FAO attends General Annual Meeting of Global Forum for Rural Advisory Services with members of Arab Forum for Rural Advisory Services

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and members of the Arab Forum for Rural Advisory Services (AFRAS) have participated in The fourteenth General Annual Meeting of the Global Forum for Rural Advisory Services (GFRAS).

The meeting is held under the theme “Building the Next Generation of Leader in Agriculture”, with discussions highlighting youth engagement, secondary and post-secondary education, young professionals, and serving the underserved.

“The strengthening of rural advisory services represents a priority for the FAO programme on rural transformation in the NENA region and is also the goal of AFRAS. The youthful population of the Arab region holds an enormous potential to contribute to more modern, inclusive, pluralistic, and market-oriented service systems,” said Valentina Sommacal, Rural Institutions and Services Expert at FAO Regional Office for the Near East and North Africa, highlighting the importance of attending this global meeting.

The General Annual Meeting of GFRAS is convened from 17 to 19 October with attendance of members from the GRAS network, including extension and rural advisory experts, representatives of the public and private agriculture sector and professionals from a variety of background. Experts from the Arab Forum for Rural Advisory Services (AFRAS) also joined the meeting in order to bring the Arab perspective to GFRAS.

Founded in 2011, GFRAS is a network dedicated to enhancing the performance of advisory services so that they can better serve farming families and rural producers, thus contributing to improved livelihoods in rural areas and the sustainable reduction of hunger and poverty.

The GFRAS General Annual Meeting is organized to foster exchange on approaches and experiences in agriculture and rural advisory services (RAS) between diverse stakeholders and across regions. The meeting represents an opportunity to discuss the strategic directions and functioning of GFRAS and its regional for a and offers a space for learning and for providing a voice for RAS at the international level.

“Agriculture remains the backbone of many economies and the basis for all other human activities, a simple fact that is often forgotten. The GFRAS is thankful to AFRAS and FAO RNE for joining the annual meeting and the Global Forum for Rural Advisory Services network of agriculture extension and rural advisory service networks. AFRAS will be the 18th regional network within the GFRAS global community. A very welcome addition to our community,” stated Carl Erik Schou Larsen, Executive Secretary of GFRAS in his opening remarks.

The Arab Forum for Rural Advisory Services was conceived following several regional multi-stakeholders and multi-sectoral consultations held during the past two years to advance RAS in the Arab the region by leveraging networking, information sharing, and exchange of knowledge and experience. Envisioned within GFRAS umbrella, AFRAS is the first network of its kind in the region. Currently AFRAS nucleus community comprises of around eighty members among policy makers, RAS experts and champions.

In collaboration with IFAD and GFRAS, FAO is supporting AFRAS’ incubation process by facilitating the interaction among stakeholders at regional and country levels and by assisting the diverse technical, institutional and organisational arrangements required for its operationalisation.

The official launch of AFRAS is planned for the first quarter of 2024 with a dedicated web-platform available for members to network, share knowledge and practices.