© Guy Ackermans
The conference lasted for two days. Around 600 participants discussed how to achieve the second sustainable development goal: Zero Hunger.
Akin Adesina, president of the African Development Bank, indicated that money is not the issue in developing sustainable food systems. According to the former Minister of Agriculture of Nigeria, the main question is: how can we translate money into food, energy and roads?
Paul Polman, CEO at Unilever, was pessimistic about the deforestation, the acidification of the oceans and the increasing inequality around the world, but he saw many opportunities for companies to invest in sustainable development. ‘The sustainable development goals are the main source of income of Unilever.’
Ertharin Cousin, former director of the United Nation’s World Food Programme, thinks that governments, companies and NGOs should collaborate on sustainable food systems. ‘We still lack understanding of partnerships with the private sector, as we only tell them to chase profits’, says the American. ‘They have to make profit, of course, but they can also create jobs and help protect the environment in the process. There are too few people like Paul Polman.’
Additional reading:
‘We need others to achieve anything’
‘Policy entrepreneurs can improve food security’
‘Engage the private sector in sustainable development’
‘Make it uncomfortable for governments to do little about hunger’
‘I want to bridge global goals with local context’