The Union of Arab Chambers participated in the regional preparatory meeting for the follow-up to the United Nations Food Systems +4 Summit, which was held in Beirut from 16 to 17 April 2025. Attended by high-level representatives from governments, the private sector, civil society, and academia, the meeting aimed to discuss ways to achieve more resilient and sustainable food systems, assess progress in this area, and propose innovative solutions to existing challenges.
The Economic Advisor at the Union of Arab Chambers, Dr. Najoua Zhar, presented within the work of the dialogue session for the private sector, an innovative vision for transforming food systems beyond traditional concepts of supply chains, proposing a broader and more integrated concept, which is "value networks".
In her speech, she stressed the importance of adopting "value networks" based on comprehensive integration (vertical and horizontal) to ensure that all stakeholders benefit, responsible trade liberalization to facilitate the movement of goods while maintaining quality and safety, social responsibility that adheres to decent work standards and respect for human rights, environmental sustainability that adopts practices that reduce environmental impact, resilience and resilience to climate change and economic crises.
She also stressed the importance of promoting food innovation, encouraging impactful financing, investing in agricultural technology, developing sustainable value chains, and building creative partnerships between the private sector, governments, and research institutions. She called for enhanced private sector accountability through participatory transparency, open innovation, continuous performance measurement, and shared responsibility among all stakeholders.
The participation of the Union of Arab Chambers in this meeting comes within the framework of its efforts to promote sustainability and resilience in food systems in the Arab region and to contribute to achieving sustainable development goals related to food security and nutrition.
Source (Union of Arab Chambers)
