• H.E. Ato Demeke Mekonnen, Former Deputy Prime Minister of Ethiopia FDRE, Founder and President of Yadam Foundation and Africa Nutrition Leaders Nutrition Champion
• H.E. Dr. Dereje Duguma State Minister, Ministry of Health H.E. Ferdinand von Weyhe, Deputy Ambassador, Embassy of Germany in Ethiopia
• Alliance2015: Austin Kennan, Chair of A2015 and Concern Worldwide Country Director
• H.E. Moses Vilakati, AU Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment (ARBE), AUC
• H.E. Ambassador Guillermo López Mac-Lellan, Ambassador of Spain to Ethiopia
• H.E. Ferdinand von Weyhe, Deputy Ambassador, Embassy of Germany in Ethiopia
• H.E. Ms. Rascha Osman, Deputy Head of Mission, Embassy of Switzerland in Ethiopia
• H.E. Mrs. Karin B. Stanghed, Deputy Head of Mission, EU Delegation to the African Union
• Head of EU Delegation to the AU
• Honorable Representatives of Government Institutions,
• Esteemed Development Partners 
• Distinguished Guests,
• Ladies and Gentlemen

Good morning and a very warm welcome to all of you,

It is a profound honor to be here today. We gather here not merely to launch a report, but to confront one of the most pressing moral and economic challenges of our era. The theme of the 2025 Global Hunger Index (GHI) Report, “20 Years of Tracking Progress: Time to Recommit to Zero Hunger,” is more than a title; it is a loud call. It demands that we look back at two decades of data to understand our journey, while looking forward with a renewed, uncompromising sense of urgency. Your commitment to evidence-based analysis has provided us with the mirrors we need to see our progress clearly and the maps we need to navigate the complexities of food insecurity in an ever-changing global landscape.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Over the last twenty years, the Global Hunger Index has emerged as a crucial measure of human dignity, reflecting the collective wellbeing of our world. While the world has made significant progresses since the turn of the millennium, the triple threats of climate change, global conflict, and economic volatility have created a challenges that threatens to undo our hard-won gains. In Africa, and specifically within the East African corridor, these challenges are felt with particular intensity. However, Ethiopia refuses to be defined by these challenges. Instead, we choose to be defined by our resilience and our transformation. We believe that hunger is not just an agricultural failure; it is a multi-dimensional challenge that requires a multi-sectoral solution, blending policy, science, and community action.

Ladies and gentile men,

The Government of Ethiopia recognizes that achieving Sustainable Development Goal 2; Zero Hunger is the fundamental bedrock upon which all other development rests. Without food security, there is no health and nutrition; without nutrition, there is no cognitive development for our children; and without a robust agri-food system, there is any sustainable economic productivity and political stability. To translate our vision into tangible results, the Ministry of Agriculture has transitioned from traditional farming models toward a comprehensive agri-food system. Our strategy is mainly built on revised agriculture and rural development policy; food safety and quality for primary agricultural produce, post-harvest management, and nutrition sensitive agri-food system.

Ladies and gentlemen,

In addition to these strategic frameworks, we are delivering tangible results through bold and home-grown initiatives that have captured the world’s attention. The Wheat Initiative is a prime example of our national resolve. In a remarkably short period, Ethiopia has transitioned from a wheat-importing nation to a path of self-sufficiency. "Zero Hunger" is not a dream, but an achievable target in which Ethiopia has demonstrated the expansion of lowland irrigated wheat, with political will and technological adoption.

By the same talken “Ye Lemat Tirufat” initiative focuses on productivity improvement at the household level; emphasizing dairy, poultry, eggs, and honey production. It aims to ensure that every Ethiopian family has access to a diversified, nutrient-dense food, effectively narrowing the gap in nutritional deficiency that has historically hindered our nation's human capital.

Ladies and gentile men

Furthermore, the Green Legacy Initiative, led by His Excellency Prime Minister, which recognizes that food security is impossible without environmental security. By planting billions of trees; including food-bearing fruit trees; we are restoring our watersheds, protecting our soil, and ensuring that our agricultural gains are sustainable in the face of a warming planet. These initiatives represent a holistic model of development where environmental health, nutritional outcomes, and economic growth are intimately linked.

Our commitment to the Seqota Declaration through promoting production and consumption of diversified nutrient dese agricultural products remains unwavering as we strive to end stunting in children under two years of age. Through this innovative, multi-sectoral approach, we are breaking the intergenerational cycle of hunger and ensuring that our future workforce is healthy and competitive

Ladies and Gentlemen

As we look toward the future years, we must acknowledge that improving food and nutrition security is not the responsibility of one institution alone. It requires collective ownership, deep-rooted partnership, and a commitment from every sector. As stakeholders representing diverse areas, from policy and research to production, processing, and marketing, your perspectives are essential to ensuring that food and nutrition issues become a common implementation area across the continent. We need private sector engagement to invest in value-addition and agro-processing, the research institutions to develop climate-resilient crop varieties and animal breeds and our development partners to align their funding and technical support with our continental pathways to ensure maximum impact and local ownership for food and nutrition security.

Ladies and gentile men

In conclusion, as we deliberate on the findings of the 2025 Report today, let us not get lost in the statistics. Behind every decimal point in the Hunger Index is a child who deserves a future, a mother who deserves peace of mind, and a farmer who deserves a fair return on their labor. I urge you to use this workshop to challenge existing models that have failed to yield results, to identify gaps in our current coordination mechanisms, and to commit to the data-sharing that allows for more responsive and interventions. Let this launch be the moment we move from tracking progress to accelerating transformation. We are ready to work, to innovate, and to invest. I thank you all for your continued engagement and look forward to a future where the Global Hunger Index tracks the history of hunger's elimination.

Thank you.