Improving the productivity of smallholder farmers can make a large difference in meeting the ever-growing demand for healthy and nutritious food around the world. In the last four decades, Dutch tropical vegetable seed company East-West Seed (EWS) has provided millions of smallholder farmers in Southeast Asia with high-quality hybrid seeds, improving their productivity and standard of living.
In November 2020, the online Week Of Indonesian Netherlands Education And Research (WINNER) kicked off successfully. This was the first time that the plethora of forward-looking sustainable development initiatives in various fields of research and education were brought together on a single platform. The event resulted in new connections between institutes, scientists and government representatives and a focus on Indonesia’s priorities in agricultural technology and climate change.
The world’s population is expected to grow by 9 billion people in 2050. To increase the supply of high quality and nutritious food, we must come up with innovative solutions that boost production and restore nature and biodiversity. The Netherlands is stepping up its contribution towards achieving global food security. In Nigeria, a group of Dutch companies founded the Seeds 4 Change (S4C) programme, to support the local horticulture sector to become self-sufficient.
With the need to provide food and energy for a global population of 9.5 billion by 2050, pressure on the use of space will increase. The world’s oceans and seas could provide the answer. They are vast, covering 70 percent of the planet. However, not belonging to man’s natural habitat, humanity has largely ignored the depth of potential within them.
As our cities change rapidly, it is difficult to predict how to meet citizens’ needs in the next 30 years, considering the multitude of challenges currently facing the world. Today, the impact of COVID-19 has affected cities around the world. Local communities play an important role in supporting governments to keep people safe and maintain economic performance in some industries.
Sport is an important enabler of sustainable development. With the aspiration of leaving no one behind and its promotion of tolerance and respect, it can be used as a platform to continue advancing economic development, encourage social inclusion and embrace environmental protection.
In 1945, the world united in laying the foundations of the United Nations (UN), in an endeavour to create international solidarity and a shared commitment to peace and security. Today, the organisation still plays an important role in fulfilling these two principles and the Sustainable Developments Goals (SDG16) that are tied into them. The Netherlands is proud to be a member of the UN and works closely with other countries to defend peace and justice worldwide.