The Representation of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations in the Islamic Republic of Iran observed the World Food Day 2016 at a commemorative ceremony at Vahdat (Roudaki) Hall in Tehran on Sunday.
The event was conducted in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Agriculture Jihad and the Iranian Food Industries Association, focusing on FAO’s global message for World Food Day 2016: “Climate is changing; Food and agriculture must too.”
Referring to the message of the United Nations Secretary-General for the World Food Day, FAO Representative to Iran Serge Nakouzi underscored the need to adopt an integrated and innovative approach to ensure food security for all amidst a rapidly growing global population and severe adverse environmental impacts arising from climate change.
“The world’s poorest - many of whom are farmers, fishers and pastoralists - are being hit hardest by higher temperatures and an increasing frequency in weather-related disasters,” he said, IRNA reported.
Each year, the FAO celebrates World Food Day on October 16 to commemorate its founding in 1945. Today it is observed around the world by more than 150 countries, raising awareness to issues that cause hunger and poverty.
Every year in order to highlight areas for focus and improvement, World Food Day adopts a different theme. The global goal for defeating hunger is 2030; it is a goal that cannot be reached without addressing the issue of climate change.
The FAO envoy elaborated that currently the climate change, manifested in higher temperatures, changing rainfall patterns and increased incidence of extreme weather events such as droughts and floods, has endangered agricultural production in the Near East and North Africa (NENA) region, with effects being particularly noteworthy in Iran.
“Agriculture must therefore transform itself if it is to feed a growing global population and provide the basis for economic growth and poverty reduction,” he stressed.
Working Together to End Hunger
World Food Day is also an important opportunity to send a strong message to the public: that everyone needs to work together to achieve the goal of ending world hunger which has been enshrined in the Second Sustainable Development Goals endorsed last year by the global community to end hunger in the world by 2030.
In a message released this week for the occasion and addressed to the Director General of FAO, Pope Francis said everyone has a responsibility to protect the planet for future generations.
Pope Francis’ words have put an emphasis on understanding the impacts of everyone’s actions and how they can effect everyone’s lives years into the future. He also established a link between people’s collective responsibilities about climate change and highlighted that the ones who are most affected are the poorest and most vulnerable people.
