News
22.01.2025
Victor Pinchuk Foundation hosts discussion "Food Security in the Changing Times" on the occasion of WEF 2025
Victor Pinchuk Foundation hosted the discussion ““Food Security in the Changing Times” during WEF in Davos (Switzerland). The event was held as a part of the project ‘YOUR COUNTRY FIRST – WIN WITH US’, organized by Victor Pinchuk Foundation and PinchukArtCentre in cooperation with the Office of the President of Ukraine. The project, which combines an ongoing discussion program and an exhibition, is an immersive intellectual and visual experience, and a space for dialogue and action.
Speaking on the panel titled, ‘Food Security in the Changing Times’, Vitaliy Koval, Minister of Agrarian policy and food of Ukraine, Rania Dagash-Kamara, Assistant Executive Director, World Food Program and Taras Kachka, Trade Representative of Ukraine, Deputy Minister of Economy of Ukraine, discussed the impact of the war on global food supply.
Moderator Nataliia Gumenyuk, Co-founder, Public Interest Journalism Lab and The Reckoning project said that Ukraine has always been recognised as a leading food producer due to the scale, climate and transport infrastructure of the country.
Rania Dagash-Kamara, Assistant Executive Director, World Food Program, said: “We need to look at how we support the farmers and make changes to the global systems that are currently in place. I was based in the Horn of Africa in 2022, and we had a massive drought in Somalia, Sudan and Kenya – those countries were importing grain from Ukraine before even the drought hit. We absolutely understood the importance of Ukraine in the global food system. There was panic because we couldn’t get access to the grain. It is fundamental to our food chain. It isn’t just about Ukraine, it is about the rest of the world.
“We do trading, we do market access , we do post-harvest losses and we support about 40 countries around the globe. It wouldn’t be possible without the support of a lot of people; and Ukraine is one of the main supporters. It is fantastic to hear you want to contribute even more to reduce hunger globally.”
Vitaliy Koval, Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine, responded: “Ukrainians understand what it is to have no food. It is in our DNA to never stop producing, because we know the survival of our country depends on this. Several weeks ago I was in Syria and I saw first-hand what a long war can do a country. Our mission is to provide food security for the world. That is why a Ukrainian farmer doesn’t ask whether they should go out to the field, they just go to the field.”
Taras Kachka, Trade Representative of Ukraine, Deputy Minister of Economy of Ukraine, added: “It is not just a problem of wheat; it is about animal, meat and oil production. The EU has the most developed food system and Ukraine is central to that. Any development of food security relates to food production in Ukraine. We produce millions of agriculture products for export and domestic.”
Vitaliy Koval, Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine: “We will continue to export – last year we exported 56 million tonnes of grain, we will increase this figure this year. But to do this, we need to import all of our fuel, equipment and lubricants. We are grateful to our investors, but, everyone in this sector, please pay attention, agrarian business has the fewest resources. We have only 9% of the international investment, so when we are asked why the EU should be interested in investing in our agrarian businesses, we say because you want to make money. For us, it isn’t a level playing field as our farmers are being shelled and bombed but we are still producing so we ask for more financial support and grants. We don’t sit on our hands. We don’t despair. Those who work don’t despair. That is our motto, and we are moving forward.”
“Today we heard from President Zelenskyy that we will send food to Syria and the Syrian people. It is important for us to support our partners. Food security is something beyond miliary conflict – we cannot use it as weapon. Food supply chains are built up over many years. Ukraine has been a supplier of food to Mediterranean for thousands of years – we will continue to supply food without trade-offs.”
The project ‘YOUR COUNTRY FIRST - WIN WITH US’ is organized by the Victor Pinchuk Foundation and the PinchukArtCentre in cooperation with the Office of the President of Ukraine.
The project ‘YOUR COUNTRY FIRST - WIN WITH US’ located at Promenade 59, Davos, is a complementary event hosted on the occasion of the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum, in a space shared with Ukraine House Davos.
Agenda of the discussion program is available here https://www.winwithua.org/agenda
Photos are available here
Video is available here
