Stronger action, financing needed to tackle hunger, poverty

Mar 06, 2026 News

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…Mustapha tells FAO regional conference

(Kaieteur News) – Minister of Agriculture Zulfikar Mustapha has urged greater commitment, coordinated regional action and increased financing to tackle hunger and poverty across Latin America and the Caribbean.

Speaking virtually at the opening of the 39th session of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) Regional Conference for Latin America and the Caribbean (LARC 39), Mustapha, the outgoing chair of the previous conference, presented a summary of key outcomes and recommendations from LARC 38.

Addressing the 39th session he noted that the conference conducted a frank assessment of the regional outlook for food security and nutrition. The outgoing chair said while the 38th session noted a recent decrease in the prevalence of undernourishment at the regional level, members expressed deep concern over the sharp increase in hunger within the Caribbean subregion.

“They also acknowledged improvements in South America alongside persistent challenges in Mesoamerica and the Caribbean, highlighted that our region faces the highest cost for a healthy diet globally, and recognised the acute vulnerabilities of Small Island Developing States to climate change, disasters, and external shocks,” he explained. Minister Mustapha further stated that in response to the complex panorama, the conference strongly supported international and regional efforts to accelerate progress towards eradicating hunger and poverty, including the initiative for a Global Alliance against Hunger and Poverty.

“Members unanimously underscored the need for sustained political commitment and coordinated action at all levels to achieve Sustainable Development Goals One and Two,” he said. He noted that a central conclusion is that financing to transform the agricultural food system remain fragmented and insufficient. “The conference emphasised the critical importance of mobilising innovative and scaled-up financing to eliminate hunger, guarantee the right to adequate food, and support the vital work of subnational governments in building efficient, inclusive, and resilient local food systems,” the minister added. To this end, Mustapha noted that he hopes at the LARC 39 some of the outcomes can be achieved and the process can move forward. The minister noted that spotlighted FAO’s role in generating robust data and evidence to guard public policies and investment was acknowledged as indispensable.

Further, he noted that LARC 38 also examined the imperative of reducing food loss and waste and recommended that FAO intensified its support to members in implementing the food loss and waste model laws, through enhanced policy dialogue, knowledge exchange and targeted technical assistance. He said that it was agreed that the urgent strengthening of resilience was needed, given the rapidly increasing risks facing the region. This, he added, requires transforming agrifood systems through science, innovation, robust early warning systems, and deeper regional cooperation.

Mustapha stressed that if targets are set and recommendations are made conference after conference without any progress, it undermines the objectives. He further stated that members endorsed the four regional priorities as the key mechanism for implementing the FAO Strategic Framework 2022-31.

The minister highlighted that it was recommended that FAO provide integrated normative, technical, policy, and investment planning support to members through a cohesive programmatic approach, to ensure greater impact and leaving no one behind. Support was also expressed for FAO’s ongoing efforts to modernise its Country Office Network through transparent and inclusive consultations.

“The fundamental role of agrifood systems was reaffirmed not only in ensuring food security but also in driving economic progress, promoting healthy diets, generating employment, and managing natural resources sustainably, thereby accelerating progress across the entire 2030 Agenda,” Mustapha added.

These, he explained, are recommendations from discussions that took place at the 38th meeting in Guyana. He also expressed hope that in the 39th session, the achievements of the targeted objectives can be reviewed. “In the coming days, let us examine the outcomes to determine how many targets were met. These are objectives that demand our immediate attention, because if we do not achieve them, we will have failed the people in the region,” he explained.

The FAO Regional Conference is the highest forum where its member states meet to agree on priority challenges and actions related to food and agriculture, and is essential to ensuring the effectiveness of FAO’s work in the service of its members in the upcoming biennium. The 39th FAO Regional Conference is taking place in Brasília, Brazil, from March 2 to 6, 2026.

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• agriculture, FAO, hunger, poverty, Zulfikar Mustapha

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