27-28 September 2023, Budapest, Hungary

To assist Members of the Europe and Central Asia region in cooperating on agricultural problems and to make recommendations on current matters within the geographical and technical competence of the European Commission on Agriculture (ECA), FAO convenes the Forty-third Session of the European Commission on Agriculture to be held in Budapest, Hungary on 27 and 28 September 2023.

The session is dedicated to the sustainable use of land and water resources in Europe and Central Asia, reflecting current challenges related to these issues in the region.

Land degradation, soil salinity, lack of proper land tenure mechanisms, water stress, and climate change are among the main challenges affecting the region. Extreme events, such as droughts and flash floods, have become realities in many countries, showing that proper water management and governance are necessary and must be done in an integrated and transborder way, together with sustainable land and soil management and the proper governance of land tenure. The Commission will discuss these topics and connect them at the regional level using a multidisciplinary and multisectoral approach.

A regional approach to policy guidance and governance structures for land and water is necessary to ensure the sustainable use of these natural resources. It would also contribute to more resilient food systems and promote ecosystem services and the conservation of biodiversity in the region. This would allow countries to strengthen their production of goods and services in a sustainable way, improve nutrition and livelihoods and share good practices, experiences and lessons learned, thus contributing to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 6 target 6.4 and SDG 15 target 15.3.

Integrated land and water resources management and governance are essential to the sustainable use of these resources. The Commission will be invited to explore these issues in depth as subtopics of the main technical theme. Each subtopic will also consider cross-cutting aspects of the land and water nexus, in particular climate change, biodiversity, gender equality, and food security.

 

Provisional list of documents

 

ECA/43/23/REPORT ECA/43/23/1  Report of the Forty-third Session of the European Commission on Agriculture Provisional Annotated Agenda ECA/43/23/2 Rev.2 Provisional Timetable ECA/43/23/3 Sustainable use of land and water resources in Europe and Central Asia ECA/43/23/4 Rev.1 Enhancing the resilience and sustainability of national agrifood systems through integrated land and water resources management in Europe and Central Asia ECA/43/23/5 Governance of tenure in the context of integrated land and water management in Europe and Central Asia ECA/43/23/6 Overview of land degradation neutrality in Europe and Central Asia ECA/43/23/7 Importance of water governance for enhancing water security in Europe and Central Asia ECA/43/23/8 Rev.1      FAO’s response to the multiple crises in Europe and Central Asia ECA/43/23/9    Advancing gender equality in the region: update on the progress made ECA/43/23/10  Progress made by the FAO Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia on the main recommendations of the Forty-second Session of the ECA ECA/43/23/11  Amendment of the Rules of Procedure of the ECA ECA/43/23/12     Election of the ECA Chairperson, the first and second Vice-Chairpersons and the other members of the Executive Committee     INF SERIES   ECA/43/23/INF/1 Rev.2 Provisional List of Documents ECA/43/23/INF/2 Information Note ECA/43/23/INF/3 Statement of Competence and Voting Rights submitted by the European Union and its Member States ECA/43/23/INF/4 Advancing the digital transformation of agriculture and rural areas through national strategies, e-Government systems, and Digital Villages - update for Europe and Central Asia ECA/43/23/INF/5 Integration of science and innovation into regional priorities for enhancing agri-food system transformation - Progress in implementation of the Action Plan in Europe and Central Asia ECA/43/23/INF/6 Food systems transformation in Europe and Central Asia - Information on FAO's work in the region

 

 

Webcast

 

Day 1	Day 2

ECA43 virtual session (27 November)