Rural development, agricultural land markets and support to family farming are promoted by FAO in Kazakhstan
27 November 2023, Astana, Kazakhstan – From 20 to 25 November 2023, experts from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) journeyed to Kazakhstan for an intense week of activities to present and discuss the results of their work under the two paralell projects “Supporting investments in smallholders inclusive agrifood value chain development in Kazakhstan”, funded by the Hungarian government and the FAO Technical Cooperation Programme, and the project “Promoting the development of agricultural land markets and supporting the development of small family farms.’’During the week, FAO organized a series of events in Astana, including a guest lecture, a roundtable discussion and national seminars on the topics of sustainable development of agricultural land markets and supporting rural development and the development of small family farms in the country.
In the spirit of fostering transparent and candid knowledge exchange, the events provided a dynamic platform for insightful discussions on the needs and development prospects for family-based agricultural producers and allowed to explore evidence-based policy solutions for the enhanced rural development planning and for the development of agricultural land markets.
Within the implementation of the UN Decade of Family Framing 2018-2029, an attempt was done to create a common understanding on who family farmers are in Kazakhstan, for which a comprehensive assessment of the situation and role of personal subsidiary and peasant farms was developed and presented during one of the workshops. The assessment, based on the results of the field survey and desk research, concluded that although the two types of producers are distinct in terms of how their operations are regulated or supported by the state, in many cased they have similar models of production. To deepen the understanding on varied typology of producers within these two groups and ensure more targeted policy interventions, it was recommended to conduct an extensive survey throughout the country, including by utilizing the opportunities of the agricultural census planned for 2024-2025.
In the recent years the issues of rural development gained importance on the agenda of the Government of Kazakhstan and for supporting rural development in Kazakhstan, FAO piloted its approach to local development applied in Europe and Central Asia region and assessed national policy and institutional frameworks. As a result, policy recommendations were prepared and introduced during one of the national workshops. The recommendations were based on both the desk research and the experience from the pilot communities.
“The “Concept of development of rural territories of the Republic of Kazakhstan for 2023-2027” is a good starting point, but based on the conducted assessment and the experiences from the Europe and Central Asia region, we see that the coherent policy design, improved capacities of national stakeholders both at national and municipal levels, as well as the introduction of bottom-up elements enhancing participation of local stakeholders in the development planning of their territories, can further support the sustainable development of rural communities in Kazakhstan,” said Morten Hartvigsen, FAO Land Tenure Officer, Regional Priority Programme Coordinator.
A guest lecture at the Seifullin Kazakh Agrotechnical University explained land-use policies and land market development and FAO’s land tenure work in the countries of Central Asia, land consolidation and land banking instruments to support sustainable agriculture and rural development to more than 100 participants.
Two national seminars welcomed about 80 participants, encouraged interactive discussion on a range of issues that can substantially improve land markets in Kazakhstan, and lay ground for inclusive policy interventions empowering small holders, family farms, rural women and youth to contribute to the improved resilience of local food systems and the targets of 2030Agenda .
The representatives of the line ministries and other state entities welcomed the efforts of FAO. “We are very pleased with the continuous cooperation with FAO during the past few years. Thanks to their work including through the organization of experience exchange events, I personally experienced an opinion change and think that there is a development path for small-scale producers as well,” said Saule Moldabayeva, the Director of the Department of Strategic Planning and Analysis at the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
Other highlights included a discussion on preliminary findings from a study on land tenure and land markets in the context of smallholder farms in two rural districts of Kazakhstan.
