existing challenges requires additional capacities and knowledge, greater level of resources and strengthened institutions that need to be underpinned by strong political commitment at all levels.

"Putting the Human Rights agenda including the Right to Food in practice and addressing existing challenges requires additional capacities and knowledge, greater level of resources and strengthened institutions that need to be underpinned by strong political commitment at all levels".

Of special concern is the discrimination and violence which are suffered by so many women across the region, including limited property rights and their rights to customary land, which is a precious and scarce asset for the Pacific population with huge implications in terms of FSN and rural livelihoods.

Some of the figures we hear about the Pacific are daunting: imported foods constitute half of a person´ food intake and globally the ten countries with the highest obesity rate are Pacific Islands There is a consensus about the need to strengthen food systems in the Pacific Island and make it more nutrition-sensitive. Could you tell us how the legal, policy is and institutional environment of FSN in the region?

EH: First of all it is important to consider that countries differ widely in this regard. In some countries as Fiji, Vanuatu or the Solomon Islands there are ongoing FSN policies at different levels of development, and certain level of consensus has been built in terms of the multi-sectoral approach to FSN. Other countries in the region such as Nauru and Tuvalu are interested in following a similar path and have already required technical support from FAO to do so.

In terms of policy development, the first and foremost challenge is data availability. Updated food security and nutrition information is scarce in most of the countries, which makes it difficult to prepare evidence based related policies. This is related to national capacities, since technical support is needed first for data collection and analysis of FSN information and later for the preparation of policies with coherent planning frameworks, realistic monitoring systems and adequate budgets. Resource allocation is another challenge in these countries with many competing development priorities and the additional difficulty of reaching numerous small islands scattered in a vast geographic area.

In terms of institutional development and mechanisms for policy implementation, most of the countries address FSN from a sectoral perspective, with little to no inter-sectoral collaboration. This is related to practical difficulties in terms of lack of experience and procedures for cross-sectoral planning and implementation but also to clear and effective commitment to the FSN agenda from some partners.

Legal frameworks in place for management and mobilization of sufficient resources and actions to achieve better FSN results are also needed. Some of the existing legislations directly related to FNS, could be adjusted to new elements affecting FNS. Silos of stand-alone sectors, such as agriculture, health, education etc. are a major challenge. We need to reinforce political consensus across these sectors and bridge sector-specific regulatory agendas as an essential step.

However, we saw substantial positive changes in the Pacific FSN policy environment with some FAO contributions. FAO in collaboration with participating countries and The Pacific Communities (SPC), has developed ‘Pacific Island Food Security Profiles’ for some of the PICs such as Tuvalu, Samoa Tonga and Solomon Islands, as part of a Technical Cooperation Programme (TCP) project on strengthening the capacity of Pacific Island Countries to monitor Sustainable Development Goals Target 2.1. The profiles provide at a glance essential information for policy makers to target FSN related interventions.

With the FIRST programme, nutrition sensitive interventions are not only prioritized in the sectoral policies, but also through multi-sectoral initiatives. Nutrition interventions, which were health driven in the past, are becoming part of the agenda of other sectors. In fact, agriculture is leading this change engaging other key sectors as Fisheries, Education or Trade in its ambitious endeavour. This has been also acknowledged in the FAO supported Joint Action Framework for Food Security and Nutrition in the Pacific Islands, which is the mechanism for implement the Global Action Plan in SIDs and aims to accelerate progress towards the FSN goals of PICTs by strengthening the coherence and coordination of development partner support.

The Strategic Development Plan 2019 -2023 of the Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) for Fiji aims to provide economic opportunities, environmental sustainability and food and nutrition security for all Fijians. How relevant is this national policy for the fight against hunger in the region? Can we find similar examples in other countries?

EH: The Strategic Development Plan 2019 -2023 of the MOA of Fiji demonstrates the firm commitments that the agriculture sector in Fiji is making for FSN. It is one of the most determined approach to food security and includes nutrition as a clear priority within the planned actions. It is a good reference in the Pacific region on how the FSN agenda can be supported from the agriculture sector. Similar efforts had been made in Tonga, resulting in a strong multi-sectoral framework for nutrition under the National Strategy of Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) 2015-2020.  Samoa in its current Agriculture Sector Plan is one other example of a country taking a step towards a more holistic approach in addressing FNS issues, with the aim to strengthen coordination and strategic partnerships to ensure that synergies are maximized and overlap and duplication by the different multi-sectoral players.