PRESS RELEASE (33/10)
Port Vila, Vanuatu, 22 April 2010 - The Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat has highlighted at the Pacific Food Summit underway in Vanuatu that the Pacific Plan identifies and emphasize coordination of effort and resources and partnerships at all levels as the most effective pathway to ensuring regional and national development.
Presenting during a session on “Partnership for Leading, Coordinating and Funding Food Security” at the Food Summit today, the Forum Secretariat’s Director for Strategic Partnerships and Coordination, Su’a Kevin Thomsen said: “The Pacific Plan endorsed by Forum Leaders in 2005 builds on national development efforts by countries and facilitates regional collaboration on broad cross cutting issues.”
“In this case, food security was acknowledged as a priority by Pacific Leaders in 2008 and mandated work on the development of a regional action plan for addressing countries concerns in a coordinated inclusive and consultative way. This summit is a product of that decision,” said Mr Thomsen.
“Partnerships are the key to the development of well coordinated national and regional policies that are owned and delivered by agencies with a stake in its outcomes. It utilizes the strength of the region and enables coordination of national developmental efforts.”
Mr Thomsen observed that combining and coordinating the efforts of development partners and national governments through a common platform or plan of action provides for more effective use of resources and effort, reduces the risks of duplications of resources and thus reduce wastage; and raises capacity of local expertise through regional and international exposures.”
Partnerships also build ownership and provides a greater leverage in terms of critical mass considerations and political ownership .It also offers donors and development partners and those wanting to invest in the region an assurance of regional collaboration and acceptance, and utilizes a “what works” approach to implementation, that have been found to be useful and effective in the region.
Earlier when addressing the opening of the Pacific Food Summit Forum Secretariat Deputy Secretary General, Feleti Teo, said: “The challenge of food security in the Pacific region is not only urgent but enormous. It challenges all of us to work together, and with each other to develop a practical and realistic Framework for Actions on Food Security.”
“Effective pooling of resources and regionally coordinated initiatives, such as those under the Pacific Plan and the Cairns Compact for strengthening development coordination, endorsed by Forum Leaders last year, are imperative as they can add value and provide greater benefits to our fragile food systems,” said Mr Teo.
The Draft Framework for Action on Food Security in the Pacific 2011 – 2015 being discussed at the three-day Pacific Food Summit in Port Vila is aimed at supporting Pacific countries move towards ensuring that all their people, at all times, have physical, social and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food. It brings the Pacific region closer to its vision of “Healthy Islands” articulated in the Yanuca Island Declaration of 1995 and helps fulfill the Pacific Plan endorsed by Forum Leaders in 2005.
The draft Framework articulates strategies and actions under six themes:
1. Leadership and cooperation
2. Regulatory frameworks, enforcement and compliance and public-sector collaboration
3. Enhanced and sustainable production, processing and trading of safe and nutritious local food
4. Protect infants and vulnerable groups
5. Consumer empowerment and mobilizing partners
6. Food security information system
The Summit is being attended by about 170 delegates representing governments in the region, regional organizations, UN agencies, civil society and the food industry. It is convened by the Government of Vanuatu in partnership with the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat, Secretariat of the Pacific Community, the World Health Organisation, the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the UN, the UN Children’s Fund and the Global Health Institute (Sydney West Area Health Service).
ENDS.
For media enquires, contact Mr Johnson Honimae, the Forum Secretariat’s Media Officer on phone 678 5664721 or email johnsonh@forumsec.org.fj.
