Open letter calls for international action on agriculture, food and nutrition security

Aerial view of a Sunrise over Waimakariri River, South Island, New Zealand.

Koi Tū Director Sir Peter Gluckman and former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark are two of a number of international signatories supporting an open letter calling for action on agriculture and food security in the midst of COVID-19.

The Open letter to the UN, G-20, and National Governments on COVID-19 and Agriculture for Food and Nutrition Security calls for concerted action so the health crisis triggered by the coronavirus pandemic does not morph into a food security crisis that will exacerbate hunger and poverty, cause social disruption and erode the ability of governments to tackle the pandemic and its aftermath.

The letter says food systems are under stress and a set of internationally coordinated, locally relevant actions are needed to address the medium- and longer-term impacts of COVID-19 on agriculture, food, and nutrition security.

“The current global health crisis has disrupted supply chains and laid bare the need to address the inter-related challenges of hunger, malnutrition, climate change, and environmental degradation and has emphasized the need for concerted, proactive and collective actions to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by the UN in 2015,” the letter says.

The letter represents a remarkable global consensus among public policy makers, scientists, researchers, and civil society leaders. To learn more, or to sign the letter, visit www.ag4food.com.

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