Cities and local policies, key to eradicate hunger and eliminate food waste

FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva speaking at the opening ceremony today.

20 October 2017, Valencia – Cities can and should play a crucial role in the “radical change” needed to address the problem of hunger, malnutrition and food waste, FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva said today to mayors and representatives of more than 150 cities from around the world gathered in this Spanish city.

This is the third meeting of mayors of cities of the Pact, after the inaugural one held in Milan in 2015 and the one that took place at the FAO headquarters in Rome in 2016. Mayors Joan Ribó of Valencia and Giuseppe Sala of Milan also participated at the opening ceremony. 

FAO’s Director-General noted that after steadily declining for over a decade, global hunger has recently risen again, affecting 815 million people – or 11 percent of the world’s population. 

At the same time, he pointed out, multiple forms of malnutrition – overweight, obesity or micronutrient deficiencies – threaten the health of millions of people around the world. 

“Fortunately cities are taking action and rising up to the challenge,” he said. “High levels of creativity can be achieved if partnerships are forged with local actors, civil society, private sector and academic and producer organizations.”

He used his own experience with the Zero Hunger Program in Brazil, which lifted 40 million people from poverty and hunger. “A key component of success was the participation of cities, some as large as Belo Horizonte or Campinas,” he said. “Their mayors launched popular restaurants that served balanced and nutritious food at low prices and the cities privileged the purchase of locally produced food, contributing to strengthening the local economy,” he explained.

FAO’s support for the Pact implementation 

Signatories to the Pact agree to adhere to key principles such as guaranteeing healthy food for all, promoting sustainable food systems, educating the public about healthy eating, and reducing waste. 

The Director-General said FAO supports this initiative by helping to develop indicators to measure progress, with a methodological guide “developed in close collaboration with cities around the world to ensure that it is a useful tool,” and acting as a neutral forum for the exchange of successful experiences. 

Graziano da Silva called for stronger collaboration, emphasizing that “these initiatives are carried out together with the cities’ networks to take advantage of our respective strengths and create synergies.” He highlighted FAO’s efforts to promote dialogue between parliamentarians and the promotion of mutual learning programs among farmers.

Graziano da Silva said FAO supports local governments in their food systems assessments, in the development of urban food strategies and plans, and in the definition of their investment priorities to strengthen linkages with rural areas.

Aligning efforts with the UN’s New Urban Agenda

The FAO chief stressed the importance of fostering collaboration among cities around the world to achieve more sustainable urbanization and to promote economic, political, social and cultural linkages between urban and rural areas.

“We cannot accept the dichotomy between rural and urban areas, which no longer exists,” he said.

“We have to adopt a territorial approach based on the integration of the rural with the urban. Only prosperous cities and dynamic rural areas can drive change towards the sustainable food systems we need to fight poverty and hunger,” he added.

“The New Agenda makes a concrete call for better urban and territorial planning with a view to ending hunger and malnutrition,” said Graziano da Silva, adding that it also urges for greater coordination between food and energy policies, and those regarding water, health, transport and waste.