Speakers (confirmed)
Deputy Director-General, FAO
Head of Unit, Directorate General for International Partnerships, European Commission
Director, Global Engagement, Partnerships and Resource Mobilization, IFAD
Chief Investment Officer, AgDevCo
Fund Portfolio Manager, UN Multi-Partner Trust Fund Office
Country Director, WFP, Bangladesh
Additional Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture of Bangladesh
Ambassador and Special Envoy, Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Communications Coordination Analyst, GDPRD
Director, Division of Agrifood Systems and Food Safety, FAO
Moderator
Jim Woodhill
Senior Advisor, GDPRD
CO-ORGANIZERS
Global Donor Platform for Rural Development (GDPRD); Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO); International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)
INTRODUCTION
Marking the UN’s 80th anniversary, this side event will reaffirm the importance of doubling down the global communities efforts on agrifood systems, strengthening multilateralism at a time of mounting global crises, declining official development assistance, and weakening international cooperation. It will spotlight the transformation of agrifood systems as a cornerstone for achieving prosperity, wellbeing, and global security.
The session will highlight how blended public–private investment and multilateral pooled funding mechanisms can serve as complementary drivers to mobilize resources and deliver sustainable, inclusive, and resilient agrifood systems.
Drawing on insights from the GDPRD High-Level Advisory Group and its 2025 White Paper “Financing Agrifood Systems for People, Planet and Prosperity”, the event will explore strategic recommendations to scale investment and align donor strategies.
At the heart of this event is a clear call to action: Agrifood systems must become a top-tier investment priority.
THE DISCUSSIONS WILL:
By convening governments, UN agencies, International Financial Institutions (IFIs), and the private sector, the session will demonstrate how coordinated approaches can reduce fragmentation and catalyse large-scale, sustainable investment. In celebrating 80 years of the UN, the event will chart a forward-looking vision of joint action and financing for more equitable and food-secure futures.
| Provisional agenda | |
|---|---|
| Moderator: Jim Woodhill, Senior Advisor, GDPRD | |
| 11:45 – 11:50 | Welcome and scene-setting Jim Woodhill, Senior Advisor, GDPRD |
| 11:50 – 11:55 | Introductory key messages Maurizio Martina, Deputy Director-General, FAO |
| 11:55 – 12:15 | Broader context: Strategic alignment of blended public-private and multilateral investments Interactive discussion Leonard Mizzi, Head of Unit, Directorate General for International Partnerships, European Commission Ron Hartman, Director, Global Engagement, Partnerships and Resource Mobilization (IFAD) Chris Isaac, Chief Investment Officer, AgDevCo Mari Matsumoto, Fund Portfolio Manager, UN Multi-Partner Trust Fund Office |
| 12:15 – 12:35 | Examples/Solutions: Stories from the field and lessons learned Presentation of case studies Dom Scalpelli, Country Director, WFP Bangladesh Dr. Md. Mahmudur Rahman, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture of Bangladesh Paul Gulleik Larsen, Ambassador and Special Envoy, Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs |
| 12:35 – 12:50 | Interactive Q&A |
| 12:50 – 13:00 | Reflections and closing remarks Michelle Tang, Communications Coordination Analyst, GDPRD Corinna Hawkes, Director, Division of Agrifood Systems and Food Safety, FAO |
