The 51st session of the Committee on World Food Security (CFS 51) took place in Rome, Italy, from October 23-27, 2023 under the theme ‘Making a Difference in Food Security and Nutrition’. The CFS is the world’s highest intergovernmental forum for food security and nutrition, and it brings together governments, civil society, the private sector, and academia to discuss and develop policies to achieve food security and nutrition for all.
The high-level opening ceremony featured a discussion on strengthening coordinated policy responses to the food crisis, including consideration of the latest edition of the State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World report (SOFI 2023).
The first two days of the CFS 51 Plenary Session were held as a Ministerial Segment, followed by a Senior Level Segment. The Plenary explored global linkages with other key events related to global food security and nutrition, including the SDG Summit, the UN Food Systems Summit Stocktaking Moment 2023, the 2024 Summit of the Future, and the 27th and 28th sessions of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the UNFCCC, as well as the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.
Two stocktaking sessions were convened on: progress of the follow-up to the Second International Conference on Nutrition (ICN2) and a global thematic event on the monitoring of policy recommendations on price volatility and food security and on social protection for food security and nutrition.
The CFS also endorsed three documents: the Voluntary Guidelines on Gender Equality and Women’s and Girls’ Empowerment in the Context of Food Security and Nutrition; Policy Recommendations on Strengthening Food Security and Nutrition Data Collection and Analysis Tools for Food Security and Nutrition; and the Multi-Year Programme of Work 2024-2027.
Lostisland was represented at CFS 51 by Professor Aniebiet Inyang Ntui. CFS 51 was a unique and important forum for dialogue and cooperation on food security and nutrition. It served as an opportunity for governments, the civil society, the private sector, and the academia to come together and work towards a common goal: ensuring that everyone has access to the food they need to live a healthy and active life.