Food security is about peace, stability, and human dignity, the Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), QU Dongyu, told G20 Foreign Ministers gathered in Johannesburg to discuss the global geopolitical situation.
According to the latest UN figures, 733 million people worldwide face chronic hunger, 2.3 billion are food insecure, and 2.8 billion lack access to healthy diets.
Conflict remains one of the greatest threats to food security, from the Sahel and Haiti to Ukraine and Gaza. At the same time, the continued neglect of agrifood systems in regions vulnerable to instability accelerates economic collapse and adds to conflict.
In Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, and Sudan, for example, the degradation of agrifood systems – intensified by policy failures – has increased tensions between farmers and pastoralists competing for limited resources.
Beyond conflict and policy failures, the intensity and frequency of extreme climate events add to the challenges. Rising temperatures and extreme weather disrupt food production, increase risks for farmers, affect disease patterns, and accelerate migration, all of which undermine efforts to end hunger by 2030.
“These challenges threaten our ability to ensure stable agrifood systems and risk deepening global inequalities,” Qu told the meeting.
The Director-General said addressing such inequalities is critical since many weaknesses in our agrifood systems arise from unequal access to innovation, technology, natural resources, and healthy diets.
In this context of risks and uncertainties, international trade plays a critical role in global food security by ensuring food moves efficiently from surplus to deficit regions.
This is why the Agricultural Market Information System (AMIS) – a G20 initiative hosted by FAO since 2011 – plays a key role in enhancing market transparency and policy coordination, Qu said.
Agrifood systems sustain natural resources, livelihoods, and economic development, employing over 1.2 billion people and supporting over 3.8 billion globally.
Crucially, “food security is not just about policy – it is about peace, stability, and human dignity,” Qu said. That is why “we must act now to ensure political commitment and the necessary investment for nutritious and healthy foods for all.”
FAO’s support for the G20
On Friday, FAO’s Director-General addressed the second day of the G20 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting focusing on the G20 objectives for 2025.
Qu started by commending South Africa’s G20 Presidency for prioritizing solidarity, equality, and sustainability, issues which he said are key to achieving the UN’s 2030 Agenda, especially SDG2 (Zero Hunger) and SDG1 (No Poverty).
The Director-General highlighted that gap increases among the poor and the rich, rural and urban areas, and women and men, have exacerbated the pressing situation of hunger and poverty “intensifying the impact of conflict, climate extremes, and economic crises.”
Qu noted that addressing the wealth gap and inequality requires more than economic development – it demands a deep transformation of global agrifood systems and rural prosperity, as outlined by the FAO’s Strategic Framework 2022-31.
The Director-General also reaffirmed FAO’s commitment to the Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty, which was launched under the Brazilian G20 Presidency and provides a coordinated mechanism to combat hunger and inequality. Qu reaffirmed FAO’s commitment to providing all the technical assistance needed to all members of the Global Alliance.
The Director-General also reaffirmed FAO’s support to the G20, noting that efficient, effective, and coherent collaboration was key to achieving food availability, accessibility and affordability “for a peaceful and prosperous future for all.”
