11 May 2016: A group of Nobel Peace Prize Laureates have joined forces to form a “brain trust” to advocate for taking peace into account in all efforts to achieve and maintain food security, and to provide strategic advice to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) on strengthening the link between peace and food security in the agency’s work.

The ‘FAO-Nobel Peace Laureates Alliance for Food Security and Peace’ was launched during a formal event at FAO headquarters in Rome, Italy, and attended by several of the participating Laureates. FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva stressed that agriculture and food security are key drivers of recovery and rebuilding in communities affected by conflict.

In their speeches, the attending Laureates outlined causes of conflict and strategies to jointly achieve peace and food security. Muhammad Yunus, Founder, Grameen Bank, underlined the role of rural entrepreneurship and the need to redesign failed institutions in addressing hunger and instability. Óscar Arias, former President of Costa Rica, noted the need to address the underlying causes of migration, including hunger and lack of resilience and food insecurity. Tawakkol Karman, former member of the UN post-2015 High-Level Panel, stressed the need to address inequality.

Betty Williams, President, World Centers of Compassion for Children International, suggested that FAO adopt the Universal Declaration on the Rights of Children, which considers hunger an act of war against children. In a video message, former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, President, Kofi Annan Foundation, called for a more holistic approach to peace and food security. [FAO Press Release] [Webcast of Launch Event] [Technical Note on FAO’s Work on Peace and Food Security]