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E-agriculture or ICT in agriculture holds great promise in providing access to innovative solutions to many challenges faced by smallholder resource-poor farmers. Access to the right information at the right time makes a great impact on the livelihoods of communities involved in agriculture and allied activities. This publication presents case studies in innovative use of emerging technologies to significantly improve the living standards of farming communities.  

It is generally assumed that there are strong links between conflict, food security and peace. However, the precise underlying causes and channels that determine these links are often not well understood. More research and data are required to generate the evidence base that helps guide both national and international responses. The present study aims to add to this knowledge. It comes at a time of enhanced risk of famine and severe food crisis in several parts of the world, with conflict as the common denominator. It also comes at a time when the total number of hungry people in the [...]

This note focuses on the topic of forced migration in protracted crises, presenting the challenges and some possible approaches to address root causes of forced migration and support displaced and host populations, illustrated by case studies from FAO’s interventions in such contexts. Improved food security, sustainable agricultural practices, access to and management of natural resources, employment and social protection benefits are key in supporting populations affected by displacement and to  ease the strain on host communities. Although forced migration poses many challenges, the long-lasting presence of forcibly displaced can create opportunities for local economies and bring skills, capital and connectivity [...]

Together with its partners, FAO works to increase the resilience of agricultural livelihoods at risk of disasters and crises. People with resilient livelihoods are better able to withstand damage, recover and adapt when disasters cannot be avoided. The increasing frequency and intensity of disasters caused by climate change reinforces the urgency to build the resilience of agricultural livelihoods of vulnerable communities. 

This note focuses on the important role that agricultural stakeholders can play in the fight against child labour, in the aftermath of the newly released global data on child labour. The publication addresses basic concepts through the following four sections: 1) why addressing child labour in agriculture requires particular attention; 2) what is the role of government and agricultural-related ministries; 3) what are agricultural extension agents; and 4) what do they do and what is the role of produce organizations.

Foot and mouth disease (FMD) is the most prevalent and economically important infectious disease of livestock in Pakistan. The project aimed to develop a national FMD control program and control FMD outbreaks, improve the livelihood of livestock farmers, curtail the losses caused by the disease and improve overall productivity of livestock.

In view of the existing tension and potential conflict between the host community and conflict-affected refugees in Turkana County, Kenya, an improvement in relations was urgently needed. It was noted that support could be given to disadvantaged hosts, linking them to market opportunities offered by the refugee situation, to the benefit of all concerned. The project sought to enable host communities to supply fresh produce (primarily vegetables and animal products) to the camp as part of the fresh food voucher component of the World Food Programme’s General Food Distribution and provide support to ensure that increased income from vouchers was [...]

Despite government efforts to reduce poverty and food insecurity, Ethiopia remains one of the world’s poorest countries, with around 25 million people living in extreme poverty. The country is exposed to a wide range of natural hazards, especially recurrent drought, such as that induced by El Niño in Amhara and Tigray Regions in 2014/15. The aim of the project was to provide emergency assistance in these regions for vulnerable smallholder households affected by the 2014/15 drought, many of whom  had consumed their seed reserves. It would do this by distributing cereal, potato and vegetable seed, and hand tools to assist [...]

Livestock and poultry-keeping are crucial to the farming and livelihood systems of Ghana. In May 2015, outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) threatened these systems and made it essential that measures be put in place to forestall losses caused by the disease in the affected areas and elsewhere. The project was designed to control the disease in Ghana and, above all, to prevent its spread to non-affected regions of the country and to neighbouring countries, by means of an immediate response. Find more Project Highlights here.

El Niño, which swept the Philippines from 2015 to 2016, had a significant impact on agricultural production and food security. The project aimed to restore agriculture-based livelihoods of drought-affected farmers in the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) and the Region XII, where a state of calamity was declared in four provinces. The project provided relevant agricultural inputs to the most affected and most vulnerable farm households and technical assistance through capacity building  of the relevant institutions, extension workers and farmers in building resilience to shocks, effective drought management and more robust monitoring and forecasting systems. Find more Project Highlights here.