"Food security must remain a central issue in the whole series of G20 agriculture working group meetings this year and in the years to come," he remarked at the kick-off event for the G20 Agriculture Working Group here on Thursday.
According to Limpo, the issues of food security, hunger, and poverty are crucial and must be addressed by the G20 working group in the agricultural sector.
The global pandemic has presented challenges of food and nutrition security due to restrictions on the movement of goods and services at the local, regional and global levels, the minister noted.
"Logistics flow and the food distribution system have also been severely affected. Meanwhile, several countries have implemented protection policies through national stocks, which have had an impact on the imbalance in the global food system," he said.
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Meanwhile, nationally, the pandemic has increased the risk in food and nutrition access, especially for the poor in rural and urban areas, he pointed out. At the global level, it has worsened food and nutrition security in developing and least developed countries, he added.
The situation has gotten more complex with the challenges presented by climate change, the minister noted.
"The decline and degradation of natural resources and cross-border infectious diseases threat are in front of us, which are challenges that we must find solutions for together," he said.
As a multilateral platform, G20 must support the crucial role of the agriculture sector in providing essential food and nutrition for all, as well as ensuring inclusive and sustainable economic development that leaves no one behind, he stressed.
"G20 countries must synergize to ensure food and nutrition security for all through the balance of our national food and agricultural production guarantees, as well as guarantees of certainty and fairness in cross-border food and agriculture trade," the minister remarked.
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Translator: Aditya Ramadhan, Raka Adji
Editor: Suharto
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