©AfreePress-(Lomé, october 17, 2023)- World Food Day (WFD), celebrated on October 16th, offers an opportunity to acknowledge global progress and address persistent challenges related to food, nutrition, and sustainable agri-food production. The theme for World Food Day 2023 is « Water is Life, Water Nourishes Us All, » emphasizing the critical role of water in our lives and food production.
The United Nations underscores the importance of wise water management, especially as rapid population growth, urbanization, economic development, and climate change threaten water availability. Water is essential for human well-being, economic activities, and the environment. However, only 2.5% of the world’s water is freshwater, suitable for drinking, agriculture, and most domestic and industrial uses.
The global increase in extreme weather events, such as droughts and floods, stresses ecosystems and adversely affects global food security. Agriculture alone accounts for 72% of water withdrawals, emphasizing the finite nature of freshwater resources.
Despite these challenges, over a third of the world’s population still lacks access to clean drinking water, with many being smallholder farmers already struggling to meet their daily needs.
In 2023, World Food Day coincides with a global food crisis where the world regresses in its efforts to eliminate hunger and malnutrition. As a result, solutions must be explored to produce more essential foods with less water while ensuring equitable water distribution, safeguarding our food systems, and leaving no one behind.
On this World Food Day, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres calls for governments, the private sector, civil society, and academia to work together, prioritize addressing this crisis, and invest in long-term solutions to ensure everyone has enough to eat.
The Togolese government and its partners are implementing numerous interventions to support family farming, livestock, and the construction of clean water facilities at the community level. These efforts are aimed at combating the adverse effects of climate change and enhancing the resilience of local populations.
World Food Day is celebrated each year on October 16th to commemorate the founding of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations on October 16, 1945.
