Mozambique

Comment by UN Human Rights spokesperson Seif Magango on tensions in Mozambique

• Emerging concerns: Food price volatility and government accountability decline

Seven indicators show significant decline, including increased food price volatility, worsening government accountability, and decreased civil society participation. These shifts suggest challenges in maintaining stability and policy coherence amid global crises.

• Interactions drive complex outcomes

The report highlights how changes in one area, such as governance or diet quality, affect other areas, emphasizing the need for coordinated, cross-sectoral approaches. Case studies from Ethiopia, Mexico, and the Netherlands illustrate the local relevance of these dynamics.

A Call to Action

Mario Herrero, Professor and Director of the Food Systems & Global Change Program, Cornell University, said, “This report sheds light on the ways different areas of food systems are related and interact, which is critical in understanding how we can focus our efforts to maximize synergies, manage trade-offs, and avoid unintended consequences.”

The report identifies governance and resilience as pivotal leverage points for food system transformation. Targeted improvements in these areas could catalyze positive changes across other indicators, amplifying global progress.

Jessica Fanzo, Professor of Climate and Director of the Food for Humanity Initiative, Columbia Climate School, said, “We need wholesale reform of our food systems so we can provide the world’s population with the nutritious food needed to grow and develop. We are facing a syndemic of challenges: increasing diet related disease, continued undernutrition, and a changing climate. Combating these requires significant and rapid change. This study is so important because it shows the speed of change so far, to guide more action because we can only manage what we measure.”

José Rosero Moncayo, Chief Statistician and Director of the Statistics Division, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), concluded, “This report provides a clear roadmap for evidence-based policymaking. As we enter the final five years of the SDG process, we have to double down on areas of progress while addressing persistent gaps, keeping the interconnectedness of food systems at the forefront. At the same time efforts are needed to improve the pool of indicators we have at our disposal to describe and analyze different elements of the system. As the report points out, the Countdown Initiative has a strong commitment to filling the current data gaps”.

Editor’s note:

The term “food systems” is used in line with the United Nations Food Systems Summit language. However, the FSCI indicator framework considers broader agrifood systems encompassing activities and processes related to non-food agricultural products (e.g., forestry, fibres, biofuels, etc.) that are interconnected with food for human consumption. Many indicators cannot distinguish food and non-food components of production and value addition and non-food components greatly influence the environment, social outcomes, and the food people ultimately eat.

About the Food Systems Countdown Initiative

The FSCI is a global research initiative uniting scientists, policymakers, and civil society to monitor food system transformations. The initiative complements SDG monitoring, providing annual insights to guide progress toward more equitable, sustainable, and resilient food systems.

SOURCE United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)