FAO Director-General QU Dongyu has welcomed a €17 million contribution from Germany to provide assistance to those directly affected by the Desert Locust upsurge in East Africa.
"Artificial Intelligence needs to be transparent, inclusive, socially beneficial and accountable," Qu said, adding: "We need to ensure the human-centric approach in designing and implementing artificial intelligence today and in the future.
“We will need to step up the alliance among key partners from all relevant sectors at the global level,” FAO Director-General QU Dongyu said today while opening the first meeting of the Steering Committee of the Global Action for Fall Armyworm Control.
FAO Director-General QU Dongyu today welcomed an €11 million contribution from the European Union as the UN agency steps up efforts to fight the Desert Locust upsurge which has now spread from East Africa to the Persian Gulf.
The locust upsurge affecting East Africa is a graphic and shocking reminder of this region's vulnerability. This is a scourge of biblical proportions. Yet as ancient as this scourge is, its scale today is unprecedented in modern times.
Everything we eat is produced in ways that imply some transformation of the environment, FAO Director-General QU Dongyu said at the beginning of the second meeting of the Open-ended Working Group established by the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).
FAO Director-General QU Dongyu today welcomed a $10 million donation from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to support the fight against the Desert Locust upsurge in East Africa as the UN agency expanded its appeal.
Some 6.5 million people in South Sudan – more than half of the population - could be in acute food insecurity at the height of this hunger season (May-July), three United Nations agencies warned today.

As part of its series of briefs on food systems, the Global Panel’s new brief, Rethinking trade policies to support sustainable food systems and healthy diets, shows that there are clear benefits to aligning trade policies with the goal of providing healthy and sustainable diets for all. The brief aims to help policymakers address the key issues to take into consideration when choosing trade policies. It shows why policymakers who are committed to improving diets and nutrition should pay more attention to the value of trade instruments as part of their portfolio of actions.

The primary focus is on cross-border flows of food and agricultural commodities, exploring the effects that trade can have on the supply and affordability of nutrient-rich foods. It also considers how trends in global trade affect diets, greenhouse gas emissions and the natural environment upon which food systems depend.

The brief provides a series of policy actions and opportunities for leveraging trade to improve diets with the following top-line messages:

  • Close attention should be paid to trade policies that influence the relative price of foods within domestic markets.
  • High priority should be given to trade policies that specifically help to increase the availability and to reduce the price of nutrient-rich foods.
  • Policymakers should be alert to the effects of trade policies on the availability and pricing of imports of ultra-processed foods.
  • Policymakers should pay close attention to trade agreements which embody strong investor protections, as they can be problematic.
  • Food trade can be especially beneficial in managing price volatility and climate change risks.

As part of its series of briefs on food systems, the Global Panel’s new brief, Rethinking trade policies to support sustainable food systems and healthy diets, shows that there are clear benefits to aligning trade policies with the goal of providing healthy and sustainable diets for all. The brief aims to help policymakers address the key issues to take into consideration when choosing trade policies. It shows why policymakers who are committed to improving diets and nutrition should pay more attention to the value of trade instruments as part of their portfolio of actions.

The primary focus is on cross-border flows of food and agricultural commodities, exploring the effects that trade can have on the supply and affordability of nutrient-rich foods. It also considers how trends in global trade affect diets, greenhouse gas emissions and the natural environment upon which food systems depend.

The brief provides a series of policy actions and opportunities for leveraging trade to improve diets with the following top-line messages:

  • Close attention should be paid to trade policies that influence the relative price of foods within domestic markets.
  • High priority should be given to trade policies that specifically help to increase the availability and to reduce the price of nutrient-rich foods.
  • Policymakers should be alert to the effects of trade policies on the availability and pricing of imports of ultra-processed foods.
  • Policymakers should pay close attention to trade agreements which embody strong investor protections, as they can be problematic.
  • Food trade can be especially beneficial in managing price volatility and climate change risks.