DA Sr. USec. Panganiban meets with the Committee on World Food Security Chair Ambassador Gabriel Ferrero

In a meeting on the margins of the 51^st Session of the Committee on World Food Security (CFS) held at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) headquarters in Rome on 23-27 October 2023, Gabriel Ferrero y de Loma-Osorio, Spain’s Ambassador at Large for Global Food Security and the current Chairperson of the CFS expressed his sincerest gratitude to Department of Agriculture (DA) Senior Undersecretary Panganiban for gracing his invitation to meet with him and for accepting the invitation to be a speaker in the panel discussion on monitoring CFS policy recommendations on social protection for food security and nutrition. The CFS Chair also expressed his appreciation for the Philippines’ unwavering support and contribution to the work of the CFS.

Senior Undersecretary Panganiban thanked the CFS Chair for the invitation and expressed appreciation for the CFS Chair’s able leadership, dedication, and hard work over the past two years for the CFS to deliver its mandate in helping address food security and nutrition in the world. Joining the Senior Undersecretary in this meeting were DA Chief of Staff and Assistant Secretary Rex Estoperez and Agriculture Attaché and Deputy Permanent Representative to Rome-based UN Agencies on food and agriculture, Dr. Josyline C. Javelosa.

The CFS Chair recalled the leadership of former Philippine Agriculture Attaché and Agriculture Representative to the FAO, Mr. Noel de Luna, who became the first elected CFS Chair after the CFS Reform Process. Created in 1974, initially a technical committee of the FAO of the United Nations, the CFS was totally reformed in 2009 in order to open up to a wide range of stakeholders, including civil society, the private sector, and other organizations and integrate high-level scientific expertise through the high-level panel of experts which provides scientific support for policy recommendations.

The CFS Chair also recalled the Philippines’ leadership in proposing in 2011 that the year 2014 be formally declared the International Year of Family Farming, which was approved by the 66^th Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations. Ambassador Ferrero also commended the current Philippine Agriculture