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Global leaders to tackle food insecurity as 645m face hunger – EnviroNews
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Global leaders, government representatives and other stakeholders will meet in Rome and online from October 19 to 23, 2026, to discuss strategies for addressing global food insecurity and malnutrition at the 54th Plenary Session of the Committee on World Food Security (CFS54).
The meeting comes amid persistent global food security challenges, with an estimated 645 million people facing hunger in 2025, while 2.1 billion people experienced moderate or severe food insecurity, according to the latest State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI 2026) report.
Although global hunger has declined for the third consecutive year, progress remains uneven, with the world still off track to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 2 (SDG 2), which seeks to end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture by 2030.
FAO Chief Economist, Máximo Torero, is expected to present the report on Monday, October 19, at the opening of the five-day plenary session.
Against this backdrop, CFS54 will provide an international platform for strengthening cooperation and developing policy responses to food security and nutrition challenges, with a focus on achieving sustainable progress towards 2030 and beyond.
Ahead of the meeting, CFS Chairperson, Professor Anas A. Al-Nabulsi, emphasised the importance of inclusive dialogue and multilateral cooperation in tackling the world’s food security challenges.
He said the Committee’s approach offered a model for renewing multilateralism in an increasingly complex world.
“The very nature of the CFS offers a role model of how multilateralism can be renewed in an increasingly complex world. The CFS experience reminds us that dialogue requires time and commitment. Yet it also demonstrates that participation, inclusiveness, and trust are essential ingredients of any decision-making process,” Al-Nabulsi said.
The plenary will feature contributions from United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres and Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed, alongside senior officials from international organisations and other institutions working on food security, development and human rights.
Other participants include Álvaro Lario, President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD); Rania Dagash-Kamara, Assistant Executive Director for Partnerships and Innovation at the World Food Programme (WFP); and Navid Hanif, Assistant Secretary-General for Economic Development at the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA).
Sofía Monsalve Suárez, UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food, and Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, will also contribute to the discussions.
Sayed Azam-Ali, Chairperson of the High Level Panel of Experts on Food Security and Nutrition (HLPE-FSN), will present the Panel’s independent, evidence-based perspectives to inform deliberations and policy development.
Key issues on the agenda include strengthening the resilience of food systems, protecting and advancing Indigenous Peoples’ food and knowledge systems, empowering family farmers, and exploring the role of artificial intelligence, digitalisation and data governance in improving food security and nutrition.
The meeting will also examine land governance and rural development, recognising their importance in supporting sustainable agricultural production, strengthening rural livelihoods and improving access to food.
Participants will include ministers, ambassadors and senior government representatives, among them Gloria Reyes, Minister for Women of the Dominican Republic.
They will join representatives of UN agencies, civil society organisations, non-governmental organisations, Indigenous Peoples, financial and research institutions, philanthropic foundations and the private sector to explore practical approaches to tackling hunger and malnutrition.
The broad participation reflects the Committee’s inclusive approach to food security governance, which seeks to bring different stakeholders together to build consensus and promote coordinated policy action.
As the international community considers development priorities beyond 2030, CFS is expected to play an important role in shaping discussions on the future of global cooperation, food systems and the United Nations.
Through its established multilateral platform, the Committee aims to strengthen policy coherence, translate international commitments into concrete action and advance the progressive realisation of the right to adequate food for all.
With hundreds of millions of people still facing hunger and billions experiencing food insecurity, the deliberations at CFS54 are expected to contribute to efforts to accelerate progress towards a world free from hunger and malnutrition.
