29 NOV 2022, TANOA TUSITALA HOTEL, APIA at 9:45 am

Rev. Faatafa Nefu;
Honourable Ministers;
FAO Director General, Mr Qu Dongyu
Distinguished delegates
Ladies and Gentlemen;
Talofa Lava. It is a pleasure to deliver the opening remarks on this occasion
for the Pacific SIDS Solutions Forum with the theme “Working together to
leave no one behind” – bringing together our Blue Pacific family. I extend
to you all a warm welcome to Samoa.
I acknowledge with appreciation, the Food and Agriculture Organization’s
efforts in organizing this important forum for our Pacific small island states. I
had the opportunity to participate at the previous SIDS Solutions Forum last
year and I look forward to hearing of any progress we have made since the
last forum in August 2021.
I welcome, once again the focus of this forum on SIDS specific innovative
discussions and collective knowledge sharing that will lead to collective
solutions for our islands in the areas of agriculture and food systems.
Furthermore, we will be exploring the expansion of digitization of agri-food
systems and creative approaches to food systems transformation.
Agriculture is the backbone of many if not all of our economies for food
security and sustainable economic activities. However, we have experienced
significant challenges, impacting our food systems and agriculture sectors.
The impacts of Covid19 still linger over us and although our best efforts for
post-Covid19 recovery have been successful, there still remain some
challenges that require our further attention within the agriculture sphere.
We experienced during the Covid-19 pandemic the impact of food shortages
on our communities and remains a strong reminder to us of the importance
of our traditional food systems.

The impacts of Covid-19 directly and indirectly on agriculture and food
systems mean that we have had to be adaptive and be innovative in our
responses. As such, we have had to place importance on areas, including
digital technology to support increasing productivity of our local farmers and
fisher folk.
Samoa Pathway and 2030 SDG Agenda
Agriculture and food security have, remained at the forefront of both
international and regional discussions particularly through our priorities
inscribed in the SAMOA Pathway. The call to accelerate action and
strengthen partnerships to address the development challenges we face
including those of food insecurity in our region, persist. The 2030 Agenda
was a milestone movement towards achieving the world’s food security goals
particularly under SDG2 – End Hunger.
We have made progress but there is a need for real transformational
approaches to food systems to ensure availability and affordability of
nutritious foods for all. Our expectation of this forum is that we will generate
solutions out of our discussions and sharing to address the challenges of
food insecurity and ending hunger.
To achieve significant transformational changes in our food systems,
innovative changes, supported by enabling environments, institutions,
policies and laws across all sectors of the economy are required. The
trajectory of sustainable development identifies agri-food systems as a
critical component. Moreover, evidence suggests that places and
environments with stable food systems are linked to better health outcomes
and lifestyles, highlighting how food systems have a significant role in
shaping our societies from a socio-economic perspective.
Global Crises (food, fuel ,energy)
We are experiencing the impacts of rising fuel and food prices on our costs
of living and the cost of doing business. The prices of imported foods and
agricultural commodities and inputs to production have increased
significantly. Similarly, costs for agricultural tools, fertilisers and seedlings
are also on the rise; impacting our most vulnerable communities as well as
disrupting supply chains to our region.

The global crises affect our small, medium enterprises and limit our efforts in
creating and maintaining an enabling environment for business growth,
trade and development. There is urgency for small island states to move
forward with transformative food system approaches including government
support towards building sustainable, resilient, and inclusive agri-food
systems that fit our respective contexts.
(COP27 Loss and Damage impacts on food systems)
I have recently returned from COP27 in Sharm el-Sheikh Egypt where Pacific
voices resonated strongly on issues relating to climate change, particularly
on the issue of loss and damage. This relates to the unavoidable
consequences of climate change resulting from extreme climate related
events and longer term climate variability. Loss and damage can have a
significant implication for food security and disruption of agri-food systems
in our countries.
The increase in global temperatures by one or two degrees can mean 4 to 5
million tonnes of staple crops that can be lost, and climate change risks can
damage key natural resources such as land and water not to mention our
traditional livelihoods and traditional knowledge.
We can no longer avoid the impacts of climate change. The scientific
evidence is irrefutable and we as SIDS are already living the climate crisis.
The thread that links climate change impacts to agri-food systems and
production is a fragile one that can have colossal impacts on the lives of our
people. We must look at ways in which to address and mitigate these
challenges.
As we progress throughout this important forum, I am very much interested
in hearing from our Ministers and senior officials, on your experiences in
your respective countries. Equally important is the information sharing and
collective discussions to formulate key innovative solutions for agri-food
systems in our region.
I am told that you have had an opportunity yesterday to visit some of our
local farm projects and I hope that you all managed to engage with those
directly involved and shared experiences. I am a strong believer in solutions

oriented forums and I hope that this year’s SIDS solutions forum is another
successful one to provide assurances to our people that we will leave no one
behind.” SOIFUA