Spanning six countries, EWAT promotes women’s participation in the context of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). The programme’s objective is to increase women’s competitiveness in trade through strengthened knowledge, skills and access to finance, capitalizing on the new prospects for regional trade created by the AfCFTA agreement.

The fourth edition of the World Food Forum (WFF) flagship event, the largest annual gathering of agrifood systems stakeholders globally, opened today with a high-level ceremony at FAO headquarters in Rome. Running from October 14 to 18, the event brings together global experts, young changemakers, investors, and visionary leaders to create new pathways for a sustainable, inclusive, and food-secure future.

 Indigenous and non-indigenous researchers, experts and officials from across the globe gathered today at the Global-Hub on Indigenous Peoples’ Food Systems, whose opening ceremony was held in a Nomadic tent of the Saami People from the Artic, transforming a space in the heart of Rome into an Indigenous Peoples’ territory.

The World Food Forum’s (WFF) Global Youth Forum opened today at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), marking a week of activities dedicated to youth-led solutions and actions for transforming agrifood systems under the theme “Good food for all, for today and tomorrow”.

Experts from the FAO Agrifood Systems and Food Safety Division accompanied officials from the Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) on a tour of the n!Biomachines facility, a Canadian subsidiary of German company The Cultivated B, located in Burlington, Canada. 

Aspiring and established plant scientists from around Africa gathered in Kenya’s capital for a workshop co-sponsored by FAO to review what has been achieved so far by the African Orphan Crops Consortium (AOCC). The AOCC has empowered more than 172 scientists, nearly 40 percent of whom have been women, and 28 African countries in the use of genomics-assisted approaches to crop improvement.

The FAO Farmer Field School (FFS) introduced Jacqueline to several innovations that helped revolutionize her farming. The biggest of these changes was turning FFS groups into cooperatives, with a focus on connecting farmers to markets. Now part of a cooperative, she wasn’t just learning better techniques—she was becoming part of a larger network that would help her access markets, sell her products and boost her income.

On 10 October 2024, stakeholders from various parts of the world gathered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, for a global meeting on cell-based food and precision fermentation. The meeting welcomed approximately 60 participants, including representatives from various departments and agencies of the Government of Canada, to discuss various technical issues around foods derived from cell culturing and precision fermentation.

FAO and USAID have announced the signing of the USD 25 million TRANSFORM project, a key component of the broader multi-partner Johwar Offstream Storage Programme (JOSP). The project aims to improve food security and resilience in Somalia by rehabilitating critical infrastructure and promoting climate smart agriculture for smallholder farmers in Jowhar.

Within the global context of an increasing number of crises due to unabating conflicts, extreme weather events and economic shocks, Director of the Office of Emergencies and Resilience of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Rein Paulsen was in Washington, D.C. for the Inter-agency Standing Committee (IASC) Deputies meeting, where he also met with high-level officials from USAID and U.S. Department of State.  

The international market for cocoa is growing rapidly due to the rising demand for premium chocolate products. FAO training in best practices for cocoa production and processing is helping cocoa farmers on the island of Saint Lucia position themselves to take advantage of this opportunity. 

In January 2024, everything changed for Sayed Osman when he joined the Farmer Field School (FFS), introduced by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and ActionAid. FFS brings together 20-25 farmers in a group, providing hands- on training in modern cultivation methods, pest control and the use of high-quality seeds. He learned new practices that significantly increased his wheat yields.

The benchmark for world food commodity prices saw its fastest increase in 18 months in September, with quotations up for all covered commodity groups, led by sugar, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) reported Friday.

The latest assessment using satellite data produced by FAO and the United Nations Satellite Centre (UNOSAT) shows escalating damage to farmland and agricultural infrastructure in the Gaza Strip, further exacerbating the humanitarian and hunger crisis resulting from the ongoing conflict.

Through USAID's "Strengthening Rural Livelihoods and Food Security Programme" in Afghanistan, implemented by FAO, 1 500 women-headed households received beekeeping packages across eight provinces in 2024 and another 1 500 women-headed household will receive the same package in 2025. Amina, one of the recipients, was provided with essential equipment, including four improved beehives, protective gear, and training. Previously, she worked as an agricultural laborer, supporting her family on 1.5 jeribs (0.3 hectares) of land, with one cow and five goats. Read Amina's story.

FAO, in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, unveiled two significant projects aimed at strengthening animal health systems in Lao People’s Democratic Republic and the Southeast Asia region.

In Egypt, with the support of USAID Global Health, FAO provided training to improve stakeholder coordination to address zoonotic diseases and AMR threats through the establishment of technical working groups. In doing so, FAO built the capacities of people in the veterinary and livestock industries to detect, diagnose and respond to animal diseases, enhancing national animal health response capacities through the development of national One Health and rabies strategies.

The 29th Session of the Committee on Agriculture (COAG) opened today at the Rome headquarters of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), seeking to address the urgent need to transform agrifood systems amid persistently high global hunger figures and mounting challenges.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) underlined the need for more investment in a Blue Transformation enabling aquatic foods to play a greater role in ending global hunger and poverty. The call came as FAO Chief Economist Máximo Torero presented the findings of a key FAO report on fisheries and aquaculture to agriculture ministers from the G7 countries.

The annual International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) Regional workshops held from 5 August to 8 September, concluded with plant health communities in seven regions—Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Europe and Central Asia, the Near East and North Africa (NENA), Latin America, and the Southwest Pacific, emphasizing their commitment to regional and international cooperation in protecting plants from pests.