Global Forum on Food Security and Nutrition (FSN Forum)

Call for submissions
contributions:
89

How can FAO better support countries in addressing governance of agrifood systems transformation to make them more sustainable, inclusive and resilient?

For some years now, there has been a growing recognition of the urgent need to transform agrifood systems to make them more sustainable, resilient, inclusive, and equitable. 

What do we understand by agrifood systems and a systems approach?

“The agri-food system covers the journey of food (for example, cereals, vegetables, fish, fruits and livestock) from farm to table – including when it is grown, harvested, processed, packaged, transported, distributed, traded, bought, prepared, eaten and disposed of. It also encompasses non-food products (for example forestry, animal rearing, use of feedstock, biomass to produce biofuels, and fibres) that also constitute livelihoods and all of the people as well as the activities, investments and choices that play a part in getting us these food and agricultural products.” (nf243en.pdf (fao.org) 42nd session of the FAO conference):

Recognizing that systems are made up of a complex set of interrelated components that produce multiple goals, a systems approach helps a diverse set of actors to understand how systems are structured and how they operate. By collectively mapping out its different components, identifying drivers and the connections between them, and setting out possible courses of action, it can help to clarify what are the issues at stake and where decisions need to be taken.

Agrifood systems can play an important role in rescuing and accelerating progress towards the SDGs; sustainable and resilient agrifood systems have enormous potential to positively influence the social, economic and environmental dimensions of sustainable development. The endorsement by the CFS of the Voluntary Guidelines on Food Systems and Nutrition (VGFSN)[1] in 2021 was followed by the convening of the UN Food Systems Summit in September 2021, and more recently, the UN Food Systems Summit +2 Stocktaking Moment in July 2023. While there seems to be general agreement and consensus on the need to transform agrifood systems to make them more sustainable, resilient, inclusive, and equitable, the policy, legal and governance[2] requirements and implications for countries still need to be better articulated. Decades of development efforts around the world have shown that narrow approaches and technological quick fixes do not work, especially in the long term. Data, technology, and innovation can be a powerful engine to transform agrifood systems, but only when they are accompanied by the right enabling environment and governance system. As the UN Secretary General stated in his report[3], the path towards transformation requires “comprehensive planning, collaboration, and consideration of potential trade-offs, synergies, and international spillovers” and “countries will need to address the resistance and political backlash that may arise against change”. 

In efforts towards a transformation of agrifood systems, some of the main barriers to overcome include the lack of policy coherence and coordination, insufficient capabilities and engagement of key stakeholders, increasing gender inequalities and socio-economic disparities within and among countries and the asymmetry of power and economic interests that are at the core of the political economy and the control of the agrifood system. For example, measures that seek to protect biodiversity and mitigate climate change may affect the rights of those with the lowest incomes and those who depend on natural resources for their livelihoods; measures that seek to combat obesity through stricter regulation may affect the economic interests of private companies that sell ultra-processed products, and a progressive paradigm shift in agricultural production from an external input-dependent agriculture to a more sustainable, less chemical-dependent agriculture that prioritizes the production of more diverse foods for local consumption to meet both livelihood and community nutrition objectives- still seems to run counter to the dominant model. 

Furthermore, in many cases, policies and laws are not aligned with the transformative goals, and not adapted to existing, institutional arrangements, political structures, raising inequalities and capabilities. Yet, these strongly influence the chances for them to be implemented (or not) on the ground and generate desired outcomes.

Conveners:

Corinna Hawkes, Director, Agrifood Systems and Food Safety Division (ESF)

Donata Rugarabamu, Legal Counsel

Stefanos Fotiou, Director, Office of SDGs (OSG)

 

RATIONALE FOR THIS CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS

The above issues influence the FAO’s capacity to appropriately support country-members in the design and implementation of transformative paths towards sustainable agrifood systems. It is therefore key for the Organization to continue to reflect on what it means for it to approach food and agriculture relevant policies as a “system”, rather than as multiple actions towards a common goal.

It is against this background that this online call for submissions is being organized jointly by the Office of SDGs, the Agrifood Systems and Food Safety Division, the Governance and Policy Support Unit, and the Development Law Service, to engage various stakeholders and gather examples of governance-related measures and interventions with transformative impact for agrifood systems. 

We invite you to provide inputs related to the following kind of measures/interventions:

  • Institutional mechanisms/governance arrangements for systems-oriented ways of working;

  • Measures to align policies and laws with the transformative goals;

  • Budgeting and financing for cross-sectoral work in agrifood systems;

  • Measures to rebalance asymmetries in power and decision-making in the agrifood system, including through gender-responsive and gender-transformative approaches;

  • Measures to redress inequities and inequalities in the agrifood systems;

  • Concrete means and evidence of how the impact of these measures has been measured.

The submissions should look at transformative efforts in the above areas, from an economic, social and environmental perspective, and they should illustrate the way this transformative change[4] has been potentially documented and measured. 

The results emerging from your submissions will contribute to informing FAO’s work with governments and other stakeholders related to policy, law, and governance for more inclusive, resilient, and sustainable agrifood systems. 

Proceedings of the contributions received will be made publicly available on this consultation webpage. Feel free to consult the documentation and resources for more information about agrifood systems transformation in the references.   

The Call for Submissions is open until 1 April 2024.

How to take part in this Call for Submissions

To take part in this Call for submissions, please register to the FSN Forum, if you are not yet a member, or “sign in” to your account. Please download the submission template in any of six UN languages (English, French, Spanish, Russian, Arabic and Chinese) and upload the completed form in the box “Post your contribution” on this webpage. Please keep the length of submissions limited to 2,000 words and feel also free to attach relevant supporting materials. For any technical questions or assistance please contact [email protected].

We thank you in advance for your input and we look forward to learning from your experiences.

Co-facilitators: 

Dubravka Bojic, Programme Officer, Governance and Policy Unit (DDCG)

Jose Valls, Policy Officer, ESF

Margret Vidar, Legal Officer, Development Law Service (LEGN)

Hajnalka Petrics, Programme Officer, OSG

Olena Ovchynnikova, Technical Officer, OSG

[1] The CFS Voluntary Guidelines on Food Systems and Nutrition (VGFSN) were endorsed by CFS session 47 held on 8-11 February 2021. CFS_VGs_Food_Systems_and_Nutrition_Strategy_EN.pdf (fao.org)

[2] Governance relates to “formal and informal rules, organizations, and processes through which public and private actors articulate their interests and make and implement decisions” (http://www.fao.org/3/mg015e/mg015e.pdf )

[3] Making food systems work for people and planet UN Food Systems Summit +2 Report of the Secretary-General. p.20. unfss2-secretary-general-report.pdf (unfoodsystemshub.org)

[4] Please note that “transformative change” refers to innovative, pro-active changes away from “business as usual” that merely addresses surface-level issues or symptoms. “Transformative change” results in change in underlying factors and drivers leading to problems addressed. 

REFERENCES 

  1. CFS, 2023. Voluntary Guidelines on Gender Equality and Women’s and Girls Empowerment in the Context of Food Security and Nutrition. 
  2. CFS, 2021. CFS Voluntary Guidelines on Food Systems and Nutrition.
  3. FAO, 2018. Transforming Food and Agriculture to Achieve the SDGs. 20 interconnected actions to guide decision-makers.
  4. FAO, 2021. Transforming agri-food systems. Legislative interventions for improved nutrition and sustainability Preliminary version for public consultation.
  5. Bojić, D., Clark, M. and Urban, K. 2022. Focus on governance for more effective policy and technical support. Governance and policy support framework paper. Rome, FAO. 
  6. Gobena, A. and Vidar, M. 2023. Agriculture and natural resources governance – Legal tools for inclusive and sustainable transformation. Legal Brief, No. 12. Rome, FAO.
  7. FAO. 2023. FAO and the Sustainable Development Goals. Achieving the 2030 Agenda through empowerment of local communities. Rome. FAO. 
  8. UN. 2023. Global Sustainable Development Report 2023. Times of Crisis, Times of Change. Science for Accelerating Transformations to Sustainable Development. UNDESA.

Please read the article of FAO publications on this topic here.

 

Topics

This activity is now closed. Please contact [email protected] for any further information.

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Expanding agroforestry in Nepal's mid-hill regions is a strategic move towards a more sustainable and resilient agrifood system. With robust policy support and a commitment to addressing both market and adoption challenges, agroforestry can play a pivotal role in enhancing livelihoods and ensuring food security in Nepal. The integration of trees, crops, and livestock within these systems supports diverse crop production. It promotes sustainable land management practices that are vital for the country's agrarian economy and environmental health.

To realize the full potential of agroforestry, policies must address the complexities of land tenure, provide incentives for farmers, and ensure market access for agroforestry products. Streamlining legal processes and offering technical support can encourage farmer participation and investment in agroforestry systems. Moreover, the policy framework should facilitate the dissemination of knowledge and technology, addressing the adoption issues with the same rigor as biophysical and farmer-level questions. This holistic approach can lead to the sustained adoption and scaling up of agroforestry models, crucial for the long-term resilience of Nepal's agrifood system.

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Dear sir/madam thank you very much (FSN) Coordinator body, I am engaging long time in agriculture's media sector. Along with pepino farming system in Nepal, I want to contribute my country from the Pepino Melon fruit propogation in the agriculture sectors.

I have prepared a combine types of FAO call for submission.

How can FAO better support countries in addressing governance of agrifood systems transformation to make them more sustainable, inclusive and resilient?

I recognize the about the agriculture value how is important for men. I wish in terms of play role in agriculture sector from my side.

thanks for FSN Coordination team' and All of world FSN Members.

With best regards,

Dhanbahadur Magar

www.krishijournal.com.np www.indigenoustelevision.com

 

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SCP practice can play an important role to change current unsustainable practices in Sri Lanka’s agriculture and food sector. Agriculture in Sri Lanka, utilizing 43% of the total land area of the country, is one of the key environmental concerns; having a tremendous impact on everything from climate change to soil deterioration. The lack of awareness sustainable produce among consumers, the lack of standards, limited certification systems at affordable prices and the lack of third party verification have so far hindered the switch to environmentally sustainable and healthy practices in the agriculture sector. Progress towards environmentally sustainable agri-food systems in Sri Lanka requires improving the methods for quantitative, integrated assessment, and promoting the use of these methods in different domains. But the shortage of data has restricted Sri Lanka in its analysis of a number of food-related challenges and to advance the currently available approaches and methods. 

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       Sustainable Innovative Food Technologies, Agribusiness to develop new products supported by Industry, Experts, which lead development. Any Franchise aspirant with entrepreneurial spirit, Reconstruction of Rural India by redefining the rural Education System. Education & Health sectors have become Industry now. Innovation, Invention and Integration to discuss the Challenges and opportunities. Promote Government Policies, Networking opportunities to transformation of ingredients produced by farmers into value added food products using state of the art equipment and new technology. Connect potential inventers and partners, Exploring the sustainable solutions. Conduct trainings and awareness campaigns on the impact of climate change to food security, nutrition and human health. Children and youth are not only victims of climate change, they are also valuable contributors to climate action in the context of adaptation and resilience. They are agents of change, entrepreneurship and innovations. A climate safe future is with the youth and children.

 

    Food systems governance can be considered as a value itself for sustainable diets, as implies a way of designing the “architecture” needed to achieve its goals. This means that food governance allows, among other things, an appropriate environment for food systems to transform in order to perform in a sustainable way. Sustainable diets need a context specific approach in terms of the socio-cultural characteristics at different levels, food governance represents a value that can help achieving its objectives focusing on a national/regional scale, meaning local structures of food governance to improve the access to sustainable diets.

 

     How food governance and sustainable diets are related, especially since food governance plays a role in supporting the socio-cultural dimension of sustainable diets. This highlights the question regarding how power is managed by different institutions immersed in food systems and the importance of focusing our attention not only in national/regional levels of governance, but also in how local levels organize their knowledge management and decision-making processes to improve the access to sustainable diets. Considering the above, that future research should be focused on continue exploring the value food governance represents for sustainable diets and how the process of governing agriculture can contribute to understand that sector beyond food production for commercialization and visualize new opportunities as a relevant actor both in health and environmental sectors.

 

The following priorities are indispensable for enabling effective collective action for agri-food systems governance and transformation:

  1.  A new Compact for the Earth – A set of shared, transversal principles, standards and objectives that define a comprehensive approach to restoring and sustaining biodiversity and natural resources, essential ecosystem services, and climate stability while ensuring equitable access to healthy diets for everyone, and reducing poverty and inequality in agri-food systems.
  2. A strengthened Science-Policy Interface for Sustainable Development of Agri-food Systems –Providing universal access to the essential data and analytical methods required to mainstream resilience and sustainability science, promoting accurate and consistent accounting for the impacts of human activities and interventions ,supporting development of science- and evidence based models to guide collective decision-making and inform individual behaviour, and ensuring independent, comprehensive assessment of outcomes across all three pillars of sustainable development.
  3. Reinvestment in the Technical and Scientific Capacities and Infrastructure of UN Institutions – In a largely marketized global economy for food and agriculture products and services, upon which nearly every human depends for sustenance and nutrition, and for livelihoods and incomes, United Nations institutions represent the core accountable infrastructure of global governance for sustainable development of agri-food systems. The global economy is far larger than it was at the time of the founding of the United Nations, and the urgency for effective collective action to protect our planet is greater than ever. Improving Market Functioning, Promoting Fairness and Reducing Inequality – markets at all levels –global, regional, national and subnational – play a decisive and necessary role in the allocation of resources, incomes and investments in agri-food systems, but agri-food systems are generally characterized by some of the most extreme concentrations of economic power and inequality.
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Pour aider les pays / les gouvernements dans l’amélioration de la transformation des systèmes agroalimentaires, de façon durable, inclusive et résiliente, la FAO devra travailler étroitement avec les gouvernants en agissant sur la définition de la politique agricole, les priorités en lien avec celles de la FAO, les bonnes pratiques, la communication et le renforcement des capacités.

Les politiques agricoles : Amener les pays à actualiser leurs politiques de gestion agricole, environnementale et climatique inclusives en les alignant sur les exigences des procédures de la FAO. Des concertations doivent se faire à partir de la base afin de recueillir les défis et les opportunités qui se présentent au temps T

La planification des stratégies agricoles : bien souvent les pays ne travaillent pas sur des visions, ce qui limitent les pays en termes de stratégies agricole. Les gouvernants sont plus focalisés sur leurs politiques à court termes. Tout financement de la FAO doit se baser sur une vision intégrant la durabilité de l’action, la résilience des communautés et l’aspect inclusif. Il faut alors définir avec chaque pays les priorités et les aider à une planification sur la base de laquelle les politiques agricoles devront être menées avec la FAO 

Identification des bonnes pratiques : la FAO ne doit pas perdre de vue la nécessité de travailler avec le gouvernant à financer des actions se basant sur les pratiques agricoles locales innovantes visant à accroitre la productivité agricole par l’amélioration des rendements, …

Le développement d’un système innovant d’information et de communication du marché : nous travaillons dans des zones sans information sur le marché (produit agricole à promouvoir, prix des marché, …) et où l’acteur principale, le producteur ignore tout. Comment faire ? Il y a lieu qu’une réflexion soir menée avec les gouvernants afin que des mesures soient prises dans le cadre de la mise en œuvre des action plus inclusive et résiliente.

Le renforcement des capacités des unités de gestion des projets et des acteurs locaux : Aider les acteurs locaux et les UGP à l’appropriation des technologies si elles sont importées et supposées être les meilleures et à soutenir le renforcement des capacités de ces acteurs.

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One of the most popular perspectives in the agricultural sector is that of resource conservation, such as habitat or the proper management of basic resources like land and water. However, in recent years, there has been a trend towards combining this more ecological perspective of agriculture with socioeconomic factors and, in general, with a multidimensional perspective. Exploring such new perspectives is the aim of this contribution . These studies deserve a great deal of attention, but it is also clear that research at farm level is not enough, due to the fact that there are factors determined by political matters or others influenced by the socioeconomic environment of the farming system, e.g. productive activities surrounding to agriculture.

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The significance of seeds and other propagation materials in food systems is undeniable. Seed growing begins with developing new varieties with genetic gains. Especially given climate change, newer varieties need to be delivered to farmers. In almost every country, universities, the private sector, and public research institutes have undertaken the development of varieties.
To use resources more effectively in R&D and innovation, it would be beneficial to bring the plant breeding arms of the public, private sector, and universities under one umbrella. Thus, new breeding methods such as CRISPR, which are generally prominent in universities, can be immediately transferred to national breeding programs. Again, the land, labor, and money savings to be achieved in trial fields can reduce R&D costs.
Brazil's EMBRAPA is a good example: While EMBRAPA ensures Brazil a leadership position in the world market for many products, it does not rely only on "variety development". The developed varieties created such agronomic opportunities that two crop applications per year were started from the same land by planting “soy + soybean” or “wheat + soy” in one year.

EMBRAPA was founded in 1973 to encourage, promote, coordinate, and apply research with new knowledge and technologies to develop agriculture. Its mission was to increase Brazil's agricultural production on the eve of food shortages. For this purpose, EMPREPA was established as an arm within the Ministry of Agriculture, but operates autonomously administratively, and financially. Currently, EMBRAPA includes the National Agricultural Research System (SNPA). We can all learn from Brazil's strategies by leveraging agricultural research for the country's economic gain.  FAO, should similarly, work towards bringing all agricultural research institutions under one roof, especially in developing countries.

Ms. Bibi Ally

Private Sector Mechanism of UN Committee on Food Security
United States of America

Dear Facilitators,

Please see attached the contribution from the Private Sector Mechanism in response to the call for submission "How can FAO better support countries in addressing governance of agrifood systems transformation to make them more sustainable, inclusive and resilient?"

Kind regards,

Bibi Ally, Emerging ag Inc/ Private Sector Mechanism 

 

See the attachments:

I share from my experience of working with FAO Bangladesh on how FAO can proactively work with governments for sustainable transformation of agri-food systems. FAO supported the government of Bangladesh in the run-up to the UN Food Systems Summit (UNFSS) in 2021 and took the lead in coordinating drafting of the national pathway document for accelerating transformation of food systems. Even prior to this, FAO has been closely supporting the government of Bangladesh in policy formulation and developing institutional frameworks for effective delivery. The National Food and Nutrition Security Policy 2020 and its Plan of Action (2021-2030) and Country Investment Plan (2021-2025) for sustainable and resilient food systems are examples. 

Given the overlapping nature of food systems and the need for a coordinated approach, FAO and GAIN worked with the government in Bangladesh to develop a linking document, linking the commitments under UNFSS, N4G Summit and COP. Inter-ministerial and donor meetings have been convened to share the pathway commitments and the need for monitoring them. 

Following the reporting at the first biennial stocktaking following the UNFSS last year, a draft roadmap was developed for drafting a plan of action and monitoring framework of the pathway commitments for the transformation of agrifood systems. This is work in progress. Given its pool of technical expertise, FAO is well positioned to extend support in realization of many of the pathway commitments such as for example, developing a national strategy for reducing food loss and waste.              

I feel that keeping the UNFSS national pathway commitments at the centre, will enable FAO country offices to develop the strategy for sustainable transformation of agrifood systems and effectively extend support to national governments.