Agriculture Minister to lead Guyana at FAO’s Caribbean and Latin America Conference

Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha will lead Guyana at the Latin America and the Caribbean Conference of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO).

The conference which is scheduled for October 19 – 21, 2020 will, for the first time be held virtually.

According to the FAO’s Guyana office, the regional Conference is the most important decision-making body for FAO’s 33 Member States in Latin America and the Caribbean.

“During the meetings, the delegation headed by the Minister of Agriculture for each country, deliberates on and guides FAO’s work for the next two years,” the FAO office in Georgetown stated.

The FAO said COVID-19 and the ongoing impact of Climate Change provide an urgent context for the priority areas that are on the agenda for deliberation.

With up to 22 million persons expected to be in a condition of hunger by 2030, the FAO said tackling the various dimensions of food insecurity is critical to ensuring that it can support the countries of the region in achieving sustainable development.

The key discussion areas are also of importance to Guyana, as it pursues its sustainable development agenda and continues to evolve its position in the Region.

Among the key areas of discussion will be transforming food systems for healthy diets for all in the Region to tackle the region’s problem with overweight and obesity.

Other topics will include innovation and digital agriculture and sustainable and climate resilient agriculture in a context of climate change and accelerated deterioration of natural resources.