World Investment Forum 2023

• Opening of the Investment in Agrifood Systems Forum (13:45 – 15:15 Abu Dhabi)

  The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development highlights the critical role agrifood systems play in tackling global challenges such as malnutrition, poverty, the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services, and climate change. Such challenges are accentuated by the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, which have led to disruptions in global food supply chains. In developing countries, farmers, processors, and other actors in agrifood systems need help accessing financial resources and services to accelerate progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and to increase resilience to global shocks. Recent estimates, by the Food and Land use coalition, suggest that transforming food systems to sustain healthy people, a healthy planet, and a healthy economy will require an extra USD 300 – USD 350 billion per year for the next decade. Agrifood systems also present opportunities for mitigating and adapting to climate change and addressing biodiversity loss. That is why there is an urgent need to attract SDG-aligned, inclusive, and efficient public and private sector investment in agrifood systems to reduce food insecurity and to foster rural employment, particularly for women and youths, and income generation. 

  The session will focus on: 

  • Rationale for investments in agriculture and food sectors.
  • Financing and investment mechanisms and pathways for transforming agrifoood systems.
  • Transformative partnerships for investing in agrifood systems.

 

Day 2: 17 October 2023

• Addressing agrifood challenges by technologies and innovations by foresight-based, long-term planning (11:30 – 13:00 Abu Dhabi)

Challenges faced by agrifood systems are unprecedented and require innovative policy choices, targeted investments and responsible governance. To help navigate the complexity, uncertainty, volatility and ambiguity of challenges and trends in a participatory manner, the foresight practice is increasingly used in long-term public planning and shaping policy processes.  

The session will focus on: 

• Foresight of agrifood technologies and innovation as an instrument for a long-term strategic vision, consensus-building, and defining policy goals in agrifood innovation domains.
• Findings from the foresight work of FAO and partners (research and academia, policymakers, networks and farmers’ association).
• Recommendations for strategic planning of resources and capacities.

• Technology and innovation to increase resilience and support climate change adaptation and mitigation ( 14:30 – 16:00 Abu Dhabi)

• Innovative finance to unlock investment in sustainable agrifood systems (11:00 – 12:30 Abu Dhabi)

  Financing is a critical lever to achieve healthier, equitable and sustainable agrifood systems. Public finance alone, including Official Development Assistance (ODA) and development finance, though critical, will not be enough for agrifood system transformation. However, financing in sustainable agrifood systems is often beyond the investment mandate of the private sector, in part, due to its perceived higher risks and transaction costs. These constraints lead to a funding gap in the sector, particularly for small and medium enterprises and small-scale producers.

  The session will focus on: 

  • Unlocking more investment into agrifood systems and align public, private, multilateral, and philanthropic funding effectively, within the framework of the Addis Ababa Action Agenda (AAAA).
  • Innovative solutions, such as blended finance and other de-risking mechanisms, to channel more and better finance for agrifood systems.

• Forging the Path: Unveiling the Private Sector's Agrifood Investment Journey (1430-1730 hrs. Abu Dhabi)

  The session aims to explore the critical role of private sector investment in driving transformative changes in the agrifood system. It will delve into how private sector players can contribute to sustainable agriculture, food security, and rural development through innovative business models, technologies, and partnerships. The session will bring together key stakeholders, including investors, agricultural entrepreneurs, policymakers, and experts, to foster meaningful discussions and identify actionable strategies for leveraging private sector investments for agrifood system transformation. This session will focus on: 

  Showcasing the role of the private sector in addressing the challenges facing agrifood systems and share private sector-led initiatives in agriculture and food systems.

  • Identifying Investment Opportunities and Challenges in the agrifood systems.
  • Policy and Institutional Support to encourage private sector investments in agrifood systems. 

 

• Investing in Inclusive Agrifood Systems Transformation (10:00 – 11:30 Abu Dhabi)

  To achieve inclusive agrifood systems transformation, we need a particular focus on marginalized groups, such as smallholders, women, youth, and refugees. While smallholders cultivate most farms in many countries, their farm investments are often overlooked and further undermined by lack of access to inputs, resources, and markets for profitable production. Young people face multiple challenges to fully participate in food systems, including a lack of employment opportunities and limited access to resources such as land for agricultural production or financial capital for on-farm investments and nonfarm enterprises. Women make significant contributions to food systems through food production and consumption. Still, heavy workloads and limited decision-making power and control over resources often leave them unable to make strategic decisions and investment choices for themselves and their families. Refugees and people affected by conflict are especially dependent on agriculture but face significant challenges to integration into local food systems within their host communities. 

  The session will focus on: 

  • Need to invest in building inclusive food systems to ensure that marginalized and vulnerable people enjoy the benefits and opportunities that food systems can bring and to support sustainable development.
  • Creating an enabling environment and catalysing investments that strengthen the integration of marginalized populations into food supply chains, creating more and better jobs, and providing smallholders greater market access.

• Transforming the Urban Food Systems (16:30 – 18:00 Abu Dhabi)

  Today, more than half of the world’s population lives in urban areas, where 70 percent of food consumption take place. Cities consume almost 80 percent of the total energy produced in the world while producing 70 percent of the global waste. Growing populations, economic slowdown, and climate change are putting tremendous pressure on the natural, physical, and social resources of cities in developing countries and their ability to sustainably feed their citizens. Local administrations face ever-increasing challenges in ensuring access to healthy, nutritious and affordable diets for all, promoting food safety in urban food outlets and preventing, reducing and managing food waste. However, local governments often do not have sufficient technical and financial capacity to address these food systems gaps. The pandemic and the war in Ukraine have worsened conditions for the most vulnerable segments of the population and inflated the number of the urban poor. 

  The session will focus on: 

  • Innovative solutions to promote the engagement of local governments in achieving sustainable urban food systems transformation.
  • How to connect national and local decision-makers and engaging with the cities in realizing the food systems transformation agenda could increase the impact of policies.
  • Spotlight on the catalysing effect of localized finance and investment in healthy and prosperous societies.

 

• Investing in Mitigating Food Loss and Waste (09:00 – 10:30 Abu Dhabi)

  Food Loss and Waste (FLW) are a manifestation of inefficient agrifood systems, with negative impacts on the economy, food security and nutrition, and the environment. Recent estimates show that 14 percent of the food produced is lost along the supply chain (FAO, 2019) and that 17 percent of the food available at the retail level is wasted (UNEP, 2021). FLW contribute to 8 percent of greenhouse gas emissions through the production, processing and distribution and disposal of food that is not consumed. A major impediment to reducing FLW is the insufficient awareness of the extent of the issue and the solid ‘business case’ for policy and investment in reducing FLW.  

  The session will focus on: 

  • Investments in upgrading rural market facilities, such as improving cold storage facilities, deploying climate-smart processing, storage, and packaging, and utilizing handling technologies to reduce losses and add more value.
  • Importance of a holistic and integrated approach and enabling environment to invest in FLW reduction which is aligned with sustainable food system objectives.

• Investing in sustainable value chain and agribusiness development (10:30 – 12:00 Abu Dhabi)

  There is an increasing recognition that investing in sustainable agrifood value chain and agribusiness development can significantly contribute to creating income and employment, improving access to affordable and healthy diets, building resilience of communities to climate change and optimizing the use of natural resources.   However, lack of incentive, weak enabling environment, high risk of investment due to fragmentation of agribusinesses, limited capacity for value addition and lack of coordination are affecting the ability of the value chain actors to access finance and to tap on the investment opportunities. 

  The session will focus on: 

  • Reforms to enable a favourable business climate and competitive markets and explore engaging agribusiness particularly SMEs in policy dialogue and de-risking mechanisms through risk-sharing, blended finance and PPPs.
  • Incentive mechanisms and enabling environment for enhancing investments in agribusinesses and value chains

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