The FAO Brussels Dialogue focusing on “Weathering COVID-19 in Small Island Developing
States: A pathway to resilience” took place virtually on December 10, 2020. The dialogue
included a list of high level speakers featuring Heads of States and Governments from the Africa,
Caribbean, and Pacific regions and leaders of the Organization of the African, Caribbean, and
Pacific States, FAO and the European Union.
The dialogue was aimed at exploring and understanding the challenges of Small Island
Developing State (SIDS), identifying the gaps and opportunities for financial and technical
assistance on food production and identifying lessons learned from SIDS in building resilience
on food production against climate change and other natural hazard risks and shocks.
The Prime Minister, Honourable Tuilaepa Lupesoliai Sailele Malielegaoi, delivered a statement,
highlighting Samoa’s vulnerabilities as a SIDS which include the negative impacts of climate
change, the limitation of natural resources, geographical isolation from markets, and the burden
of disease including the ongoing COVID19 pandemic. The Prime Minister pointed out that the
lockdown measures implemented to address the global pandemic have caused significant impacts
on Samoa’s food supply, tourism, and remittances which all contribute significantly to Samoa’s
national GDP.
Furthermore, the Prime Minister saw the FAO Brussels Dialogue as an opportunity “to identify
solutions and pathways for SIDS to improve their food security and livelihoods, and be able to
draw inspiration from FAO projects funded by the European Union”. He hoped that the event
would build a better understanding of the challenges of SIDS and that through these shared
experiences; SIDSs would be better supported in helping to mitigate the devastating impacts of
COVID-19 on food security and to create a more sustainable future.
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The FAO Brussels Dialogues are virtual events that bring together Governments and the development
community to share, inform and exchange ideas on the most current issues in the world of food and
agriculture. The FAO Brussels Dialogue for SIDS 2020 was aimed at raising awareness on their
structural vulnerabilities and the looming impacts on food systems as a result of the pandemic. The Prime
Minister’s statement and video for the FAO Brussels Dialogue on SIDS 2020 is available here:
https://rebrand.ly/FAO_SAMOA_BrusselsDialogue.