Min Mustapha urges stronger regional coordination, increased investment to eradicate hunger, poverty

Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha believes that while member states unanimously underscored the need for sustained political commitment and coordinated action to achieve Sustainable Development Goals One and Two, financing for transforming the region’s agrifood systems remains fragmented and insufficient.
The Guyanese Minister was at the time addressing delegates from Latin America and the Caribbean at the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Regional Conference for Latin America and the Caribbean (LARC) being held in Brasília, Brazil.

Mustapha, who joined the conference virtually, stated that, over the past two years, the conference conducted an assessment of the regional outlook for food security and nutrition.
“While noting a recent decrease in the prevalence of undernourishment at the regional level, Members expressed deep concern over the sharp increase in hunger within the Caribbean subregion. They also acknowledged improvements in South America alongside persistent challenges in Mesoamerica and the Caribbean and highlighted that our region faces the highest cost for a healthy diet globally and recognised the acute vulnerabilities of small island developing states to climate change, disasters, and external shocks,” he explained.
He further related that in response to the complex panorama, the conference strongly supported international and regional efforts to accelerate progress towards eradicating hunger and poverty, including the initiative for a global alliance against hunger and poverty.
“Members unanimously underscored the need for sustained political commitment and coordinated action at all levels to achieve Sustainable Development Goals One and Two. The conference emphasised the critical importance of mobilising innovative and scaled-up financing to eliminate hunger, guarantee the right to adequate food, and support the vital work of subnational Governments in building efficient, inclusive, and resilient local food systems. I hope that at this conference, we can achieve some of these outcomes and move the process forward,” the Minister noted.
The Minister added that it was agreed that the urgent strengthening of resilience was needed, given the rapidly increasing risks facing the region. This, he added, requires transforming agrifood systems through science, innovation, robust early warning systems, and deeper regional cooperation.
Mustapha, who is also the outgoing chair of the FAO Regional Conference for Latin America and the Caribbean, said that the member states had endorsed the four regional priorities as the key mechanism for implementing the FAO Strategic Framework 2022-31.
“They recommended that FAO provide integrated normative, technical, policy, and investment planning support to Members through a cohesive programmatic approach, ensuring greater impact and leaving no one behind. Support was also expressed for FAO’s ongoing efforts to modernise its Country Office Network through transparent and inclusive consultations. The fundamental role of agrifood systems was reaffirmed – not only in ensuring food security but also in driving economic progress, promoting healthy diets, generating employment, and managing natural resources sustainably, thereby accelerating progress across the entire 2030 Agenda.”
These, he explained, are recommendations from discussions that took place at the 38th meeting in Guyana. He also expressed hope that in the upcoming session, the achievements of the targeted objectives can be reviewed.
“Over the last two years, it has been an objective of the region to achieve these goals. In the coming days, let us examine the outcomes to determine how many targets were met. These are objectives that demand our immediate attention, because if we do not achieve them, we will have failed the people in the region.”
The FAO Regional Conference is the highest forum where its member states in the region meet to agree on priority challenges and actions related to food and agriculture and is essential to ensuring the effectiveness of FAO’s work in the service of its members in the upcoming biennium.
The 39th FAO Regional Conference is taking place in Brasília, Brazil, and will conclude on March 6, 2026.