CubaPLUS Magazine

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has called upon countries in Latin America and the Caribbean to define agricultural and food priorities. 

A statement from the organization, distributed on Wednesday in Havana, indicates that this matter will be addressed at the Regional Conference that will outline the roadmap for 2026-2027, aiming to enhance production, nutrition, environmental sustainability, and overall quality of life in the region.

Headquartered in Santiago, Chile, the FAO will kick off the 39th Regional Conference for Latin America and the Caribbean (LARC39) in Brasília, Brazil, from March 2 to 6. 

The statement notes that the central objective of the event will be to establish the work priorities for the FAO over the next two years in the mentioned region.

LARC39 will commence on March 2 with a Senior Officials Meeting (SOM), a technical forum that will bring together delegations from Member States to examine strategic challenges and define key guidelines for the region.

Key discussion topics at the SOM will include an analysis of food price inflation and its effects on food security and nutrition. Participants will review the factors driving price increases, their impact on access to healthy diets, and the policies adopted by countries to mitigate these effects and progress towards achieving Sustainable Development Goal 2: Zero Hunger.

The agenda will also address the One Health approach, emphasizing the need to strengthen governance, surveillance, and biosecurity in response to threats affecting the health of animals, plants, and humans simultaneously.

Following the SOM meeting, a ministerial gathering will take place from March 4 to 6, inaugurated by senior officials from the Federative Republic of Brazil and FAO Director-General QU Dongyu.

The outcomes of these discussions will help define regional guidelines and priorities that will guide the collaborative work of the FAO and its Member States over the next biennium. 

(Taken from Prensa Latina)