The event was officially opened by FAO Director-General, Qu Dongyu, and Ecuadorean President, Guillermo Laso, who were accompanied by other country authorities and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
“We are at a critical moment for the world. We are facing it with a clear roadmap: transforming agri-food systems to make them more efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable,” said Xu Dongyu, FAO Director-General, at the ceremony.
For his part, the Ecuadorean president said: “This conference is a critical forum for discussing challenges and priorities related to food and agriculture, and for joint coordination to protect food resources.”
As President of the entity’s 37th Regional Conference, the Minister of Agriculture and Livestock of Ecuador, Pedro Olava, emphasized that the food crisis requires planning new strategies with the participation of the entire production chain.
The meeting began on Monday, March 28, with senior officials sessions spanning two days, on food security and sovereignty, agri-food, the impact of climate change, poverty reduction, national production, access to agricultural inputs and more.
They also evaluated the multi-year program of work of the Regional Conference for Latin America and the Caribbean for the period 2022-25.
The remaining three days will focus on the hubs: better production, better nutrition, better environment, and a better life without leaving anyone behind.
Delegates will also set priorities for the adaptation and localization of the FAO Strategic Framework 2022-2031 in the region, where, according to official data from FAO, at least 60 million people suffer from hunger.
Inclusion, flexibility, efficiency and sustainability are some of the recurring terms at the meeting, which is being hosted by Ecuador for the second time 73 years after hosting the first meeting, which was held in September 1949.
The conference, held every two years, brings together on this occasion representatives of the 33 member states, including Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras , Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru.
The list was supplemented by the Dominican Republic, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saint Lucia, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay and Venezuela.
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