The CFS is the United Nations' forum for reviewing policies concerning world food. It is the most inclusive international and intergovernmental platform for all relevant stakeholders to work together to ensure food security and nutrition.
About the Committee on World Food Security
Voluntary Guidelines on Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests
Outline UCFA
Summary UCFA
Updated CFA (UCFA)
The UCFA is offered as a tool to inspire and inform Member States as they engage in discussions around matters related to food and nutrition security in different intergovernmental bodies.
56th Commission on the Status of Women (New York, 27 February-9 March 2012)
19th Human Rights Council (Geneva, 27 February - 23 March 2012)
2012 Spring Meetings, World Bank and International Monetary Fund (Washington, 20-22 April 2012)
UNCTAD XIII (Doha, 21-26 April 2012)
65th World Health Assembly (Geneva, 21-26 May 2012)
UNICEF Executive Board (New York, 5-8 June 2012)
101st Session of the International Labour Conference (Geneva, May 30 - June 15 2012)
WTO Geneva Week for Non-Resident Members and Observers (Geneva, July 9-13 2012)
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1 April 2012 – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today underscored the need to curb the volatility of global food prices through the strengthening of oversight and analysis of international commodities futures markets to discourage the speculation that leads to price fluctuations.
10 April 2012 – High-level officials tasked by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon with promoting good nutrition have today agreed to focus on ensuring that support to countries produces tangible results, and that resources for country-led actions are coordinated, aligned, transparent and accountable.
5 April 2012, Rome - World food prices in March remained virtually unchanged from their February levels, according to the latest FAO Food Price Index, published today. The Index averaged 216 points in March, compared to 215 in February.
Among the various commodity groups, only oils prices showed strength, whereas dairy prices fell.
2 April 2012 – Latin American and Caribbean countries reaffirmed their commitment to eradicate hunger during a United Nations conference on food and agriculture in Buenos Aires, Argentina, over the weekend.
28 March 2012 – The food and nutrition crisis facing countries in West Africa’s drought-prone Sahel region has continued to deteriorate at an alarming rate despite commendable early response efforts by governments and international aid agencies, a senior United Nations official said today.
“We are in a race against time and some of the harshest climatic conditions on the planet,” said the Director of Operations at the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), John Ging, after returning from a week-long mission to Niger, Burkina Faso and Mauritania.
26 March 2012 – With the deadline for achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) just three years away, a senior United Nations official today emphasized that spending on agriculture is the most effective type of investment for halting poverty in Africa.
23 March 2012, Rome - FAO today urgently appealed for $50 million to cover the funding gap for priority agricultural and pastoral activities that must be carried out in the Horn of Africa before and during the next planting season, which coincides with the rainy season from April to June.
22 March 2012, Rome - UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today said that producing enough food to feed the world's rapidly growing population will require the international community to ensure the sustainable use of the world's "most critical finite resource," water.
"Unless we increase our capacity to use water wisely in agriculture, we will fail to end hunger and we will open the door to a range of other ills, including drought, famine and political instability," warned Ban in a statement read at the start of World Water Day 2012 ceremonies taking place at FAO.
21 March 2012 –The United Nations Food and Agricultural Organizations (FAO) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) today announced they are increasing their efforts to promote private investments in agricultural businesses in the southern and eastern Mediterranean region.
The support will come through a series of new technical assistance projects that seek to develop policies and legal frameworks that create a favourable investment climate and foster private sector involvement in agribusiness in countries like Jordan, Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia.
The Independent External Evaluation (IEE) of the HLTF Coordination Team was issued in May 2013
IEE Final Report Volume I
IEE Final Report Volume II
Management Response of HLTF Coordination Team to IEE Report
Many different groups are moving forward on an effort to scale up nutrition (SUN). We are witnessing the emergence of a movement.
For more information visit www.scalingupnutrition.org
UN Conference on Sustainable Development - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, June 20-22, 2012
Rio+20 Outcome document The Future We Want
Position Paper from the UN System High Level Task Force on Global Food Security
To read more about the structure and functions of the High Level Task Force, please visit our page on Structure
We have compiled a list of useful links from a variety of sources, including governments, international agencies, NGOs and scientific organizations. Please feel free to inform us of additional web sites for consideration.
The spike in food prices of last year (2008) underscored what experts have been telling us for many years: the world's food systems are in crisis