NUTRITION

Healthy eating. Argentina, Brazil, Mexico and the rest of the G20 countries stressed the need to combat overweight and to reduce the gender wage gap in order to move towards a healthier and more equitable world. This was set out in the final declaration of the summit of Heads of State and Government of the international forum, which took place between November 30 and December 1 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Member states will continue to discuss these issues at the next G20 summit, to be held in Osaka, Japan, June 28-29, 2019.

In relation to food issues, the leaders agreed to counter malnutrition in all its forms, especially as manifested in childhood overweight and obesity, through public-private partnerships, thus working to achieve healthier societies that in turn contribute to strengthening economic development. Meanwhile, governments assumed responsibility for promoting decent and inclusive work and reducing the gender pay gap.

Finally, all member countries except the United States ratified the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. As such, all 19 countries pledged to support job creation through investment in cleaner energy sources, with productive systems gradually moving towards a green economy. One of the main objectives will be to prevent climate change from posing a threat to the integrity of vulnerable countries, such as the Caribbean island states.

The G20 is an international forum that brings together industrialized economies and the world’s most important emerging countries. It is composed of: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, the United States, the United Kingdom, Turkey and the European Union. Specialized agencies such as the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) also participate in the meetings.

Next steps

The G20 meeting serves to give profile in the global agenda to the issues of nutrition, health, sustainability and labor, among other priorities. G20 members will continue to discuss these topics at the next summit, to be held in Osaka, Japan, June 28-29, 2019. Likewise, various international organizations, such as the ILO and FAO, will contribute to the analysis and discussion of the proposals.