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President Nana Akufo-Addo assured the United Nations Food Systems Summit of Ghana’s commitment to adequately support the country’s agricultural sector to ensure food security.
Addressing the summit on Thursday, he said his government would also provide the leadership needed to develop appropriate policies to ensure zero hunger.
“I am committed to providing the leadership needed to strengthen the governance of food systems, including the integration of these commitments into our planning and budget cycle,” he said.
He also urged his government to “ensure political, legal and institutional coherence; multisectoral and interministerial coordination and sustainable financing of underfunded areas of the food system.
The president also pledged to increase women’s participation in the agricultural index by 20%. He further pledged to support the increase in fruit and vegetable production by increasing the proportion of irrigated land from 24% to 30%.
The President also pledged to promote seed security, breed security and land tenure security for Ghanaian farmers, especially women and youth in agriculture. He assured that there will be the generation of the correct data and research to track progress over time.
The Food Systems Summit was held Thursday and Friday in New York and was virtually tasked with launching bold new actions to help achieve progress on the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), each of which rests to some extent. on the goal of achieving zero hunger.
The meeting was deemed necessary as the world is currently not on track to achieve the Zero Hunger goal and the other SDGs by 2030, unless drastic measures are taken.
The President of the Alliance for the Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) and the UN Secretary-General’s Envoy for Food Summit 2021, Dr Agnes Kalibata, said: “Food systems have a incredible power to end hunger, build healthier lives and planet. This summit is a turning point for our food systems. But the hard work starts here.
“African leadership has taken the idea of a food system to a new level. Forty-eight out of 55 countries have held national dialogues aimed at realizing the 2030 agenda and redefining the future of the way we consume, produce and distribute food, ”explained Dr Kalibata.
“Across the region, countries are prioritizing 43 of the 52 solution groups with courses of action around major priorities; end hunger and feed people, tackle climate impact and unleash the power of markets and trade to meet the challenge of equity and equality.
“These 43 solutions also help courtiers to solve various problems in food systems and adapt to different communities, cultures and circumstances,” the AGRA president noted.
Josefa Sacko, African Union Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment, presented Africa’s common position to transform global food systems at the summit.
“Africa plans to double food production by sustainably increasing productivity through the adoption of high-yielding agricultural varieties while supporting research to develop biotechnology and innovation,” she said.
Rwandan President Paul Kagame also said at the summit: “Transformation of our food systems is therefore a necessity, including greater investments in digital technologies, biotechnologies, accessible financial services and other proven innovations”.
Other world leaders called for increased investment in scientific research, access to markets and improved seed systems as part of efforts to achieve the sustainable development goal of zero hunger.
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina called for research, investment and sharing of advanced technologies for agricultural development to ensure a resilient food system.
Agritech and food technology can help improve food production in harsh environments like semi-arid regions, Oded Forer, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development in Israel, told the summit.
“We must use the power of ingenuity to improve food systems, so that they provide safe, nutritious, affordable and accessible food for all while conserving natural resources and tackling the climate crisis,” said the US Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack at the summit.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the summit that climate change poses new challenges for agriculture, even as food production, processing, packaging and distribution account for a third of artificial gases which trap heat and are responsible for global warming.
“Food systems can and should play a leading role in addressing all of these challenges,” he said in a video speech.
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