At the Committee on World Food Security, a wide group of stakeholders have the opportunity to work together on policy issues and shape recommendations. While this takes more time, the end result is that when the policy recommendations are adopted, they already have wide buy in. For example, when the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security (VGGT) were endorsed in 2009, immediately civil society took the lead promoting them in many countries. The private sector also use them and refer to them as their “license to do business”. Using this approach, the people who helped develop the policy recommendations feel ownership and become their greatest advocates.
Cordelia Salter