The situation in the Middle East is catastrophic, FAO-Director General QU Dongyu said today in his address to the G7 Development Ministers’ Meeting taking place in Pescara from 22-24 October.

“If we want to save lives and prevent famine, we urgently need a humanitarian ceasefire and unlimited, safe access to people who are in need and in danger,” he stressed.

Havana/Lusaka/Malabo/Maputo/N’Djamena/Nouakchott/Rome

Today, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) joined forces with the governments of Chad, Cuba, Equatorial Guinea, Mauritania, Mozambique and Zambia to launch a multi-country Green Climate F...

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has taken part in the 5th Conference on Remote Sensing of Vegetation Pests and Diseases. This conference is a pivotal platform for sharing knowledge, innovations, and best practices in the field of remote sensing technology for agricultural pest and disease management.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has signed a USD 5 million cooperation agreement with Silatech, an international development organization, to enhance youth employment and support food security for more than 30 000 young people in Sudan. The agreement was formalized by FAO Director-General Dr. Qu Dongyu and Mr. Hassan Ali Al Mulla, CEO of Silatech.

Representatives from already designated GIAHS sites and potential sites in North Africa and Spain gathered in Alicante from October 2 to 4, 2024, as part of a workshop on "Mediterranean Meetings on the Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS)." This event, organized in partnership with Spain and attended by the FAO Subregional Office for North Africa, the FAO GIAHS Secretariat, the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM), and the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), marked a significant milestone.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in Iraq, in collaboration with Iraq’s Ministry of Agriculture (MoA), the Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources (MoAWR-KRG), the Ministry of Health (federal and Kurdistan Regional Government), and the Veterinary Syndicate, conducted two consecutive Training of Trainers (ToT) workshops in Erbil from 7 to 15 October 2024. These workshops aimed to bolster Iraq’s animal disease surveillance and reporting systems by introducing the Event Mobile Application (EMA-i) and EMPRES-i+ platforms to veterinary professionals from across Iraq.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is ramping up efforts to support the agriculture sector and safeguard food and nutrition security amid the escalating conflict in Lebanon.

FAO is co-leading the reactivated Food Security and Agriculture Cluster in partnership with the UN World Food Program (WFP), as part of the Lebanon Response Plan 2024. This coordinated approach aims to ensure a rapid and effective sectoral response to the escalating conflict, supporting the populations in Lebanon most affected by the evolving crisis.

The Food and Agriculture Organization’s Commission for Controlling the Desert Locust in the Central Region (CRC) is holding a five-day regional communication training workshop titled Best Media Practices for Desert Locust Management in Cairo, Egypt, from October 13 to 17. The workshop highligh...

Cairo/Port Sudan – The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the Government of the People’s Republic of China signed a USD 2 million project agreement under the Global Development and South-South Cooperation Fund supported by the China International Devel...

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment of the United Arab Emirates (MOCCAE) held an interactive workshop in Dubai on October 10, 2024. The event focused on enhancing cooperation between FAO and the United Arab Emirates, particularly concerning the vision and strategic objectives of the FAO Subregional Office for the Gulf Cooperation Council States and Yemen, and in line with the United Arab Emirates initiatives to enhance sustainable national food security.

On 1 October 2024, the Near East Network on Wildlands Forest Fire (NENFIRE) convened its second virtual meeting of the year today, bringing together regional experts, government officials, and fire management professionals to validate the network’s five-year roadmap and set the course for enhanced wildfire management across the Near East and North Africa (NENA) region.

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in collaboration with the Arab Federation for Food Industries (AFFI), today concluded the 40th anniversary of the Arab Bread Day in Amman, Jordan for two days under the patronage of the Minister of Agriculture in Jordan, Eng. Khalid Hnaifat. This significant event commemorates the first Arab International Grain Industry Conference held in 1984 in Jordan, which focused on the bread loaf and grain industry in the Arab world.

Under the umbrella of the global Science and Innovation Forum 2024, the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) launched today the report on “Mapping of affordable and transferrable climate smart technologies for smallholder farmers". The report is the result of the strategic tripartite partnership that mobilized the resources and technical expertise of the partner agencies to identify and promote context-relevant technologies and innovative solutions that can tackle the pressing challenges faced by small scale farmers. The mapping exercise was carried out in ten countries, namely: Bangladesh, Brazil, Egypt, Jordan, Palestine, Morocco, Nigeria, Tajikistan, Tunisia, and Türkiye.

The latest assessment using satellite data produced by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the United Nations Satellite Centre (

Minister of Water and Irrigation Eng. Raed Abu Al-Saud and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Representative in Jordan Eng. Nabil Assaf have signed an agreement today to launch the Water Scarcity Initiative (WSI) in the Near East and North Africa (NENA) region. The signing ceremony was attended by the Secretary-General of the Jordan Valley Authority Eng. Hisham Al-Haisa and Secretary-General of the Water Authority Eng. Wael Al-Duwairi and a number of officials.

During his participation in the “Food for Future” Summit, Abdul Hakim Elwaer, Assistant Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and Regional Representative for the Near East and North Africa, called for immediate and decisive action to tackle the global hunger crisis. This summit was part of the “Gulfood Green 2024” event held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

From 23 to 25 September, 2024, the Sultanate of Oman is hosting a crucial workshop focused on the second assessment of Kingfish stocks in the RECOFI area. This workshop is being undertaken by the Regional Commission for Fisheries (RECOFI) under the Food and Agriculture Organization of the Unit...

NEW YORK/GENEVA/ROME/WASHINGTON – As world leaders gather in New York for the 79th United Nations General Assembly, and as the threat of a wider regional escalation looms, we renew our demand for an end to the appalling human suffering and humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza...

 In Tunisia, three Farmer Field Schools have been established since last November 2023 in the regions of Debin Metlaoui in Gafsa, and Nefta and Jehim in Tozeur. After nearly one year, around 75 farmers attended ceremonies to receive their certificates of recognition. These Farmer Field Schools activities are part of the FAO regional Red Palm Weevil Eradication programme for the Near East and North Africa.