Theme: “Hand in Hand for Better Foods and a Better Future.”
16 October 2025 - Today, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) joins the global community in commemorating World Food Day 2025 under the theme “Hand in Hand for Better Foods and a Better Future.” This theme is a powerful reminder that achieving food and nutrition security requires collective action, cross-sectoral partnerships and a shared vision for a prosperous and resilient future.
Food and nutrition security remain central to SADC’s regional integration agenda. The SADC Secretariat continues to support Member States in building resilient agrifood systems by strengthening policies that promote equitable access to land, water, forests, fisheries, livestock, and agricultural inputs. We also advance nutrition-sensitive approaches that address the needs of women, infants and young children, youth, smallholders, and vulnerable populations.
Despite these efforts, food and nutritional insecurity across Southern Africa remains unacceptably high. According to the 2024 SADC State of Food and Nutrition Security Report, an estimated 67.7 million people across 16 Member States were food insecure during the 2024–2025 period. Child malnutrition remains a serious concern, with approximately 23 million children under five estimated to be stunted, and 49 million affected by child food poverty, meaning they lack access to the diverse food groups necessary for optimal growth.
To address these challenges, the SADC Secretariat, with support from its partners, continues to implement strategic interventions to strengthen agrifood systems. The EUR 10 million European Union-funded project “Support Towards the Operationalization of the SADC Regional Agricultural Policy” (STOSAR II), implemented in partnership with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and SADC Member States, has been instrumental in advancing these efforts and accelerating the implementation of the SADC Regional Agricultural Policy (RAP).
Phase I of the STOSAR Project laid critical foundations by supporting the development of harmonised regional policy frameworks, strengthening agricultural information systems, particularly through the SADC Agricultural Information Management System (AIMS), and improving institutional coordination. It also enhanced productivity in both crop and livestock sectors through improved plant and animal health management, disease and pest surveillance, promotion of safe trade, and support for food fortification strategies and policies. These efforts have expanded market access and improved food availability, safety, and diversity across the region.
Building on these gains, STOSAR II deepens regional integration and scales up coordinated action to operationalise the RAP. It strengthens agricultural information systems for evidence-based planning, harmonises frameworks for plant and animal health to safeguard production and trade, and enhances food and nutrition security monitoring and response. The project also promotes inclusive value chain development, agro-processing, and market integration to stimulate investment, create jobs, and boost regional competitiveness. These efforts align with the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) and SADC Vision 2050.
In recent years, agrifood systems have faced unprecedented pressures from conflict, climate extremes, economic shocks, and rising inequality – all placing immense stress on land, water resources, and biodiversity. As these challenges intensify, SADC remains committed to supporting Member States in building resilience through disaster risk reduction and response, early warning systems, land restoration, improved water and soil management, and promotion of climate-adapted agricultural innovations.
In collaboration with FAO under the Hand-in-Hand (HiHi) framework, SADC is scaling up efforts to implement data-driven, country-led programmes that accelerate agrifood systems transformation. This includes the use of geospatial modelling and analytic tools, alongside robust partnership-building approaches to guide investments into high-potential areas for irrigation, mechanisation, agro-processing, and trade integration. These efforts aim to shift the region from crisis response to long-term transformation, raising incomes, improving dietary diversity and nutritional status, and strengthening resilience to climate change.
As we commemorate World Food Day 2025, I call upon all stakeholders, Member States, development partners, regional institutions, the private sector, civil society, farmer organisations, and communities, to continue working hand in hand. Together, we must empower smallholder farmers, women, youth, and vulnerable groups; prioritise nutrition in agricultural planning; and strengthen partnerships and innovation.
The SADC Secretariat encourages Member States to align national frameworks with the Right to Adequate Food by integrating it into agricultural, social protection, and nutrition policies and programmes. Let us reaffirm our shared commitment to a food-secure, resilient, and prosperous SADC region, where every person can live free from hunger and malnutrition, and where agriculture serves as a true pathway to sustainable development.
H.E Mr. Elias Magosi
Executive Secretary
Southern African Development Community (SADC)
