Agriculture has traditionally been the backbone of Swaziland’s economy but has experienced severe decline. Its contribution to GDP has decreased gradually over the last two decades due to a number of factors, including recurring drought, chronic underinvestment and the impact of HIV and AIDS. Despite this, agriculture-based products account for...

En las últimas semanas se ha hablado mucho acerca del futuro. El año 2030 ha sido señalado por las Naciones Unidas como el decisivo, cuando los efectos del cambio climático se vuelvan catastróficos e irreversibles, si es que nuestros sistemas de producción y consumo se mantienen tal como hoy. Ese mismo...

As one short-term FAO intervention on food safety ends in Belarus, another will soon begin. This is what governmental representatives agreed upon this week in Minsk during five days of talks to conclude the previous project and set priorities for future work. FAO has been working in Belarus to understand the...

48-year-old Lucy Kigunda is a member of Ithondio women’s group in Imenti North, Meru County, in the central region of Kenya. More recently, she has started planting sorghum, a grass species cultivated for its grain – used for consumption, animal feed and ethanol production. Its steam can be used as...

Each year, rural areas lose a promising share of their workforce, as youth leave their homes and migrate to cities or move abroad in search of a better future. The distress induced by poverty, food insecurity and a lack of employment opportunities push many youth around the world to search...

CEJA's 2017 Activity Report showcases the organisation's work for 2017. It includes information on CEJA's structure and projects, interviews with members of the Presidency, contributions from stakeholders and sponsors, and a calendar detailing its future activities.

The Rural Connections magazine is being published at a formative time for Rural Development policy. The Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) which has been taking shape over the past months is crystallising – with the European Commission's proposals for the future EU budget published on 2 May, followed shortly afterwards by...

Empowering small-scale fisheries: the Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication Short animated video that wants to trigger awareness and discussion about key challenges faced by small-scale fishing communities, despite their critical contribution to nutrition, food security, national economies and poverty...

This report investigated the role that cotton production has played in the economic development and poverty reduction in Burkina Faso, with a principal focus on how cotton prices, as a proxy to agricultural income, affects economic growth. Findings suggest that while cotton contributes to modest rates of economic growth, the...

This FSN Forum brief is based on the September-October 2017 online discussion Rural migration, agriculture and rural development, facilitated by Andrea Cattaneo of FAO. Participants in 28 countries commented on the draft annotated outline of the 2018 edition of The State of Food and Agriculture (SOFA), which addresses rural migration...

In response to the rising youth unemployment ratio and cognizant of the potential of the agricultural sector in creating productive employment for youth, FAO Sub-Regional Office for Eastern Africa in close collaboration with the East African Community (EAC) Secretariat is implementing a Technical Cooperation Project entitled: “Promoting Youth Employment in...

Trata da inclusão e organização produtiva das mulheres rurais; a relação com a conservação dos recursos genéticos e acesso às políticas públicas, a formação de rede de mulheres, a comunicação das contribuições, e as iniciativas corporativas, além dos desafios futuros para alcançar a igualdade e empoderar mulheres e meninas.

Despite government efforts to reduce poverty and food insecurity, Ethiopia remains one of the world’s poorest countries, with around 25 million people living in extreme poverty. The country is exposed to a wide range of natural hazards, especially recurrent drought, such as that induced by El Niño in Amhara and...

Urgenci’s advocacy capacity is central to strengthening the role of the Community supported Agriculture (CSA) movement at local and global level. As a global social movement, the CSA and theirs networks need to work  collectively to show how they contribute to overcoming global challenges to the food system. This is...

Formed in 2007, Food Plant Solutions Rotary Action Group (FPS) creates science-based educational materials, which: identify highly nutritious local food plants, explain how to grow them in a sustainable, agroecological way, detail the nutritional value of the plants and describe why human bodies require those nutrients. The resources created by FPS allows people to better...

Managing natural resources sustainably while also coping with climate change is the focus of a new FAO initiative for food and agriculture in Europe and Central Asia. The initiative was endorsed by FAO’s regional governing body when it convened last month in Voronezh, Russian Federation. The FAO Regional Conference for Europe...

Formed in 2007, Food Plant Solutions Rotary Action Group (FPS) creates science-based educational materials, which: identify highly nutritious local food plants, explain how to grow them in a sustainable, agroecological way, detail the nutritional value of the plants and describe why human bodies require those nutrients. The resources created by FPS allows people to better...

Red pepper is the most important type of produce for the Macedonian food industry, with some 70 000 tonnes processed every year. Ajvar is usually prepared in late summer and early autumn. It is a regular element of the winter menu because the ingredients are available in abundance, and it...

Representatives of three major organizations gathered in Kyiv recently to tackle issues of food safety and sanitary service in Ukraine. Hosted by Volodymyr Lapa, the head of the State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection, the meeting was attended by Marta Everard, head of the World Health Organization...

Formed in 2007, Food Plant Solutions Rotary Action Group (FPS) creates science-based educational materials, which: identify highly nutritious local food plants, explain how to grow them in a sustainable, agroecological way, detail the nutritional value of the plants and describe why human bodies require those nutrients. The resources created by FPS allows people to better...