Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture

Food and nutrition security

World Food Day: international agencies call for urgent action against food insecurity

Tiempo de lectura: 3 mins.

Through a commemorative event in Brazil, IICA, FAO, IFAD and WFP will call attention to the need to cooperate to transform agrifood systems.

El lema de la conmemoración será: “No dejar a nadie atrás – mejor producción, mejor nutrición, mejor medio ambiente y una vida mejor”.

Brasilia, 14 October 2022 (IICA). The Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), FAO, IFAD and WFP will hold an event in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on October 16 to commemorate World Food Day 2022. More than 40 authorities from the food and agriculture sector will be in attendance.

Regarding the commemoration, the Director General of IICA, Manuel Otero, highlighted the key importance of Latin America and the Caribbean as a guarantor of the planet’s food and nutritional security and a pillar for environmental sustainability and biodiversity.

“Considering this regional position, the confluence of crises requires that we channel efforts towards assisting vulnerable populations as well as facilitating intra-regional and international trade in an urgent and sustainable manner. We must promote a true partnership that can bolster agricultural trade in Latin America and the Caribbean. This involves joining efforts among countries and strengthening the bodies responsible for coordinating sectoral policies, driving collective action for the benefit of everyone”, said Otero.

“At the same time, we must undertake significant coordinated efforts in the fields of science, technology and innovation, developing the requisite framework of public policies and investments. We must also set ambitious goals: specifically, to ensure that our agrifood systems utilize natural resources as efficiently as possible, generate decent jobs with social inclusion, provide healthy diets and are environmentally sustainable”, he added.

In closing, Otero noted that “the war in Eastern Europe has further reaffirmed the fact that food security is at the top of the planet’s concerns and that the American continent is strengthening its leading and relevant role as a guarantor of healthy and abundant food at the global level”.

Around the world, approximately 3 billion people lack access to healthy food and 828 million people suffer from hunger; these issues have been further aggravated by the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Eastern Europe.

At the event in Rio de Janeiro, FAO, WFP, IFAD and IICA will bring together organizations from various sectors to highlight the urgent and collective need to guarantee access to healthy food for all people.

The motto of the commemoration will be: “Leave no one behind—better production, better nutrition, better environment and a better life”.

On the night of Sunday, October 16, famous landmarks in Rio de Janeiro, such as the Christ the Redeemer statue, the Carioca Aqueduct, the monument to Estácio de Sá, and the Moorish Castle of the Fiocruz Foundation will be illuminated in blue, the color that identifies the World Food Day 2022 campaign.

In attendance at the ceremony to light up the Christ the Redeemer statue will be:
● Rafael Zavala of FAO in Brazil;
● Daniel Balaban, WFP Representative in Brazil;
● Gabriel Delgado, IICA Representative in Brazil; and
● Julio Worman, IFAD Program Analyst in Brazil.

Broadcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KlcaPF_4zSU

More information:
Institutional Communication Division.
comunicacion.institucional@iica.int

Share

Related news​

Ribeirao Preto, Brasil

June 27, 2025

At the IFAMA World Conference, IICA Director General underscored the need to build a new narrative for agriculture to be recognized as essential for solutions to planetary challenges

The Director General of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), Manuel Otero, participated in Brazil in one of the largest global conferences in the agricultural sector, IFAMA, where he emphasized the need to build a new narrative highlighting the essential role of agriculture in the Americas as part of the solution to the challenges facing humanity.

Tiempo de lectura: 3mins

Montreal, Canadá

June 26, 2025

Countries of the Americas positioned themselves as global suppliers of sustainable aviation fuels at key industry event held in Montreal

The Pan American Coalition on Liquid Biofuels (CPBIO) had a prominent role at the Aviation Climate Week of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), held in Montreal (Canada), with the participation of leading actors in the sector who discussed the latest developments in environmental matters.

Tiempo de lectura: 3mins

Brasilia, Brazil

June 25, 2025

IICA strengthens its partnership with EMBRAPA and is set to install its Home of Sustainable Agriculture of the Americas pavilion in the “AgriZone” at COP30

During the meeting, the senior EMBRAPA and IICA officials also exchanged ideas on how to deepen reciprocal collaboration at the international level, with a focus on cooperation with countries in Central America, Mexico, and the Caribbean.

Tiempo de lectura: 3mins