Scientists have key role in driving transformation of agrifood systems and achieving shared prosperity
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Figure: FAO Director-General QU Dongyu speaks at a leadership dialogue on shared prosperity. ©FAO/Giulio Napolitano.
FAO News 25/07/2023
Rome – Agrifood systems hold the key to sustainable and inclusive economic prosperity, and harnessing science and technology is the most impactful way to unlock their potential, QU Dongyu, Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) said today.
Qu emphasized his messages at two afternoon events on the second day of the UN Food Systems Summit +2 Stocktaking Moment, which has drawn more than 20 heads of State and Government and hundreds of delegations from around the world to FAO’s headquarters.
While emphasizing that agrifood system transformation is a country-led process, the Director-General said that FAO and partners can galvanize consensus and efficiency through sharing experiences and knowledge, noting that his “whole life” has been driven by promoting science and making sure farmers are enabled to learn and benefit from it.
“We can learn from each other and challenge each other, and then we can have more and better consensus to give to politicians,” Qu said at a leadership dialogue on “Science, Technology and Innovation”.
The Hand-in-Hand Initiative, a flagship project since Qu took FAO’s helm in 2019, is strongly geared to offering the “best of science and data” to participating Members through a portfolio of geospatial and analytical technologies.
Also participating in the panel were Anna Maria Bernini, Italy’s Minister for University and Research, Mariam Almheiri, Minister for Climate Change and Environment of the United Arab Emirates, and Jennifer Lester Moffitt, Undersecretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs at the United States Department of Agriculture. Their remarks focused on the importance of communicating science to a broader public and to farmers directly, the emerging role of “food tech” as a magnet to engage youth in the sector, and the role of extension services such as climate hubs to make sure information reaches the local level.
Today’s challenges go well beyond agriculture as a provider of food and involve topics ranging from natural resources, climate change and socioeconomic equity, Qu noted. “There is not a simple solution,” he said, urging scientist to “jump out of your own silos” to “think together, learn together and contribute together.”
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