Global Forum on Food Security and Nutrition (FSN Forum)

Il est important d'intégrer les "SAVOIRS FAIRE LOCAUX ET APPORTS EXOGÈNES POUR UNE AGRICULTURE DURABLE DANS LE CADRE D’UNE RESILENCE AGRO/SOCIO-ECOLOGIQUE"  

As of my observation, there are many cultures in Ethiopia which highly supportive for maintaining biodiversity, agro-biodiversity but there is limited encouragement to expand and/or maintain it from 'modern' agriculturalists believing that the traditions do not bring the expected production and productivity which culminates to ensure food security. But, I suggest there is a need to promotional activities for the traditions that favors biodiversity.

Having worked on technical and programming issues related to bio-diverse food systems since the 1970s, I am comfortable in saying that the “what” is known. The ongoing key challenge is the “how.”
The food insecure are focused on what they will eat today. Not next week or next month, today. Subsistence farming households, which are increasingly managed by women, endeavor to set up flexible resilient ,bio-diverse, polyculture food production systems for their daily survival. These survival systems are designed to operate in fragile and fluid food environments and therefore need to function in the face of multiple acute and chronic threats including weather extremes, a wide range of conflicts, pandemics, economic shocks, etc.
The two briefs attached were produced for the European Parliament. They present practical examples from the field as to why priority must be given urgently to the rebuilding /expansion of local food systems. Vulnerable food insecure farming families have their bio-diverse food production systems on full display showing what is important to them. Promoting a local food system policy means using a bottom-up approach. The brief highlights examples of how the approach is applied by households in a variety of situations to ensure their food security.   The key to achieving a meaningful impact in the short and long term is to redouble efforts to listen and appreciate the local knowledge, skills, and wisdom of those who farm to survive. This approach not only acknowledges the resilience of these communities but also underscores the significance of community-driven solutions.
 

Over 94% of existing plants are flowering. All need pollinators for generations to generations, which back to our daily food and health needs. More than 80% of Pollinators are insects, and related arthrops sensive to pesticides. They contribute to food production by facilitating the pollination of many crops at estimated contribution of over 75%.  With the current inadequate pollination, yields of many crops is decline, leading to reduced food availability and crossicutting of huge chemicals application which both lead to increased food prices.

More approaches of nature-based solutions have been reported as successful way to restore the pollinators and soil health. But, still poorly understood. Different institutions were established to make changes to resolve the afromentioned issues. The top actor is International Center of Insects Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE). But big gap is still there.

We need to promote nature powers to control the natural phenomena like pests and diseases. Biobotanical solutions, natural enemies, agroecology, and more related best practices can be extanded not only at research or institutional levels, but more efforts are needed at grassroot level. 

Here, my meaning to grassroots, there are no much more about these IPM and natural solutions in academic institutions especially at bachelor level in Africa. These are somehow well implemented in european, asian, and amercan institutions. Without young generation participation, there is no way of success, these chemopollutants will continute to denaturate our nature, affecting terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, and to ending-up of human life.

Thank you. 

Monsieur ou Madame, je vous fais tenir, ci-joint, la contribution de l'ADACO relative à l'objet ci-dessus cité. Cordialement.

Thanks for your newsletter.

You and your colleagues may be interested in my book "Living with the Trees of Life - a practical guide to rebooting the planet through tropical agriculture and putting farmers first (see attached)

best wishes

Roger

On behalf of the Steering Committee of the International Symposium "Agriculture, Biodiversity and Food Security: From Commitments to Actions" and its Co-Chairs, we wish to thank those who have already contributed to this Call for experiences, best practices and scalable solutions for the integration of biodiversity into agriculture and further invite all stakeholders to share their experiences and expertise.

By contributing to this call, using the template for submissions and the first version of the recommendations (Zero Draft), you can actively and concretely help build relevant technical recommendations to facilitate the agricultural sector's commitment to achieving the sector-relevant targets of the  Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.

We look forward to receiving your contributions which will feed the Symposium's discussions and outcomes.

Best regards,

Co-facilitator Julie Bélanger, Natural Resources Officer (Biodiversity), Office of Climate Change, Biodiversity and Environment, FAO

Bringing back millets and their associated crops in the local farming and food systems can help in improving safe and wholesome food supply, addressing triple burden of malnutrition, rising lifestyle diseases, climate change and other environmental issues. The specific activities under this intervention are i) Facilitating integration of millets in the farming systems by a large number of farmers, ii) Developing decentralised processing units, iii) developing local and regional markets, iv) Promoting household consumption and v) policy influence. A long term partnership will definitely to move towards the GOAL.

In the Czech Republic, the impacts of the climate crisis, particularly drought, on agricultural production are being keenly felt. The problem is largely due to increased variations in rainfall and temperatures compared to times gone by. The growing instability in weather patterns, which has led to an increase in sudden events such as floods, storms, and extended dry spells around the world, will be more and more common. This global emergency needs can be partly addressed by introducing changes in technology that align with innovations in breeding practices.

A well-targeted agricultural policy and a meaningfully designed agricultural subsidy scheme would do much to improve practice in this area. Consumer preferences, which are increasingly taking sustainability into account, are especially important. The global agricultural community must make a commitment to change the way in which crops are grown by optimising production and taking an approach to rearing livestock that embraces new methods and technologies.

For instance, developing and investing in the field of performance recording and breeding value estimation has the potential to transform animal breeding. Indeed, a wide range of sustainability-related traits are already being bred, with the quest for new traits set to continue long into the future.

The key will be to develop practical business models and agrarian policies that respect the needs and constraints of different stakeholders, while striking a balance become economic realities and opportunities. On this front, the FAO has a major role to play in stimulating the debate.

In sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), staple crops like maize, groundnut, and sorghum often become contaminated with aflatoxins, highly toxic and carcinogenic substances. This contamination adversely affects health, income, productivity, and trade. Aflatoxins are produced by certain fungi of the Aspergillus section Flavi, found in soil and crop debris. However, there are some A. flavus genotypes that cannot produce aflatoxins (i.e., atoxigenic) The community structure of these fungi determines the risk of aflatoxin contamination in crops. To combat aflatoxin contamination, a biocontrol method has been developed, utilizing atoxigenic isolates of A. flavus. By applying these strains to soil, the population of atoxigenic fungi increases, displacing toxigenic ones and reducing aflatoxin contamination in crops. This approach, known as the Aflasafe Initiative, leverages fungal biodiversity to improve soil, crop, human, and environmental health.

The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), along with USDA-ARS, and various national and international partners, have made several biocontrol products commercially available for large-scale use in SSA. These products, marketed under the name Aflasafe, enable smallholder farmers to produce crops meeting stringent regulatory standards for aflatoxin levels, thus accessing premium markets. Key activities of the Aflasafe Initiative include raising awareness among stakeholders about aflatoxins and available solutions, identifying native atoxigenic isolates of A. flavus, conducting laboratory and field trials to select effective isolates, and developing industrial processes for biocontrol product manufacturing. Additionally, efforts are made to improve regulatory capacities, obtain approvals for biocontrol product usage, and analyze markets for commercialization options.

Capacity building initiatives target local students, scientists, and stakeholders to ensure sustainable implementation of biocontrol strategies. Through these comprehensive activities, the Aflasafe Initiative seeks to address the complex challenge of aflatoxin contamination in SSA, offering a nature-positive solution that benefits agriculture, health, and trade sectors. By harnessing the biodiversity of naturally occurring atoxigenic fungi, the initiative not only mitigates aflatoxin contamination but also promotes ecological balance and resilience within agricultural ecosystems.