Events

Right now 783 million people are hungry, chronic hunger is affecting a fifth of Africa’s population. The climate and debt crises are worsening the situation.

As the World Bank and IMF Spring Meetings near, Hungry for Action, in partnership with OXFAM in Africa, will convene a webinar to discuss how we can unlock the financing needed to tackle the global food crisis and drive progress towards SDG2 and climate goals. The panel of experts will delve into financing priorities including multilateral development bank reforms, debt relief, and the opportunity of the forthcoming IDA Replenishment.

This session will explore why unlocking more and better  financing is key to breaking the cycle of food crises and accelerating progress towards SDG2 and what it could deliver for the broader SDG and climate agendas.

What do we want to achieve?

This session envisions two main outcomes as follows: 

• Increased youth and smallholder farmer awareness and public campaigning for reversing the trends on food security and nutrition financing gaps and income and gender inequalities. 
• A catalog of new ideas and proposals is produced to engage multilateral development banks and African Food Systems Parliamentary Network on food security priorities.

Session Speakers:

• Neema Lugangira, Member of Parliament Tanzania and Board Member of the Parliamentary Network on the World Bank and IMF
• Sessi Akoha, Agricultural Economist and MEAL Expert at West African Network of Peasants and Agricultural Producers (ROPPA)
• Zacharey Carmichael, Senior Economist, World Bank Agriculture and Food Global Practice, World Bank CRW ERF Technical Coordinator for Food Security Crises and Global Alliance for Food Security (GAFS) Secretariat
• Friederike Roder, Vice President, Global Policy and Advocacy, Global Citizen

Time

9:00 – 10:00 hrs EDT, 13:00 – 14:00 hrs GMT, 14:00 – 15:00 hrs WAT, 16:00 – 17:00 hrs EAT

African leaders were in Addis Ababa Ethiopia from Feb 17-18 2024 for the Annual African Union Summit. This summit was held on the back of a year that has seen multiple crises but also opportunities, among them, African Union’s admission as a permanent member of the G20 and the first Africa Climate Summit among others. Further, this year’s theme “Educate an African Fit for the 21st Century: Building Resilient Education Systems for Increased Access to Inclusive, Lifelong, Quality, and Relevant Learning in Africa” provides not only relevance but also a solid ground to look ahead to 2024.

Not only is tackling the global food crisis vital for education, but it is vital for our continent. Alarming statistics reveal that approximately 282 million people — about 20 percent of the population — faced undernourishment in 2022, marking a staggering increase of 57 million individuals since the COVID-19 pandemic’s onset. Furthermore, 49 million are on the brink of famine, over a billion people struggle to access nutritious diets, and nearly 30 percent of children suffer stunted growth due to malnutrition.

The primary aim of this webinar is to engage in a comprehensive discussion on Africa’s strategic priorities for 2024, specifically focusing on endeavors to eliminate hunger and malnutrition. Additionally, the webinar will conduct a retrospective analysis of significant events, milestones, and missed opportunities from 2023 pertaining to addressing the food crisis. By convening a diverse array of experts and stakeholders from crucial sectors, including the African Union, regional economic communities, youth representatives, and other relevant organizations, the objective is to foster insightful dialogues and collaborative initiatives that contribute to the effective resolution of food and nutrition security challenges in the region.

Register for the webinar here.

Led by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and held annually on 5 June since 1973, World Environment Day is the largest global platform for environmental public outreach and is celebrated by millions of people across the world. In 2023, it is hosted by Côte D’Ivoire.

Why take part?

Time is running out, and nature is in emergency mode. To keep global warming below 1.5°C this century, we must halve annual greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. Without action, exposure to air pollution beyond safe guidelines will increase by 50 per cent within the decade and plastic waste flowing into aquatic ecosystems will nearly triple by 2040.

We need urgent action to address these pressing issues.

Every day, 370 million children around the world receive food at school provided by their governments. Governments invest in school meals because they are a powerful tool in efforts to reach Zero Hunger, helping to ensure every child has access to education, health and nutrition.

International School Meals Day, aims to raise awareness of good nutrition for all children regardless of their circumstances.

BeanCon24 is an educational and networking event focused on bean innovation, trends and the future of food. On its third year, this annual global conference will bring together dry bean buyers and stakeholders from all over the world. BeanCon24 boasts engaging keynote speakers, innovative chefs, nutrition specialists and informative panel discussions, as well as opportunities for private business meetings, in-person networking events and more. BeanCon24 will take place in Cancun Mexico in a hybrid mode where both in-person and virtual attendees from around the world will be able to engage and enjoy the benefits of this event. Registration is now open. Don’t miss attending the most important event on dry beans.

The Chefs’ Manifesto are hosting three in-person Action Hubs in India this coming February, bringing together chefs from across the country to share, learn and inspire one another on food systems transformation.

Chennai, 16 February 2024

Mumbai, 19 February 2024

Delhi, 21 February 2024

The Chefs’ Manifesto are hosting three in-person Action Hubs in India this coming February, bringing together chefs from across the country to share, learn and inspire one another on food systems transformation.

Chennai, 16 February 2024

Mumbai, 19 February 2024

Delhi, 21 February 2024

The Chefs’ Manifesto are hosting three in-person Action Hubs in India this coming February, bringing together chefs from across the country to share, learn and inspire one another on food systems transformation.

Chennai, 16 February 2024

Mumbai, 19 February 2024

Delhi, 21 February 2024

Co-organized by IFPRI and The Rockefeller Foundation

Hybrid | Presentation: 9:00–10:30 am EST | Brunch Reception: 10:30–11:30 am EST

Since the mid-2010s, progress in reducing food insecurity and improving diet quality has stalled. Multiple shocks, including the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, have exacerbated the situation and put Sustainable Development Goal 2 on Zero Hunger further out of reach.

There have been many calls for action to address the food and diets crisis facing vulnerable people around the world. The private sector has been called on to invest in transforming food systems—at an annual rate of $320 billion—while the development banks have been asked to align financial incentives with food system-related goals. While some of these actors have stepped up, such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) opening of a food shock window to channel funds to countries beset by crisis, ultimately, progress depends on governments. National governments are responsible, and can be held accountable, for ensuring food security; healthy, diverse diets; and stable, dignified livelihoods, for their populations.

This hybrid seminar will shed light on commitments already made, share research results on the potential of current commitments to achieve a focused set of food and nutrition security goals, and foster continued dialogue with global advocacy partners. A brunch reception will follow the presentations. Our Policy and Advocacy Lead, Asma Lateef will team up with Purnima Menon, Catherine Bertini, Johan Swinnen, Shoba Suri and other global advocacy partners from the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and The Rockefeller Foundation to discuss initiatives to achieve good food for all.

For more information, and to register, check here.

Global

The International Day of Zero Waste aims to promote sustainable consumption and production patterns, support the societal shift towards circularity and raise awareness about how zero-waste initiatives contribute to the advancement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

The waste sector contributes significantly to the triple planetary crisis of climate change, biodiversity and nature loss, and pollution. Humanity generates an estimated 2.24 billion tons of municipal solid waste annually, of which only 55 per cent is managed in controlled facilities. Every year, around 931 million tons of food is lost or wasted and up to 14 million tons of plastic waste enters aquatic ecosystems.

Zero-waste initiatives can foster sound waste management and minimize and prevent waste, helping to address the triple planetary crisis, protect the environment, enhance food security and improve human health and well-being.

Global

World Water Day, held on 22 March every year since 1993, is an annual United Nations Observance focusing on the importance of freshwater.

World Water Day celebrates water and raises awareness of the 2.2 billion people living without access to safe water. It is about taking action to tackle the global water crisis. A core focus of World Water Day is to support the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 6: water and sanitation for all by 2030.

Every year, UN-Water — the UN’s coordination mechanism on water and sanitation — sets the theme for World Water Day. In 2023, the focus was on Accelerating Change.

In 2024, the theme will be Leveraging Water for Peace.