From paradox to progress: How food systems are powering social change

DOHA, Qatar — At the Second World Summit for Social Development, the conversation turned to what’s on our plates — and what it means for people’s lives.

Nearly four billion people earn their livelihoods from food systems, yet millions of those same farmers, vendors, and food workers struggle to provide their families with sufficient and nutritious food. It’s a paradox that the United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed described in stark terms as she opened the “Leading Just Transitions” Solutions Event in Doha on 5 November.

“Their hands feed the world, yet hundreds of millions of them go to bed hungry each night,” she said. “We must move from paradox to progress on our plates – and make food systems work for everyone.”

The session — co-organized by the UN Food Systems Coordination Hub, the Governments of Ethiopia and Ireland, and the UN Joint SDG Fund — set out to show how transforming food systems can drive decent work, social inclusion, and poverty eradication, the three core pillars of social development.

Setting the stage

Ambassador Feisel Aliyi Abraham of Ethiopia and Sarah Hunt of Ireland’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade opened the discussion by reflecting on the human face of food systems transformation.

Ambassador Abraham spoke of Ethiopia’s sweeping national programmes — from digital agriculture and irrigation expansion to reforestation through the Green Legacy Initiative — as proof that coordinated public policy can drive both productivity and dignity. Ms. Hunt underscored how universal social protection helped Ireland transition from a subsistence-based agriculture economy to a more inclusive one, noting that similar approaches can help other countries link food security with decent work and resilience.

Their messages converged on a shared theme: that lasting social development begins with ensuring people not only have enough to eat in both quantity and quality, but can earn a living from the systems that feed us all and give their children the chance to break the intergeneration cycle of poverty and malnutrition

Food systems as a social engine

A ministerial panel featuring speakers from Somalia, Indonesia, and Brazil shared how food systems transformation is becoming a catalyst for social progress in their countries.

Somalia’s State Minister for Agriculture and Irrigation, Asad Abdirisaq Mohamed, described how the government is promoting the accompaniment of smallholder food producers from social safety programme recipients, to full-fledged actors of resilient and nutritious local food systems, establishing livelihood graduating options, school meal programmes, and supporting climate-smart livelihoods for women and youth. “We’re moving from a cycle of crisis response to proactive, growth-driven solutions,” he said.

Indonesia’s Vice Minister for National Development Planning, Febrian Ruddyard, outlined innovative financing tools — from green bonds to agricultural insurance — designed to empower farmers. “When farmers have knowledge, confidence, and voice,” he noted, “finance becomes more than numbers. It becomes empowerment.”

From Brazil, Vice Minister for Social Development and the Fight Against Hunger, Lilian Rahal, explained how democratic governance and social participation underpin Brazil’s progress. She highlighted Bolsa Família, a conditional cash transfer programme reaching nearly 19 million families — about 50 million people — which links income support to health and education to strengthen nutrition and social inclusion. Paired with a national school feeding programme serving 40 million students daily, Brazil is bringing food security, social protection, and climate justice under one coherent agenda.

Beyond food: Dignity, work, and inclusion

The session’s second half highlighted partnerships bringing those principles to life.

From Tajikistan, UN Resident Coordinator Parvathy Ramaswami highlighted how women farmers are using heritage seeds and green technologies to adapt to climate pressures in remote mountain communities. Ambassador Gabriel Ferrero of the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program urged far greater investment in smallholder farmers, who currently receive only 0.3 to 0.7 percent of global climate finance — often amounting to less than $25 per farmer per year.

Youth leader Nada Zamel of the UN Food Systems Hub’s Youth Leadership Programme emphasized that “the food system is not only about food — it’s about justice and dignity,” and called for young people to be treated as equal partners in building sustainable, inclusive food systems.

Representing the Coalition on Social Protection and Food Systems Transformation, Matthew Hollingworth showcased the power of linking school meals and local agriculture: 92 percent of ingredients for Lebanon’s school meal programme are sourced from nearby farmers and businesses, creating jobs while improving nutrition. The coalition — launched at the UN Food Systems Summit to bring UN agencies and partners together around stronger food–social protection synergies — highlights how such integrated approaches can strengthen resilience.

“When social protection and food systems are designed hand in hand,” Hollingworth said, “they deliver not just food, but dignity, stability, and opportunity.”

Connecting global agendas

The session drew a direct line from the UN Food Systems Summit Stocktake (UNFSS+4) held in Addis Ababa earlier this year to the outcome of the Second World Summit for Social Development — the consensus-based Doha Political Declaration. Framing social justice as inseparable from peace, human rights, and climate action, the Declaration reaffirms global commitments to poverty eradication, decent work, and social inclusion.

For food systems, Article 32 is especially significant. It acknowledges that one-third of the world’s population remains food-insecure and places ending hunger and malnutrition at the center of social development. Member States commit to accelerating action through sustainable, resilient, and inclusive agrifood systems; expanding early-childhood and school meal programmes; supporting smallholders, women farmers, and rural communities; reducing food loss and waste; and ensuring equitable access to land, water, and productive resources. The Declaration also calls for strengthened international cooperation — from technology transfer and capacity-building to financial support and stable agricultural markets — underscoring that transforming food systems is essential not only for nutrition, but for dignity, livelihoods, and social cohesion. The emphasis in Article 32 echoes key elements of the Secretary-General’s UNFSS+4 Call to Action — delivering in complex settings, strengthening policy coordination, scaling finance, integrating environmental and social goals, harnessing science and new technologies responsibly, and elevating youth leadership — reinforcing the need for cross-sector alignment behind a unified vision for sustainable development.

“Food systems sit where social, economic, and environmental goals meet,” said Stefanos Fotiou, Director of the UN Food Systems Coordination Hub. “They are already driving change. What we need now are financial instruments and partnerships designed with people, not profit, at their core.”

Watch the session recording