SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt -The Director-General of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) on Sunday called for urgent action to tackle Africa’s food security problems.
Qu Dongyu, director-general of the FAO, made the remarks during a food security session in Egypt.
The FAO boss said there is a very real possibility that the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 2 can achieve zero hunger by 2030.
Dongyu said, “We only have 10 years to run.”
“Africa is our future … with the population and the natural resources, you have much more potentials compared to Asia,” said one UN official at the session.
Dongyu also said that the increase of hunger in Africa and the Near East is a significant setback, noting that “it is a serious challenge.”
out of the estimated 2 billion people suffering from food insecurity globally, about 676 million are from Africa, according to the State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2019 report released in July by UN agencies.
The food security session is one of the breakout groups for the 3rd edition of Egypt’s annual World Youth Forum, which began on Saturday in the Red Sea resort city of Sharm El Sheikh.
Organizers say the event seeks to tackle a number of topics such as industrial revolution, food security, environmental challenges, etc. as a way of bringing to light critical concerns facing Africa.
