“The Role of Cooperatives in Food Security”

Ms. Tutwiler
Distinguished Colleagues
Ladies and Gentlemen:

It is a pleasure to welcome you to the opening of the exhibition “The Role of Cooperatives in Food Security” on the occasion of World Food Day. I would like to especially thank Ms. Tutwiler and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization for the organization of this special event.

Every year, since 1979, we have used the commemoration of World Food Day to heighten public awareness of the world food problem and strengthen solidarity in the struggle against hunger, malnutrition and poverty. These are issues in which the United Nations has historically been very engaged. The UN continues to be engaged through the efforts of a number of UN agencies, programmes and funds, led by FAO, as well as important partners in government, academia and civil society.

As Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said when he launched the Zero Hunger Challenge at the Rio+20 Conference, “Sustainable development is simply not possible in a world where nearly 1 billion people are hungry every day. Ending hunger is not only vital for our peace and security, it is essential for our collective future.”

Studies show that agricultural growth is particularly effective in reducing hunger and malnutrition. Most of the extreme poor depend on agriculture and related activities for a significant part of their livelihoods. Agricultural growth involving smallholders, especially women, is most effective in reducing extreme poverty and hunger when it increases returns to labour and generates employment for the poor. For this reason, it is important that World Food Day focus on the role of cooperatives.

According to the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), cooperatives range from small-scale to multi-million dollar businesses across the globe. They operate in all sectors of the economy. They count over 800 million members and provide 100 million jobs worldwide - 20 per cent more than multinational enterprises.

Cooperatives have an important impact on food security and agricultural opportunities, and result in direct improvement in livelihoods. When they are part of a larger group, smallholder farmers can negotiate better terms in contract farming and lower prices for agricultural inputs like seeds, fertilizer and equipment. In addition, cooperatives offer prospects that smallholder farmers would not be able to achieve individually such as helping them to secure land rights and better market opportunities.

It is through supporting initiatives such as these that we move closer to our goal of defeating global hunger, and closer to realizing a future where all people enjoy their fundamental right to food. Most importantly, we move closer to a sustainable world, where both people’s livelihoods and food systems are resilient.

Thank you very much.