Julio Berdegué, former FAO Regional Representative: In the face of COVID-19, FAO remained in the field to help lessen the impact of the pandemic

This interview is part of a series of conversations with former FAO Regional Representatives for Latin America and the Caribbean, held in the framework of the Organization’s 80th anniversary. On this occasion, they were invited to reflect on the main milestones of their tenure and recall their key challenges.

On the 80th anniversary of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Julio Berdegué offers a critical yet forward-looking perspective on the years in which he headed the regional office for Latin America and the Caribbean. During his tenure, the region experienced setbacks in hunger indicators, the silent rise of obesity, the first visible impacts of climate change on agriculture, and, ultimately, the shock of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Faced with this scenario, Berdegué pushed for a strategy centered on public policy dialogue and the design of high-impact programs. Today, from a distance, he warns: “The world has changed, and the region must redouble its efforts to avoid being left out of a new global order that is already taking shape.”

The challenges of the double burden of malnutrition

The former FAO regional representative recalls starting his tenure with a relatively positive outlook on hunger figures in Latin America and the Caribbean:

“I joined FAO in April 2017, and at that time, the situation in Latin America and the Caribbean was that, starting in 2015, hunger numbers had begun to rise again. The region had made a huge effort and had done very well in the years before 2015, but from then on, things began to go wrong.”

One of his first challenges was to confront this reversal in food insecurity figures, with growing concern that the region would be unable to meet SDG 2 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development: ending hunger.

“Why did the positive trend we had until 2015 reverse? First, economies slowed down significantly. But perhaps more importantly, in responding to this economic slowdown, many countries in the region did not keep the fight against poverty and hunger at the center of their priorities.”

“Not all countries reacted this way. My own country, for example, implemented a very aggressive policy of putting the common good first — with priority for the poor — which allowed Mexico to reduce the number of people living in poverty by 10 million, despite and during the pandemic. But this kind of response was the exception,” he explained.

At the same time, Berdegué recalls that the region also had to face the challenge of malnutrition in the form of overweight and obesity — in adults as well as children and adolescents. “We were moving decisively backwards on the SDGs. And we also had to deal with two other major phenomena: the impacts of climate change — which, frankly, FAO in our region was not addressing much at that time — and the growing political dimension of international migration.”

A two-pronged approach

“The response was based on two main tracks, or two axes. First, public policy dialogue — because in Latin America, the causes of hunger and poverty in rural and urban areas are not technological problems. The fundamental cause is inequality, or rather, inequalities. And as long as inequalities are not addressed, we will not solve poverty or hunger in our region,” Berdegué explains.

Alongside this, he promoted what he calls “programs with major results.” “FAO had many small, scattered projects — each interesting and well-executed, but with very local impact. We began using our resources much more strategically, particularly the Technical Cooperation Programme (TCP), which we used as a kind of seed capital to support these political dialogue processes.”

In practice, this meant that during key political cycles in each country, FAO would foster public policy discussions — steering clear of electoral or partisan issues but actively engaging on public policies.

“We also used this to design large-scale programs, particularly those linked to climate change. This allowed us to mobilize a substantial portfolio worth hundreds of millions of dollars for major programs that delivered significant results.”

Responding to COVID-19

One of the biggest challenges of his tenure was the COVID-19 pandemic, which he describes as a “brutal shock” that caused enormous uncertainty:

“We had more than 400 projects in the field: what would happen to them? We could no longer travel, go out, or hold meetings. I must say that FAO’s internal reaction and adaptation — moving to a virtual work mode — worked. This allowed us to keep the programs alive. There were disruptions and problems, but FAO’s field activities continued, which was crucial in helping to soften the pandemic’s impact.”

Working with countries, one of the first priorities was to ensure that food supply chains were not interrupted.

“That sounds easy, but at the time it was very difficult to guarantee — and we managed to achieve it in virtually all Latin American countries. There were no major disruptions. Secondly, we looked for ways to help the millions of people who lost their jobs — many of whom returned to rural areas for refuge — to find opportunities.”

Looking ahead

“What’s the situation today? The world has changed radically in just a few months. A couple of days ago, the President of Mexico said: ‘We are living in a new world order.’ The big question for all of us who have government responsibilities is: what will this new world order look like? How will my country fit into it?”

Berdegué insists that, for those working on agrifood and rural issues, it is crucial to ask what deep changes must be made to public policies:

“Given today’s reality, our responses, policies, priorities, and strategies cannot be the same as in the past.”

“In my view, the most urgent and important task is to have a deep and meaningful public policy dialogue in each country, at the subregional level — the Andean region, the Southern Cone, the Caribbean, Central America — and then at the regional level. I don’t think anyone has the answers to these questions yet, and it is urgent that we build them together: what this new world order is, and how Latin America and the Caribbean — and each country within it — will position itself in this new reality,” he concludes.

Interview

* The views and opinions expressed in these interviews are those of the individuals in their personal capacity and do not reflect the official position of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). These former FAO colleagues are no longer formally affiliated with the Organization, and their statements should be understood as retrospective reflections on their professional experiences, the evolution of regional discourse regarding food security, and FAO contributions to regional priorities. FAO is a neutral and non-partisan UN specialized agency with a specific technical mandate, and is committed to upholding its mandate in a neutral manner consistent with its obligations to its Members. These interviews do not imply any endorsement by FAO of the ideas or opinions expressed.