The federal government is committed to implementing the food system transformation pathway to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.
The permanent secretary of the Budget and National Planning, Anako Nebeolisa, stated this at the end of a two-day retreat of zonal permanent secretaries, directors and management staff of the ministry held in Uzanu, Etsako East LGA of Edo on Sunday.
Nebeolisa said the implementation trajectory of the pathways is one reason for the retreat as a prelude to the global review scheduled to take place in July.
“The main objective of the retreat is to provide a platform for a coordinated approach in the implementation of food systems transformation pathways,” the official explained. “It will also provide a platform to brainstorm on how the country will have a successful outing at the upcoming Stock Taking Moment (STM) between July 24 and July 26 in Rome.”
Mr Nebeolisa added, “The journey of the food systems transformation pathways in Nigeria started in September 2021 in response to the call by the secretary general of the United Nations at the UN Food System Summit for countries. The summit urges countries to leverage the power of food systems to drive recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic and get back on track to achieving all 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) by 2030.”
Mr Nebeolisa said the recommendations drawn from various dialogues were further synthesised into 78 priority actions for sustainable food systems in Nigeria to be implemented in the short, medium and long term.
The permanent secretary said the ministry had constituted a multi-sectoral and multi-stakeholder Implementation task team that includes all relevant stakeholders and development partners to serve as a think-tank for effectively implementing the 78 priority recommendations.
The 78 recommendations, the permanent secretary said, will change the narratives and serve as a game changer to our food systems from the farm to folk and finally to waste.
The task team, he added, produced the 2023 action plan with 10 implementable activities within the pathways.