Global Forum on Food Security and Nutrition (FSN Forum)

Reaching the goal to feed a growing world population is threatened by an important lack of investment in agriculture and a decreasing Official Development Assistance (ODA) in agriculture. To tackle this issue, Innovative Financing Mechanisms (IFMs) are being discussed as a means to complement ODA without replacing it to provide reliable and predictable financing for development and specifically for agriculture and food security and nutrition, especially by catalyzing and encouraging new projects.

Following the request by the CFS, the HLPE is approaching the issue of biofuels through the lens of food security, taking into consideration a wide range of issues such as: forecasted demand, competition for biomass feedstock and for land, benefits along the biofuel production chain, the role of smallholders, social issues, new technologies etc. Please share your knowledge and views on this multifaceted topic to respond to the key question: are biofuels compatible with food security concerns or are they not adding too much to the – already unmet -  challenge to feeding the world?

A large percentage of word poverty is rural, largely directly or indirectly associated with smallholder farming. Smallholder farmers produce most of the food consumed locally, and food security at a world scale thus importantly depends on the investments made by external actors and by the smallholders themselves in their agricultural production. What are the constraints that limit these investments and what can be done to encourage investments in smallholder agriculture.

Social protection has risen rapidly up the development policy agenda in the last decade. Although increasingly dominated by conditional and unconditional cash transfer programmes, the wide range of instruments that aim to alleviate poverty and manage livelihood risks often have direct, intended implications for food security.

Agriculture and food systems face the challenge of meeting the growing demand for more and higher quality food, but also of doing so in a way that is sustainable, equitable and meets the nutritional needs and preferences of consumers. How should we move ahead to make sure that agriculture and food systems are up to this task?

Despite women’s critical role and contribution to agriculture and food security, their ability to access land and other natural resources is weakened by their status within their community and by discriminatory customary or statutory laws. What can be done about it? What are examples of policies and tools that promote women's land rights?

The aim of this discussion is to gather feedback on which food and nutrition security indicators are being used and on the successes and challenges that the food and nutrition community is encountering when working with these indicators.

Street foods make up a significant part of the dietary intake of many and provide food generally not used at home such as fruits and vegetables, which serve as healthy complements to the diet. In order to maximize the positive impact of street foods, what can be done to increase the vendors’ food hygiene knowledge and practices and make sure their role is properly recognized by local authorities?

On behalf of the High Level Panel of Experts (HLPE) of the Committee on World Food Security (CFS) we aim at collecting feedback on the HLPE’s study on Social Protection in the context of Food and Nutrition Security and on how to decrease vulnerability through social and productive safety nets, assessing possible solutions and reviewing existing practices.