On the sidelines of the Rome MED – Mediterranean Dialogues Conference, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Antonio Tajani chaired the second edition of the Mediterranean Ministerial Dialogue on the food crisis which was first launched by Italy in 2022 to find operational solutions to the food crisis in the Mediterranean region in the wake of the conflict in Ukraine.
The meeting, co-chaired by Lebanon and Turkey, was held at the attendance of Ministers and High Representatives of 15 Mediterranean Countries and of 8 International Organizations, including the Director General of FAO and the President of IFAD. The meeting was also attended by top executives of major Italian associations in the agrifood sector: Filiera Italia, Federalimentare, Coldiretti, Confagricoltura, Copagri and CIA.
While promoting and upholding the Mediterranean Diet as the common heritage of the area and the tangible and sustainable answer to the challenge of global food security, Minister Tajani presented new initiatives co-developed with national and international partners to support the Mediterranean Countries’ agricultural systems and make them more sustainable, also through the use of Assisted Evolution Technologies (AET). The representatives of Italy’s food supply chain said they were ready to contribute to these initiatives with their experience, capabilities, and technologies. The initiatives presented included a financial package promoted by Italy to support the most hard-struck Countries, forming an alliance for research and innovation in the agrifood sector, and expediting an operational cooperation between Mediterranean cities on local food policies.
The proposals were well received by Dialogue participants who committed to spend the next few months developing concrete operational initiatives to be promoted and coordinated by Italy in conjunction with spearheading industrial supply chains in partnerships that might enable the agricultural sector to benefit from the important spillover effects from technology.