12 December 2019, Madrid - FAO Director-General QU Dongyu has highlighted the key role of agriculture in offering nature-based solutions to address climate change.
He made his remarks on Wednesday at a special event "Accelerating Action on Nature-Based Solutions Together in 2020" on the sidelines of the UN Climate Change Conference COP25.
These solutions involve action on forests and other ecosystems including soils, water, livestock, oceans and food systems, as well as on food environments and consumers.
"We are preparing to transform the food system. We have to restructure food production chains, value chains and supply chains," said Qu, referring to FAO's work together with its partners. "The only solution is innovation."
In his remarks, the FAO Director-General also highlighted the importance of sustainable management of natural resources and protecting biodiversity for achieving sustainable food systems which are vital for improving agricultural and food production.
The Director-General cited as an example an initiative announced earlier today between FAO, Germany and UNDP to help developing countries address climate change in their agricultural sectors.
He concluded by saying that FAO would continue to work closely with all partners in the UN family, countries, civil society, the private sector, academia and all other relevant actors, to scale up existing solutions and to ensure that nature-based solutions remain central to climate and biodiversity actions.