Sultanate supports sustainable development

The Sultanate of Oman affirms its continued commitment to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and will take active measures in supporting the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and continue to raise awareness and the level of public debate on the transformation of our food systems

Dr Saud al Habsi

Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Water Resources

Staff Reporter

Muscat, Sept 25

The Sultanate participated in the first-ever UN Food Systems Summit in an effort to spur national and regional action to deliver the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through transforming food systems.

Dr Saud bin Hamoud al Habsi, Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Water Resources, represented Oman at the summit. “The Sultanate of Oman affirms its continued commitment to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and will take active measures in supporting the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and continue to raise awareness and the level of public debate on the transformation of our food systems,” the minister said.

The Covid-19 pandemic demonstrated fragility of global food supply chains and the necessity to enhance food and water security to avoid disruptions.

The Sultanate has emphasised the importance of working together to transform the way the world produces, consumes and thinks about food by developing a technical roadmap which outlined its approach to food systems transformation and contained an action plan for sustainable food systems until the year 2030.

Furthermore, the Sultanate stated its commitment to bold new actions, solutions and strategies to deliver progress on all 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), each of which relies on healthier, more sustainable and more equitable food systems.

Dr Nora Ourabah Haddad, FAO Representative of Oman, said, “The UN Food Systems Summit served as a historic opportunity to highlight the importance of food systems in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals 2030 and build a resilient world where no one is hungry, no one is poor, and no one is left behind. Through this summit, we reaffirm our commitment in working with our partners to enhance our food systems and free the world from hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition.”

For food systems to be sustainable, the involvement of all stakeholders is needed and critical. There is a need to develop a common understanding of a food system framework as a foundation for collective action and joint solutions for enriching and sustaining our food system for us all!

Too many of the world’s food systems are fragile, unexamined and vulnerable, as millions of people around the globe have experienced first-hand during the Covid-19 crisis. When our food systems fail, the resulting disorder threatens our education, health and economy, as well as human rights, peace and security. As in so many cases, those who are already poor or marginalised are the most vulnerable.

The good news is that we know what we need to do to get back on track. Scientists agree that transforming our food systems is among the most powerful ways to change course and make progress towards all 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

Rebuilding the food systems of the world will also enable us to answer the UN Secretary-General’s call to “build back better” from Covid-19. We are all part of the food system, and so we all must come together to bring about the transformation that the world needs.

As part of the United Nations’ “decade of action” to meet the SDGs and tackle the interconnected crises of poverty, inequality and climate change, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres convened a World Food Systems Summit, under the auspices of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). The summit delivered progress on all 17 of the SDGs through a food systems approach, leveraging the interconnectedness of food systems to global challenges such as hunger, climate change, poverty and inequality.

Guided by five Action Tracks, the Summit brought together key players from the worlds of science, business, policy, healthcare and academia, as well as farmers, indigenous people, youth organisations, consumer groups, environmental activists, and other key stakeholders. Before, during and after the Summit, these actors came together to bring about tangible, positive changes to the world’s food systems.

A pre-summit event took place at the end of July hosted by the FAO headquarters to pave the way to the Summit deliberations. This event examined the progress achieved through the wide-ranging process of diverse public engagement, consultations and data gathering that began in 2020, setting the stage for an ambitious and productive Summit that was held from the 23rd to 25th of September. FAO has collaborated with MAFWR in the development of the national dialogues and provided full support to the preparatory process of the UN Food Systems Summit. As the UN Anchor Organization for Action Track 1 on “Ensuring access to safe and nutritious food” and with focal points for the other Action Tracks of the Summit, as well as representation on the Scientific Committee, FAO supports the engagement of external entities and UN agencies, ensuring that the Summit working groups benefited from existing knowledge and experience.