FAO’s Director General arrives in Sri Lanka

Monday, 19 February 2024 02:24 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

FAO Director General Dr. QU Dongyu being received at the Bandaranaike International Airport by Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture Janaka Dharmakeerthi, FAO Assistant Director General and Regional Representative Jong-Jin Kim and FAO Representative for Sri Lanka Vimlendra Sharan

Pic by FAO/Sujeewa de Silva

To inaugurate UN FAO Conference on the Recovery and Reform of Agrifood Systems in the Asia-Pacific region for Future Food Security from 19 to 22 February attended by Government Ministers and Heads of Delegations from 46 Member Nations

The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) Director General, Dr. QU Dongyu, arrived on Sunday in Sri Lanka for a three-day visit to participate in the 37th session of the FAO regional conference for Asia and the Pacific.

Government Ministers and Heads of Delegations from as many as 46 Member Nations are gathering in Colombo for the event. Sri Lanka is hosting the APRC37.

The Director General was received at the airport by Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture Janaka Dharmakeerthi, FAO Assistant Director General and Regional Representative Jong-Jin Kim, and the FAO Representative for Sri Lanka Vimlendra Sharan.

During his stay, the Director General will also visit agricultural sites, and is scheduled to hold a series of bilateral discussions with Sri Lankan leadership and Ministers from other Asia-Pacific countries.

The #APRC37, convened by FAO’s regional office for Asia and the Pacific and hosted by the Government of Sri Lanka, marks a major international, multilateral milestone in an effort to reform agrifood systems across the Asia Pacific region. The Conference runs from 19 – 22 February in Colombo.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe and the Director General are expected to inaugurate the Ministerial session of the conference on Tuesday, 20 February with delegates from across the Asia-Pacific region participating. The objective is to outline a pathway toward a full recovery from the pandemic and other converging crises, and reinforce ways to rebuild and transform the region’s agrifood systems, delivered through better production, better nutrition, a better environment and leading to a better life for all, leaving no one behind.