MEDIA ADVISORY

High level Food Security and Nutrition Conference

INVITATION TO THE REPRESENTATIVES OF THE MEDIA

WHO:  This event is organized by the African Union Commission (AUC), Department of Agriculture Rural Development, Sustainable Environment and Blue Economy (DARBE), International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the African Development Bank (AfDB)

KEY SPEAKERS

1. H.E. Amb. Josefa Sacko, Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy, and Sustainable Environment (DARBE) African Union Commission.
2. Dr. Beth Dunford, Vice President, Agriculture, Human and Social Development, African Development Bank (AfDB).
3. Dr. Abebe Haile-Gabriel, Assistant Director-General, Regional Representative for Africa, FAO/RAF. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
4. Mr. Francesco Rocca, President of the International Federation of Red Cross, and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC).

WHY: The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World Report and the sixth Annual Global Report on Food Crises argue that the global levels of hunger continue to rise. By 2021, over 193 Million people were acutely food insecure and in need of urgent assistance, with the prevalence of food insecurity being higher among women than men globally and in every region. The 2022 projections are expected to further deteriorate as compounding challenges, including the prolonged complex conflict cycles on the continent, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the impact of climate change are likely to increase the threat of food insecurity.

The outbreak of the pandemic disrupted agri-food systems and the supply chains, impacting the world economies, causing inflation in agricultural commodities and basic food-stuffs. Further, global insecurity is predicted to exacerbate the already looming crises of food insecurity as supply chains are disrupted and the global cost of food, fuel and fertilizer rises. In combination, these drivers of food insecurity have widened the hunger and malnutrition gap across the continent, exposing the fragility of global and local food systems.

The high-level Food Security and Nutrition Conference is organised to advocate for scaling-up efforts to meet the humanitarian imperative across the continent while also investing in addressing the longer term needs as outlined in the global and regional commitments. The conference draws from and builds on the extensive work being done at a policy, practice and programmatic level by AU, through the Commission, the Regional Economic Communities (RECs) as well as Member States and development partners It also leverages the work of the AU Champion on Food Security & Nutrition, H.M. the King of Lesotho & Patron of the Lesotho Red Cross. To mobilize requisite institutional and political commitment to get to scale required for the current and long-term food security needs through increased investments in solutions at all levels.

Purpose and Objectives

• Serve as a policy advocacy platform to fast tract the implementation of global and regional commitments, including the implementation of the strategic frameworks such as the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP)
• To present the response plans put in place by various institutions to mitigate the impact of the food crisis and appraise the desirability of other additional measures
• Build on the Africa Common Position on Food Systems to raise awareness, generate consensus on a shared vision, and galvanise crucial individual and collective actions, such as policy alignment and increased investments, to construct and sustain resilient, sustainable, and inclusive food system ahead of the COP 27.
• Preceding the high-level food security conference, a continental wide CSO meeting will be convened, outcome of which will feed into the outcomes of the High-level conference.

Participants: Participants at the high level conference will include Ministers of Agriculture, permanent representatives to the African Union, Development partners, United Nations Agencies, The African Union Commission, Regional Economic Communities (RECs); Regional CSO Umbrella Organizations; Academic

For further information, please contact:

1. Prof. Afeikhena Theo Jerome, Special Advisor to the Commissioner , Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment, African Union Commission – Email: jeromea@africa-union.org 

For media inquiries, please contact:

1. Ms. Peace Lydia Mutuwa, Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment, African Union Commission; Email mutuwap@africa-union.org
2. Mr Molalet Tsedeke, Information and Communications Directorate; AU Commission Tel: 0911-630631; Email: molalett@africa-union.org 

Information and Communication Directorate, African Union Commission I E-mail: DIC@africa-union.org
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