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Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development

A world without hunger is possible. With the 'One World, No Hunger' initiative launched in 2014, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) has given a new level of priority to this goal and provided substantial additional funding. Including the special initiative, the BMZ invests some 1.5 billion EUR annually in the areas of food supply and rural development.

Currently led by Federal Minister Svenja Schulze (German social-democratic party, SPD), the BMZ employs around 1,230 staff at its two offices in Bonn and Berlin. Some of them also work for German development policy at German foreign missions or international organisations around the world. Founded in 1961, the Ministry works to encourage economic development within Germany and in countries around the world through international cooperation and partnerships. The ministry works with international organizations involved in development projects including the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and the United Nations. Both GIZ and KfW are implementing agencies associated with the BMZ.

The Federal Republic of Germany is committed to making a significant contribution to the realization of the right to food for all people. To this end, the BMZ is using the special initiative 'One World, No Hunger' to build on existing commitments in our partner countries, is shaping international policy and is working together with various partners such as the churches, civil society organizations, business and science. The BMZ sees itself as a source of opportunity and supports local people's commitment, for example, through scholarships, training and education programs.

The fight against hunger and malnutrition has many facets. The BMZ is supporting the people of the partner countries through six key areas:

1. Securing the food supply

2. Avoiding famine and strengthening resilience

3. Innovations in the agricultural and nutritional sector

4. Structural change in rural areas

5. Protection of natural resources and soil rehabilitation

6. Safe and fair access to resources and land

www.bmz.de

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Projects

XtraPay - thanks to farmers

XtraPay wants to make international supply chains more transparent and establish a direct connection between producer and consumer. The bonus payment system was successfully piloted on 16 August in ten Edeka supermarkets in Braunschweig.

A project of BMZ

“More of the same is not enough - we need to rethink”

An interview with Dirk Meyer

Four interviews kick off the relaunch under the new name „Food4Transformation“, asking the same questions from different perspectives. Dirk Meyer, Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, thinks: less individual solutions are needed, but more systemic approaches. Because in addition to the goals for food security, the issues of climate and biodiversity must also be taken into account.

Five Questions for Dirk Meyer

An Interview with Dirk Meyer (BMZ)

Development cooperation needs to place good governance and a sustainable agri-food systems transformation at its center: After the first 100 days in office have passed, Dirk Meyer from the German Development Ministry (BMZ) spells out the goals, guidelines and priorities of the Ministry’s new lead.

A dashboard as a key tool for global food security

A Contribution by BMZ

The Global Alliance for Food Security (GAFS), jointly launched by the German G7 Presidency and the World Bank, released the Global Food and Nutrition Security Dashboard during COP27: A Rapid Response Tool for Coordinating Global Action for Food Security.

What does it take to truly shift the paradigm on food systems?

An Interview by GDPRD

Why are short- and long-term responses important to address current and future global crises? Sebastian Lesch, Head of the Agriculture Division at the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), provides answers to these and other questions in an interview with the Global Donor Platform for Rural Development (GDPRD) and explains how much Germany welcomes all donors pulling together and acting in concert.

From Berlin to Yen Bai: 10,000 trees for Vietnam

A contribution by GIZ and BMZ

It began with clicks at a trade fair and ends with concrete reforestation: a campaign at the Green Week in Berlin is now enriching the forests of the Yen Bai Province in Vietnam. A chronicle of an education about climatic relevance to concrete action - and about the short distances on our planet.

Developing countries hit doubly hard by coronavirus

A contribution by Gunter Beger (BMZ)

In most African countries, the infection COVID-19 is likely to trigger a combined health and food crisis. This means: In order to cope with this unprecedented crisis, consistently aligning our policies to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is more important than ever, our author maintains.

“We have to prepare for the unexpected”

Interview with Dr Maria Flachsbarth (BMZ)

In August, Germany’s development ministry set up a division concentrating on One Health topics. Parliamentary State Secretary Maria Flachsbarth on knowledge gaps at the human-animal-environmental interface, the link between One Health and food security, and lessons learnt from previous pandemics.

Ideas on the ground: Local solutions for global challenges

Interview with Sebastian Lesch (BMZ)

A world without hunger and with sufficient healthy food as well as climate-friendly agriculture can only be achieved if ideas are transformed into innovations and ultimately also applied - a conversation with BMZ Head of Division Sebastian Lesch on the Innovation Challenge programme of the new Agricultural Innovation Fund.

Sebastian Lesch

Since mid 2018 Sebastian Lesch has been head of the Agriculture Department of the BMZ, which is responsible for a wide range of topics from agricultural trade and global agricultural supply chains such as soya, palm oil, cocoa or coffee, for the Common European Agricultural Policy to concrete innovation in our project work with a wide range of partners worldwide.

Dirk Meyer

Dirk Meyer is the Head of Directorate‐General 1 'Global health, employment, transformation of the economy, digital technologies, food and nutrition security' at the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

Dr Maria Flachsbarth

Dr. Maria Flachsbarth is the Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development. She has been a member of the German Bundestag since 2002 and is a trained veterinarian. Since 2013 Dr. Flachsbarth has been Parliamentary State Secretary in two coalition governments of Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Gunther Beger

Since October 2014, Gunther Beger has been Head of Division 1 (Policy Issues; Economy; Trade; Rural Development) at the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). From December 2013 to October 2014 he headed the Executive Staff at BMZ. Beger, born in Bonn in 1961, studied agricultural sciences with a focus on economics, social sciences and development policy. From 1991 onwards, he worked for over 20 years in various functions at the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL), most recently as Head of the Department for International Projects. From 1995 to 2000, he was Agricultural Officer at the German Embassy in Moscow. From 2003 to 2005, Beger worked as an advisor to the CDU/CSU parliamentary group in the German Bundestag in the areas of agriculture, consumer and environmental protection.

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