The Committee on World Food Security (CFS) is holding its an annual plenary session, from 9-13 October 2017 in FAO Rome. CFS informs, debates and recommends actions to be taken by CFS stakeholders on food security and nutrition issues. Policy round tables are held to provide policy advice on the most topical issues. Between the sessions, there are regular meetings of the CFS Bureau andAdvisory Group. CFS also contributes to various food security and nutrition related events and initiatives throughout the year. Among the several events, two side events will feature Climate-Smart Agriculture.

On October 10 at 18:00 in Iraq Room (FAO HQ), GACSA Co-chair, Mi Nguyen will speak about the role of CSA and GACSA in the face of climate change at the following side event ''Tackling the challenges of climate change and food security: the role of farmers as stewards of the environment''. The event will discuss how multi-stakeholder partnerships with farmers can support the implementation of the Paris Agreement to achieve food security and nutrition. The side event will feature a discussion among different stakeholders on how to support farmers to build resilience to climate change and better adapt to it, while mitigating its effects, with positive results in food and nutrition security worldwide, taking a gender perspective. The partnership between the World Farmers’ Organisation and the Global Research Alliance to strengthen the links between farmers and researchers will be highlighted, including the launch of a Fellowship Programme for young farmers and graduate scientists. 

Provisional Agenda

18:00 - 18:10 

Opening remarks:

• H.E. Mr. Patrick John Rata, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of New Zealand to the UN Agencies, Rome
• Dr. Theo de Jager, President, World Farmers’ Organisation, Rome

Moderator: 

• Dr. Marco Marzano de Marinis, Secretary General, World Farmers’ Organisation, Rome

18:10 - 19:00

Panel Discussion:

• Ms. Mi Nguyen, Deputy Permanent Representative of Canada to the UN Agencies and GACSA Co-Chair, Rome
• Ms. Tamisha Tamara Lee, President, Jamaica Network of Rural Women Producers JNRWP, Kingston
• Mr. Mattew Hooper, Deputy Permanent Representative of New Zealand to the UN Agencies, Rome
• Mr. Barrie Bain, Consultant to the International Fertilizer Association IFA, Tonbridge, United Kingdom

19:00 - 19:30 

Open Discussion and Closure

On October 12 at 14:30 in Sheikh Zayed Centre, FAO will launch a new CSA publication, entitled ‘Climate-Smart Agriculture – Building Resilience to Climate change’.  

CSA concept is gaining considerable traction at international and national levels to meet the challenges of addressing agricultural planning under climate change. CSA is a concept that calls for integration of the need for adaptation and the possibility of mitigation in agricultural growth strategies to support food security.

To this end, a new book, entitled ‘Climate-Smart Agriculture: Building resilience to climate change’ and co-published by Springer and FAO, expands and formalizes the conceptual foundations of CSA drawing upon theory and concepts from agricultural development, institutional and resource economics. The book is also devoted to a set of country level case studies illustrating the economic basis of CSA in terms of reducing vulnerability, increasing adaptive capacity and ex-post risk coping.

The publication will provide development agencies and practitioners, policy-makers, civil society, research and academia as well as private sector with tested good practices and innovative approaches of promoting CSA systems at country level. 

Click here to review CFS Side Events Timetable