LATAM’s disaster-proof plan
The United Nations and the Latin American and Caribbean countries have crafted a blueprint for making their agriculture, food and nutritional security sectors more disaster-proof and tackle hunger in a sustainable way.
Under the name of ‘Guidelines and Recommendations for the Implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction in the Agricultural and Food and Nutrition Security Sector: Latin America and the Caribbean,’ the document guides the transition envisioned by the 15-year framework. This is the most risk-focused international plan on tackling the impact of natural and human-induced hazards ever made and was adopted in March 2015.
“This transition cannot be achieved without the development of sectoral measures for disaster risk management involving technologies, productive practices and sustainable use of natural resources, as well as considerable changes in terms of governance, legislation, policies and public and private investment,” said Jorge Meza, chief forestry officer of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
The guidelines also aim to support the implementation of CELAC’s Plan for Food Security, Nutrition and Hunger Eradication 2015.
Today, more than 34 million people in the region still suffer from hunger. The majority of them are concentrated in the countryside. Also, millions of producers in the region’s poorest rural areas are at very high risk as disaster’s impact goes beyond the momentary loss of income or opportunities but directly endangers their food security and livelihoods, not to say the entire population’s nutritional security.
The guidelines will also help countries cope with the global population growth, which is expected to increase food demand by 60 by 2050.
“The important and complex challenge is to achieve more resilient systems that are both more productive and efficient, preserve the base of natural resources and ecosystem services, and establish the ability to withstand risks and shocks exacerbated by climate change,” added Meza.
According to the UN News Center, momentum on the issue has also been build thanks to 2016’s FAO Regional Conference for Latin America and the Caribbean, hosted by Mexico. The conference focused attention on the need to boost disaster reduction efforts. Also, in the coming months Mexico will host the 2017 Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction.
LatinAmerican Post | Maria Andrea Marquez
