CELAC to validate Food and Nutrition Security plan at meeting in Chile

Ministers of Agriculture within the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, CELAC will convene in Chile on January 16, 2024 to validate the updated CELAC Food and Nutrition Security and Hunger Eradication 2030 Plan. This will see them meeting the end of January deadline for submission to the Pro Tempore President of CELAC and Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG), Ralph Gonsalves, a release from CELAC states.

SVG holds the seat as CELAC Pro Tempore President, and in May, 2023 CELAC Ministers of Agriculture met in Guyana to move ahead to update the plan through preliminary regional dialogue with the exchange of ideas and cooperation among member states. As a means of supporting this round of meeting, a technical session among high-level and technical government authorities, policy makers, experts from international agencies and civil society was held in Chile on November 9 – 10, 2023 to facilitate a framework of support in propelling the plan for implementation. The process, which has been ongoing and intensive; has seen the exemplification of ‘true camaraderie’ among CELAC member states and affiliate organisations such as the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), Latin American Integration Association (ALADI), the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), The CARICOM Private Sector Organization (CPSO) and the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture, (IICA).

Deputy Director General and Regional Representative of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), Mario Lubetkin has provided unwavering support to the work of St. Vincent and the Grenadines over the past months which included in-country technical support and the establishment of the CELAC Food and Nutrition Security Centre.

This country’s Minister of Agriculture, Saboto Caesar, commended all Ministers of Agriculture, their technical staff and civil society, FAO and IICA for their exemplary contributions over the past year in assisting in remodelling the plan to address current challenges. The Minister assured that the strategic implementation of this plan will deliver significant benefits to the people of Latin America and the Caribbean.

The upcoming meeting this month is expected to facilitate the presentation of the final updated “CELAC Plan for Food Security, Nutrition and Hunger Eradication 2030,” to explore ways in which member states can collaborate to attain greater food security and sustainability; to foster regional cooperation while leveraging collective expertise in dealing with substantive affairs; to discuss new technologies and innovations in Agriculture, and their potential for increasing productivity and reducing environmental impacts. Also, the recognition of the role of Agriculture in achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and other development agendas will be underscored.

Covid-19 and the Russian-Ukraine War which impacted the demand and supply of goods and services created spiralling food prices which severely affected Latin America and the Caribbean. It is therefore important to forge alliances that promote deepened cooperation and regional integration through multi-lateral, multi-level and multi-stakeholder processes in addressing poverty, inequality, and sustainability.

The meeting’s modality will be hybrid. In-person and online delegates will share and deliberate on these and other pertinent issues surrounding the CELAC Food and Nutrition Security Plan and Hunger Eradication 2030.