Rio de Janeiro - Due to the increasing impacts of climate change, along with recent crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, local governments are facing unprecedented upheavals in food security, especially affecting the most vulnerable populations.Strategies and actions to build climate justice for resilient and sustainable food systems are needed to ensure more inclusive and sustainable access to food for urban dwellers.

Behind this background, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the RUAF Global Partnership on Sustainable Urban Agriculture and Food Systems, and the French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD) hosted a dialogue on ‘building climate resilience and justice in city region food systems’ during the 8th MUFPP Global Forum in Rio de Janeiro.

“In order to face different crises we need to promote all five forms of resilience in an integrated way”, explained Guido Santini, Programme Coordinator of the City Region Food Systems Programme at FAO. He presented preliminary insights from a recent global study by FAO, RUAF and CIRAD on lessons learnt from multiple shocks and stresses on urban food system. These include that working towards achieving climate justice requires identifying both vulnerable food system stakeholders and the underlying causes of their vulnerability. While current responses have mostly focused on improving the coping mechanisms of urban and peri-urban dwellers, interventions on truly transforming food systems are needed to not only build back, but to build back better.

An interactive discussion followed, in which mayors and representatives of Antananarivo (Madagascar), Nairobi (Kenya), Porto Alegre (Brazil) and Tel Aviv-Jaffa (Israel) shared how their cities have addressed impacts of multiple recent shocks. Deputy Governor of Nairobi, Njoroge Muchiri, highlighted that the municipality identifies the most vulnerable citizens via a registration system that goes down to the grassroots level. As drivers of sustainable transformation, youth and women engaging in the food sector are groups that are especially supported through municipal funds.  

In view of the severe food insecurity of illegal immigrants during the pandemic, the city of Tel Aviv-Jaffa established supermarkets in which people in need can access healthy foods through food vouchers as well as information on healthy recipes. Mr. Eitan Ben-Ami, director of the Environment and Sustainability Authority, highlighted the city’s support for climate entrepreneurship in agricultural innovation and promoting a sustainable neighbourhoods programme. He further emphasized that it is crucial to have a city official understanding the complexity of the food system and facilitating linkages between different sectors.

Underlining the importance of creating social protection networks and multilevel governance, the mayor of Porto Alegre, Sebastião Melo, stressed: “We need to articulate and consolidate partnerships not only at the municipal level, but also with other spheres of government”. To support food system transformation, Porto Alegre encourages organic production in community green gardens and farmers markets throughout the city, as well as rural preservation within the city boundaries. Moreover, some public schools have started to transform food waste into energy through generating biogas.

Finally, the Chief of Staff of the Urban Commune of Antananarivo, Guy Razafindralambo, explained that in addition to COVID-19, the region was severely impacted by recent floods and hurricanes, and the drought in southern Madagascar. "Rural production in the country has reduced significantly, and to prepare for such shocks and stresses we have developed a contingency plan and an urban food governance strategy to accelerate recovery."

In addition to this session, FAO, RUAF and the MUFPP Secretariat held a workshop with city representatives on ‘working with indicators for sustainable and climate-resilient urban food systems’. The workshop was based on the MUFPP Monitoring Framework, which was designed by cities for cities to help track progress on urban food system change. It includes a simple five step process with a clear logical methodology that can be customized and facilitates city to city learning through the MUFPP network.

Cities play a key role in building climate-resilient and sustainable food systems. Rapid urbanization, climate change and inequalities require comprehensive approaches to ensure the well-being of people and the planet. In this evolving environment, policymakers and city governments need practical guidance to identify, implement and monitor urban food policy processes.

By bringing together global experiences, the panel sought to improve understanding of how to use indicators for climate resilience as well as of the interconnections between the MUFPP Monitoring Framework, the Barcelona Challenge, the FAO Green Cities Initiative and the City Region Food System Programme. “Cities have very different experiences in applying the indicator framework, and some of them have used the framework to identify food system priorities and build relevant public policies,” explained Guido Santini.

During the workshop, representatives of Nairobi (Kenya), Quito (Ecuador), Kolding (Denmark), Maputo (Mozambique), Porto Alegre (Brazil), Guelph (Canada) and Douala (Cameroon) shared challenges and opportunities as well as examples of practical ways to use indicators related to climate justice in their cities.

“Using indicators offers the most concrete way to understand progress in implementing actions”, underlined Cécile Michel from the MUFPP Secretariat. Already 80 out of 250 signatory cities of the Milan Pact are using the MUFPP Monitoring Framework.