Elzubi to Al-Ghad: Can Accelerating the Operation of the “Regional Food Security Observatory” Transform Jordan into a Regional Data Hub?
In this context, international food security expert Dr. Fadel Elzubi stated that recent years have witnessed mounting challenges to food security in the Arab region, driven by global food price volatility, geopolitical crises, and the impacts of climate change.
He noted that the initiative launched by His Majesty King Abdullah II to establish the Regional Food Security Observatory in Jordan was designed to serve as an advanced regional platform for data collection, analysis, and the issuance of periodic reports to support decision-makers.
Elzubi added: In 2021, His Majesty King Abdullah II declared the “Year of Food Security,” emphasizing the need to position Jordan as a regional hub in this field.
He continued: In September 2022, the agriculture ministers of Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan convened to support Jordan’s initiative to host the observatory. Later, in March 2024, during the 37th FAO Regional Conference in Amman, a pilot model of the observatory was presented in the presence of the Prime Minister at the time.
Furthermore, in March of last year, a formal agreement was signed between the Ministry of Agriculture and FAO to launch the observatory under the Technical Cooperation Program, covering the Mashreq countries: Jordan, Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Palestine, and Syria. According to Elzubi, the observatory aims to provide accurate and updated data on food security and nutrition indicators, issue analytical reports on trends in prices, production, transport, and food availability.
It also seeks to develop early warning systems to monitor potential crises, establish a cloud-based database linked to FAO dashboards and crisis management centers, strengthen regional cooperation, and design a regional plan to monitor achievements and outputs. The observatory will also be connected to national information centers such as the Ministry of Agriculture, the Department of Statistics, and the Jordanian Food Security Council.
Elzubi emphasized that the observatory represents a strategic opportunity to consolidate Jordan’s role as a regional hub for food security and strategic analysis. It enhances the Kingdom’s capacity to confront food crises, supports national policies with evidence-based data, attracts international funding and partnerships, improves Jordan’s ranking on the Global Food Security Index, and grants the Kingdom a leadership role in shaping regional food security policies.
Among the key expected benefits are improved crisis response through early warning systems, greater transparency and accountability in managing food resources, and the development of regional information systems serving researchers and policymakers. The observatory will also foster cooperation between national and regional institutions, provide a platform for knowledge and expertise exchange, and support the Sustainable Development Goals—particularly Goal 2: “Zero Hunger.”
He pointed out that establishing the observatory requires several practical steps, including building technical infrastructure through digital platforms for data collection and analysis, training national and regional staff on analytical tools, harmonizing indicators and statistical standards among participating countries, securing sustainable funding through partnerships with international organizations, and issuing periodic reports to assess the food security situation.
The project also includes specific activities such as developing a regional dashboard, organizing workshops and training sessions on data collection and analysis, creating protocols for data exchange among countries, building a robust information management database, and preparing semi-annual and annual reports on the state of food security in the Mashreq region.