The development of international law: innovate today, nourish tomorrow

Ambassador Martin Selmayr attended the event, entitled “FAO contribution to the development of international law: innovate today, nourish tomorrow”, as part of the inaugural FAO International Law Day.

The International Institute of Agriculture (IIA) was the first international organisation to systematically produce and exchange global data on crops, cultivated land, and trade flows. It was founded in Rome on 7 June 1905 on the initiative of the US visionary David Lubin and under the patronage of Italy’s King Vittorio Emanuele III. In 1945, the IAA became the Food and Agriculture Organization (UN), which is today a specialized agency of the United Nations. 

Very interesting intervention made by Professor Luciano Tosi who spoke about the historic origins of multilateral cooperation in the field of agriculture and by FAO’s Deputy Director-General Maurizio Martina, who spoke about FAO’s modern mandate, which encompasses both food and agriculture and has made Rome, together with WFP and IFAD, the global hub for food security in the world. 

It is in Rome where the international community discusses today global drivers of hunger and food insecurity, from the serious disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz and in the Red Sea via the consequences of El Niño to the escalation of Russia’s war of aggression in the Black Sea which continues to undermine grain supplies to many African countries.