Asia - Africa - America to promote a framework for South - South cooperation

Ministers of Agriculture and Food of Vietnam, Cambodia, Ethiopia, Ghana, Malawi, Rwanda and St. Vincent and the Grenadines have participated in the Ministerial level inter-regional discussion to promote sustainable investment, innovation, digital transformation, and opportunities for gender mainstreaming in the food system through the South - South cooperation.

The event was co-organized by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam, Grow Asia and the Food Action Alliance (FAA) on the sidelines of the fourth Global Conference of the One Planet netowrk's Sustainable Food Systems Programme.

Minister Le Minh Hoan highlighted the World Economic Forum's effort to establish the Food Innovation Hub (FIH) for South East Asia in Vietnam. The project was implemented within the framework of the Partnership for Sustainable Agriculture in Vietnam (PSAV) - a highly successful Public Private Partnership initiative between the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and 130 partners from various fields in the agricultural sector.

Within the framework of FIH and PSAV, many innovative programs, initiatives and projects regarding food system have been successfully implemented and potentially replicated such as the coffee chain linkage model; application of drone technology in the use and management of pesticides; low emission rice production model; cold storage technology for agricultural products in association with raw material areas in service of export.

The South - South cooperation helps to promote effective development through learning and sharing of experiences, practices and technologies among developing countries. The international community agrees that South - South cooperation plays an important role in the global partnership for development as well as the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.

The South - South cooperation provides specific solutions to common global development challenges. Moreover, countries can share the most optimal practices, finance pilot projects, provide funding to further expand successful projects, deliver public sector goods, develop and adopt appropriate technologies.

Vietnam's diplomatic relations with developing nations, particularly those in Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean have been rapidly developed and expanded on a bilateral and multilateral basis. Vietnam has close cooperation relations with many African countries in various agricultural fields such as food security, agricultural cooperation, poverty reduction and environmental protection, etc.

Vietnam actively engages in experience sharing and technology transfer in cooperative relations with countries in the region. Vietnam also promoted bilateral cooperation activities with countries such as Angola, Mozambique, Egypt, Libya in the fields of rice export, rubber tree, coffee, cashew, vegetables, aquaculture, and so on.

Minister Le Minh Hoan expressed his belief that the presence of representatives from various countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America will provide an opportunity for participants to share experiences and develop technical assistance projects with the goal of building a green planet and a world free of poverty.

Promoting inter-regional cooperation

The high-level discussion was designed and coordinated by the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) and the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA). The event witnessed the participation of over 40 key stakeholders from the Southern Hemisphere.

The discussion highlighted the need for African, Asian and American countries to to promote food system transformation through a solid South-South Cooperation framework. “In order to develop towards a inclusive, resilient, and sustainable food system, we need to foster inter-regional cooperation as well as mobilize resources to aid in implementation, measurement, research and innovation. AGRA is committed to fostering cooperation to help the food system deal with current and future crises”, said Dr. Agnes Kalibata, AGRA President and special envoy for the 2021 Food Systems Summit.

Many detailed topics were discussed during the ministerial level discussion including successful strategies in promoting agricultural digital transformation in Vietnam; regional leadership and multi-national intervention in ASEAN to promote sustainable private investment.

The meeting also hightlighted the necessary processes in advancing the national development framework through the integration of the food system and business strategies in Africa. These interventions can help improve the incomes and livelihoods of small businesses and rural communities, ensuring food and nutrition security in the face of climate change.

“South - South cooperation is an important opportunity to promote sustainable, inclusive and resilient food systems in developing countries. By working together and sharing optimal practices across the three continents, we can replicate solutions to common challenges and encourage small-scale rural businesses to be proactive in mitigating the impact of climate change. We hope that the current cooperation with FAA, AGRA, IICA will spread shared vision and values ​​in food system transformation”, said Ms. Beverley Postma, Executive Director of Grow Asia.

The organizers agreed on the important role of joint leadership in accelerating the food system transformation on the way to shaping the global food system agenda. The United Nations Food Systems Stocktaking Moment in July 2023, the Food Summit in Africa in September 2023, COP28 in November 2023, as well as regional and global milestones are upcoming events that further this cause.

“Countries around the world have dedicated greatly to improving food systems to achieve the goals of people, planet, prosperity. As observed at the United Nations Food Systems Summit, developed countries in Africa, Asia and the Americas continue to take a leading role in implementing food system transformation. They have made progress by learning from and supporting each other through South - South Cooperation”, said Mr. Adam Gerstenmier, Executive Director of the Food Action Alliance.

"The global crisis is escalating in addition to increasing impact from climate change, the prolonged socio-economic consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic and the rise in energy, food and fertilizer costs due to the Eastern European conflict. This is the spirit of South-South Cooperation, where we strongly believe that with the aim of building bridges, we can unleash our full potential together across every fields. This is why we prioritize this inter-regional discussion,” said Dr. Manuel Otero, Director General of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture.