Accelerating Inclusive, Resilient and Sustainable Food Systems Transitions for People and Planet

28 July 2025 – Addis Ababa: The United Nations launched the Report of the Secretary-General for the Second Food Systems Summit Stocktake (UNFSS+4), that took place from July 27-29, 2025. The report calls for accelerated action to transform the world’s food systems as a cornerstone of delivering the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. As the SDG deadline approaches, the report outlines the growing momentum and the urgent need to scale up food systems that are not only resilient but also inclusive and rights based.  

This report includes key subjects of the Second World Summit on Social Development, touching on topics such as prioritization of inclusion, especially in governance and policymaking.  

Key Messages on Inclusion and Food Systems 

• The urgency of building resilient, sustainable and inclusive food systems is increasingly evident in multiple settings. Climate shocks, COVID-19 impacts, inflation, and environmental crises are threatening livelihoods. 

• Amid regional tensions and trade wars, there is a need to encourage the emergence of fair, inclusive and resilient food systems. This requires collective governance, convergent policies, and coordinated implementation.  

• Many countries are advancing inclusivity by prioritizing the needs of women, young people, and Indigenous Peoples, smallholder farmers and producers, and persons with disabilities in national food systems policies and initiatives.  

• Countries also report enhanced collaboration both within government and with external actors, including academia, civil society, Coalitions of Action, donor representatives, IFIs, food producers and networks, Indigenous Peoples, the private sector, regional bodies, the UN system, youth networks and women’s organizations.  

• Countries are actively working to increase participation of these groups in policymaking processes, enhance their economic inclusion through access to employment and value chains, and improve their access to land, financial services, training, extension services, and technology — for example, Qatar has integrated youth into its agrifood programmes, and Finland is working to improve livelihoods for the Sami Indigenous communities. 

Looking ahead to the Second World Summit for Social Development this November in Qatar, the findings of the UNFSS+4 report offer critical input to the Summit’s agenda. The emphasis on inclusive food systems governance, equitable access to resources, and the right to food aligns closely with the Summit’s core themes of social justice, decent work, and universal social protection. The Summit is expected to build on the outcomes of the report, linking food systems transformation to decent jobs, digital connectivity, education, employment, and social protection. As governments and stakeholders prepare for the Summit, the momentum from Addis Ababa provides a foundation to elevate food systems as a lever for advancing human development, reducing inequality, and securing a more just and sustainable future for all. 
 
Read the full UNFSS+4 Report here.