Transcript Relating FAO Projects and Programmes to the Millennium

Sustainable Livelihoods for
Food Security and Good Nutrition:
the Role of Food and Agriculture
Alexander Müller
Assistant Director-General,
Natural Resources Management and
Environment Department
Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN
FAO
Achieving food security for all is at
the heart of FAO's work
FAO's mandate is to raise levels of
nutrition, improve agricultural
productivity, better the lives of
rural populations and contribute to
the growth of the world economy.
FAO in Action
Putting information within reach
Sharing policy expertise
Providing a meeting place for
nations
Bringing knowledge to the field
“Hunger and
malnutrition are
unacceptable in a
world that has both
the knowledge and
resources to end
this human
catastrophe”
International Conference on Nutrition, 1992
Promises
Reduce the number of people hungry
by half by 2015 - WFS
Reduce the proportion of people hungry
by half by 2015 - MDG1
Progress
Number of Undernourished
People in the Developing World
Child Hunger and Undernutrition
Every year six million children die from
malnutrition before they reach five years of age
In developing countries one out of every three
children has stunted growth and nearly the
same percent have low weight for their age
The prevalence of stunting and underweight is
highest in South Asia, where 44 percent of
children are stunted and 46 percent are
underweight
(Unicef, State of the World’s children, 2005)
The Way Forward
The Essential First Step to
Sustainable Progress?
Recognising that poor child growth
and development are social and
economic problems, not just
medical and health problems
Reducing Child Hunger and
Undernutrition
This is the goal, but child-centred
interventions alone will not reach it
The reality is that children do not exist
in isolation
The key to reducing child hunger,
therefore, is reducing family hunger
Child growth and
development
depend on
adequate
food
health
care
Challenges: global and local
Inequity – social and economic
Further population growth
Extensive rural poverty - accelerated
urbanisation – increasing urban poverty
Aging of populations
Health – HIV/AIDS, other diseases
Bio-security risks
Changing patterns of consumption and supply
Threats to environment
Emergencies
Basic Goal:
Create conditions in which households
secure the nutritional well-being of all
members
Food must be available
Live in healthy environments
Access to health and social services
Income
Knowledge
Time and opportunity for providing care
Motivation
Links to Agriculture
SOFI 2006
Strengthening efforts to
eradicate hunger
Hunger reduction is necessary for
accelerating development and reducing
poverty
Agriculture growth and rural development
are critical for reducing hunger
A twin-track approach of pro-poor
development coupled with direct action
against hunger and malnutrition is required
Agricultural growth and hunger
“… the only group of countries to
reduce hunger during the 1990s was
the group in which the agriculture
sector grew.”
Agricultural growth and hunger
“Looking back at the figures for the last
30 years, it can be shown that those
countries that have invested and
continue to invest most in agriculture –
both public and private – now
experience the lowest levels of
undernourishment.”
Foreign Aid for Agriculture
Over the past 20 years, it has fallen
dramatically – from over US$9
billion per year in the early 1980s to
less than US$5 billion in the late
1990s.
Only investment in agriculture –
together with support
for education and health – will
turn this situation
around.
Towards an effective policy agenda for
reducing family and child hunger
Focus on the poor and on creating
sustainable livelihoods
Enhance productivity of smallholder
agriculture
Stimulate private-sector investment
Protect the environment
Make trade work for the poor
Invest in agriculture
Investing in
Nutrition
Improve Livelihoods and
Access to Food
Production
Incomes
on-farm
off-farm
Essential
needs
Improve food supplies in
poor areas
Quantity
Quality
Variety
Availability
Improve Care and Feeding
Practices
Knowledge
Time and
Opportunity
Attitude and
Motivation
Improve Health Conditions
Improve the Status and Capabilities
of Women
How can we work together
to end malnutrition?
Develop and apply a common goal and
vision
Support integrated approaches at local level
Create conditions in which poor can
participate in and benefit from development
Design and monitor impact of pro-poor
macro and sector policies
Utilize macro-micro linkages
Reviewing the food chain with a
nutrition lens
Adequacy of supply in local markets
Income opportunities
Processing for better nutrition
Marketing/supply
Food safety
Promote Rights-based Approaches
Voluntary Guidelines to Support the
Progressive Realization of the
Right to Adequate Food in the
Context of National Food Security
FAO and the SCN
Eager to cooperate through Task
Forces:
Communication, Advocacy and
Partnerships
Assessment, monitoring and
evaluation
Integrated approaches at country
level
Contribution to Communication,
Advocacy and Partnerships Task force
International Alliance Against Hunger
Communication for development
Knowledge management
Contribution to Assessment,
Monitoring, Evaluation Task Force
Reliable and timely food security and
nutrition information is essential for
effectively addressing hunger and
malnutrition
Strengthening food security and
vulnerability analysis under FIVIMS
Contribution to Integrated Approaches
at Country Level Task Force
Closer cooperation among UN Agencies is
imperative – “Delivering as One”
Government ownership is essential
Respond to needs and demand, build on
existing efforts
Move away from project and donor/supplydriven approaches
Primary FAO contribution: Support for National
Programmes for Food Security (NPFS)
National Programmes for
Food Security (NPFS)
Primary vehicle for FAO support to
Member Countries
Working together: the only solution
Common objectives
Common targets
Complementary Approaches and
Actions
FAO’s Country-level Mission
Support to National Programmes for Food
Security
Provide policy advice and technical
support (training, technical assistance,
knowledge management) to actors at
country level
Foster FAO/IFAD/WFP collaboration
through country theme groups
Seek opportunities to cooperate with other
Ending Child Hunger and
Undernutrition Initiative (ECHUI)
A welcome, timely initiative
FAO commits itself to play an active role
“Hunger and
malnutrition are
unacceptable in a
world that has both
the knowledge and
resources to end
this human
catastrophe”
International Conference on Nutrition, 1992
Together,
we can make
a difference