This text is part of the special International Solidarity section
We must invite as many people as possible to the table of food sovereignty, argues AQOCI.
According to the United Nations (UN), 17% of global food production is wasted, whether at home, in restaurants or in stores. In contrast, in 2022, there will be between 691 and 783 million people facing hunger. How could we reconcile these sad paradoxes, and fairly distribute food often produced in difficult conditions? The answer may lie in food sovereignty.
This project does not lack ambition, especially for populations afflicted by natural disasters, armed conflicts, and the growing threat of climate change. During the Quebec International Solidarity Days, which will take place in 12 regions and 40 municipalities until the beginning of December, debates, conferences, shows and film screenings will follow one another on the same theme: Let’s cultivate our rights. Food sovereignty.
Launched in 1996 by the Quebec Association of International Cooperation Organizations (AQOCI), the initiative will highlight the various facets of this concept, its benefits… and what it is not. “Some people think it’s about food self-sufficiency, fearing they will no longer be able to eat bananas! smiles Michèle Asselin, general director of AQOCI. Achieving food sovereignty is the guarantee that the population of a State will have the right to healthy, affordable food, relying on local production and short circuits. » She immediately recognizes the scale of the task, especially given the power of multinationals and the complexity of free trade agreements, with governments being bound by the rules of the World Trade Organization.
Cultivate engagement
However, this equitable and responsible way of feeding its population can become anchored in the landscape. During a conference at the Espace Quatre Cents in Quebec on November 8, it is this possible dream that Outcha Akoua Enyonam, member of the African Institute for Economic and Social Development (INADES-Formation), will illustrate. involved in Togo to promote agroecology supported by women. For this sociologist, it is essential to choose products “with high nutritional value, but also cultural value, resilient to climate change, and not only cultivated, but also marketed, from rural areas to restaurants in urban areas” . She also gives the example of the cultivation of fonio, considered the oldest cereal on the African continent, “which tended to disappear, and which is now being revalued in Togo”.
This type of initiative gives a lot of hope to Michèle Asselin who, like all people involved in international cooperation, “refuses to give in to pessimism”. Even if there are many obstacles on the road to food sovereignty, including “multinationals occupying the most fertile lands to practice monoculture with poorly paid workers who are unable to feed themselves well”, citizen mobilization can reverse steam.
The AQOCI management also hopes that we will be able to learn some lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic. “It made us realize to what extent we are interdependent, and it is the same when it comes to food issues, because there too we need to change economic systems for others that are more respectful of the environment. »
The Haitian example
While initiatives like those defended by Outcha Akoua Enyonam represent, according to her, “a strong movement which makes its choices, knows what it must do, and what it must consume”, international institutions are also starting to get involved. time for food sovereignty. Michèle Asselin sees a lot of hope emerging in an approach where humanitarian aid “is not limited to dumpingbut favors local agriculture, including food distribution companies.”
For example, even far from media attention, Haiti is not limited to its crises, which are obviously very real, according to the director of AQOCI. “Farmers have real knowledge, know their land, and seek to integrate various strategies. For its part, the UN World Food Program is aiming for 100% local purchases within a few years in Haiti. Yes, the Haitian people are in great need of support, but they are working to feed their population. » It just goes to show that setting the big table for food sovereignty is everyone’s business.
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