Vice Minister Sereni held talks, by videoconference, with the FAO Director General, Qu Dongyu. The talks focused on the G20 joint Foreign Affairs and Development Ministerial Meeting scheduled in Matera, on 29 June, and on the organisation of the pre-Summit meeting for the 2021 UN Food Systems Summit, which will be held in Rome, from 26 to 28 July.
The Vice Minister emphasised that Italy is working with the other G20 partners on the issue of food security, focusing in particular on the “Food Coalition” initiative launched by Italy within the FAO, which has now become a central programme of the organization, aimed at responding to the effects of the pandemic on the world’s agri-food systems. “Italy’s challenge,” Vice Minister Sereni stressed, “is to encourage a global mobilisation of all countries, bringing together the public and private sectors and civil society for the great common goal of achieving ‘Zero Hunger’”.
Regarding the other topic addressed at the talks, the UN pre-Summit in Rome, Vice Minister Sereni reaffirmed the importance of this event in helping to transform food systems in a more inclusive and sustainable way. “It is essential for our future,” she concluded, “to be able to recognise and value diversity, as well as the different traditions and cultural paths that underpin food models and systems, which are a source of wealth for the whole mankind.”
