Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Official Statement to the seventh session of the Global Platform on Disaster Risk Reduction (GP2022)

Excellences,  

Ladies and Gentlemen, 

1. The impacts of disasters and crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine and the climate crisis, and the resulting economic slowdowns and downturns, continue to take a heavy toll on agriculture, food security and rural development. 
2. Agriculture absorbed 26% of the overall impact of medium- and large-scale natural hazard induced disasters in least developed countries and the lower-middle-income countries between 2008 and 2018.
3. With crop and livestock production loss amounting to a total of 6.9 trillion kilocalories per year – equivalent to annual calorie intake of 7 million adults.  
4. The past 4 editions of The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World confirms that hunger continues to rise, and we are not on track to end hunger, food insecurity and all forms of malnutrition by 2030. 
5. Up to 811 million people faced chronic hunger in 2020, 
6.  And the 2022 Global Report on Food Crises reveals that around 193 million people in 53 countries or territories experienced acute hunger in 2021 - an increase of nearly 40 million people compared with 2020.
7. The ongoing war in Ukraine continues to impact consumers across the world, particularly the poorest, due to the resulting increases in the price of food, energy and fertilizers, 
8. Putting the next global harvests and food security at risk. 
9. These overlapping disasters and crises call for urgent multi-sectoral, multi-hazard, preventative and anticipatory approaches, 
10. That integrate disaster, climate and crisis risk management to strengthen the resilience of people, their agricultural livelihoods and the ecosystems they depend on in a sustainable manner, 
11.  And contribute to resilient and sustainable development pathways and agrifood systems.
12. Disaster risk reduction and management is a corporate priority for FAO. 
13. Due to agriculture’s vulnerabilities to disaster and climate risks, and its direct dependence on climate and weather, FAO is ensuring coherence and convergence of Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation actions across agrifood systems.  
14. FAO is supporting its Members to step up disaster and climate risk management actions in line with the four priorities of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. 
15. FAO is addressing the systemic nature of risk by applying inclusive, multi-sectoral and multi-disciplinary risk governance,
16. In support of the four Sendai priorities FAO is: 

• ONE: supporting countries on risk and vulnerability assessment and resilience analysis; 

  • FAO has developed the disaster Damage and Loss (D&L) assessment methodology for the agrifood sector to monitor progress. 

• TWO: supported over 40 members to enhance national risk governance systems by ensuring the linkages and alignments between sectoral, and national and local DRR strategies, and coherence between the Sendai Framework, the Paris Agreement and the 2030 Agenda; 

• THREE: supporting the implementation, adoption and uptake of disaster risk reduction, climate change adaptation and good practices at farm and landscape levels, while increasing agricultural production and improving natural resources and ecosystem services; and 

• And FOUR: FAO continues to play a leading role in global, regional, national and local level food security related early warning systems and analyses to strengthen countries’ preparedness and anticipatory action capacities.  

Dear Colleagues, 

17. To bring us back on track to end hunger by 2030, we must scale up our actions to support Members to transform agrifood systems to make them more efficient, more inclusive, more resilient and more sustainable. 
18. These ambitions and commitments are at the core of the FAO Strategic Framework 2022-31, in which DRR is embedded.  
19. FAO is committed to continue working with Members and partners for better production, better nutrition, a better environment and a better life for all, leaving no one behind. 

Thank you.