FAO at the Arab Regional Forum on Sustainable Development 2025

	SDG 3 - Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages
	SDG 5 - Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
	SDG 8  - Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all
	SDG 14 - Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development
	SDG 17 - Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development.

FAO participation in the Arab Forum for Sustainable Development 2025

14 April 

AFSD knowledge fair

The FAO Regional Office for the Near East and North Africa showcased its impactful work across the region at the AFSD Knowledge Fair. The exhibit featured engaging videos highlighting FAO’s initiatives, interactive stories powered by FAO data, and publications that spotlight good practices in areas such as gender equality, sustainable fisheries, and more. Visitors also tested their knowledge with a fun and informative quiz on FAO’s role in achieving the SDGs.

15:30-17:15

SDG 8 Review

Agrifood systems represent a key source of employment for youth. Investing in youth in agrifood systems is crucial for unlocking the potential of youth and vital for achieving SDG8. Work-based learning, mentorship programs, peer support, and market access initiatives empower youth, while cooperatives and networks expand their resources and agency. Transforming rural youth livelihoods requires inclusive policies, cross-sectoral collaboration, and multistakeholder partnerships to address decent employment barriers, foster youth engagement in agrifood systems, and support youth-led enterprises. Joint interventions and policy alignment across various sectors, with social protection measures playing a critical role in providing a safety net and long-term support for vulnerable youth.

Read full FAO's statement here.

15 April

13:30-15:00 (bEIRUT TIME) / 12:30-14:00 (iTALIAN time)

Special session: Re-imagining the future of women in food systems: harnessing science, technology, and partnership to advance the SDGs

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Gender inequality remains a significant barrier to transforming food systems in the Arab region. Women are disproportionately affected by food insecurity and malnutrition, especially in times of crisis, yet they are often excluded from decision-making processes. Despite their central role in food production and household nutrition, they face limited access to essential resources such as land, credit, agricultural inputs, and capacity-building opportunities, further deepening these challenges.

This special session explored these issues and presented inclusive, science- and technology-driven solutions in action in the region which are empowering women in agrifood systems.

15:30-17:15

SDG 5 Review

Women play vital roles in agrifood systems, participating in agriculture, off-farm employment, natural resource management, and unpaid domestic and care work. Their contributions are essential to food security, nutrition, biodiversity, and rural development. Despite this, women face a disproportionate burden of unpaid labour—performing 4.7 times more unpaid care work than men in the NENA region, the highest ratio globally (UN Women, 2020). They also remain significantly disadvantaged in secure land access, undermining their income, wellbeing, and food security. Women in NENA own less than 7 percent of agricultural land (Popal and Langley, 2021). Conflict and protracted crises further deepen food insecurity, disproportionately impacting women and girls. In 2023, one in four women and girls experienced moderate or severe food insecurity—rising to one in two in conflict-affected areas.

Read full FAO's statement here.

16 April

09:00 - 11:00

SDG 3 Review

FAO supports a global, integrated One Health approach to prevent, contain, and address the growing losses in production and adverse health impacts caused by the spread of biological threats to animals, plants, and aquaculture, including zoonotic infections and antimicrobial resistance (AMR). This approach enhances productivity and reduces risks from biological threats across the food chain. FAO is strengthening national and international integrated One Health systems for human, animal, and plant health by improving pest and disease prevention, early warning, and the management of both national and global health risks, including AMR.

Read full FAO's statement here.

09:00 - 11:00

SDG 14 Review

Around 600 million people rely, directly or indirectly, on aquatic food systems for their livelihoods and 4.3 billion people rely on aquatic foods for at least 20 % of their animal protein. They provide essential micronutrients, proteins, and omega-3 fatty acids vital for healthy diets, they improve birth outcomes, enhance cognitive development in children, and reduce risks of cardiovascular and neurological diseases. In the face of growing challenges such as hunger, malnutrition, climate change and environmental degradation, aquatic foods stand out as a transformative long-term solution to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and ensuring a healthy, well-fed population.  The ocean is a source of great biodiversity with almost 3,500 species and farmed types used in aquatic food systems.  Sustainably managed ocean resources enhance climate resilience and are essential for securing a sustainable future. 

11: 15- 12:45

Roundtable on Voluntary National Reviews

FAO VNR Support Toolkit

FAO’s support for VNRs focus on several key areas that collectively contribute to a more impactful review process. FAO encourages and promotes evidence-based and science-driven reviews, ensuring that the data and findings derived from these processes inform policy-making. This evidence-based approach is vital to driving integrated assessments and actions that lead to meaningful and measurable change.  To assist both countries and FAO country offices, the FAO has developed a suite of tools including an eLearning course series and a Guide, designed to support the preparation process for these reviews.