Participation of AYSDN in the Arab Youth Consultative Meeting

United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia – ESCWA Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

Under the title (Arab Youth Dialogue on Food Systems) as part of its expanded activities in Arab youth events, the Arab Youth Network for Sustainable Development (AYSDN) participated in the Arab Youth Consultative Meeting held by default through the MURAL program on Monday, March 8, 2021 and organized by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in the Near East and North Africa (FAO).

Meeting Overview

The meeting opened with a welcoming speech from Ms. Reem Najdawi, representative of the United Nations Economic and Social Committee for Western Asia (ESCWA), where she welcomed all attendees from all walks of life. She also noted the role of young people and their importance in enriching good work towards achieving diet.

Welcoming Speech

Mr. Jean Mark, representative of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), delivered a welcoming speech thanking the attendees for their presence and stressing the importance of involving young people in sharing ideas about diet.
Mr. Jean Mark

Ms. Julie Abu Arab of ESCWA began to clarify the objective of the meeting and explain the plan for the consultative meeting for Arab youth. Ms. Julie Abu Arab of ESCWA began to clarify the objective of the meeting and explain the plan for the consultative meeting for Arab youth

Five Courses of Action

Mr. Jean-Marc, FAO representative, then gave a brief speech on the 2021 Food Systems Summit and its five courses of action, which are summarized in five points:

1. Ensuring safe and nutritious food for all.
2. Shift to sustainable consumption patterns
3. Increase positive production of nature.
4. Promoting fair livelihoods.
5. Build flexibility in the face of weaknesses, shocks and tension.

In light of these five tracks, the discussion on their content and what are the important steps in their implementation was launched, as the meeting witnessed a great interaction by the attendees where they put forward their opinions and different ideas in this aspect to work a voting mechanism for opinions to discuss the necessary steps to implement them and put forward expectations regarding the beneficiaries be this change and those responsible for implementing this change in life.

importance of the ideas of Arab youth

Following this aspect, Ms. Reem Najdawi, representative of the United Nations Economic and Social Committee for Western Asia (ESCWA), stressed the importance of the ideas of Arab youth, as it represents a significant proportion of the population in the region, stating that these ideas will contribute effectively to the dialogue of regional food systems.