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This publication brings together FAO’s current data on climate change and proposes actions to promote sustainable agriculture and food security, including tools and methodologies to support countries’ climate commitments and action plans. Also available in Spanish and Mandarin.

Globally, synergies between social protection and agriculture are taking place as part of an effort to combat hunger and poverty while promoting rural development. These efforts resonate with the vision and current strategies set in motion by the Government of the Philippines, which is committed to the goals and targets outlined in the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. This document presents a framework for analysis with the purpose of strengthening coherence between agriculture and social protection, and identifying pathways for achieving policy and programmatic synergies.  

Along the border of Côte d’Ivoire and Liberia, many communities are ethnically and politically divided. Land is at the heart of social, political and economic life, which makes land disputes and other related issues even more challenging. Tensions and conflict in Liberia, as well as the civil war, created an unstable scenario, where marginalized people increasingly take to demonstrating in cities, and roadblocks and even violence are becoming more common. Within this context, FAO, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) developed this project to promote the stabilization and cohesion of 10 communities along [...]

The sustainable management of forest and tree resources requires adequate and reliable information about the extent and state of the existing resources and their changes over time. The last countrywide forest inventory in Uzbekistan was conducted in 1978. The lack of data on forest and tree resources hampered the development of the forestry sector and international reporting obligations. Thus, the project addressed capacity building to establish a forest-monitoring system to supply the lacking data. Once established, the forest monitoring system will contribute to sustainable rural development with improved livelihoods of local communities and mitigate climate change. 

According to Forbes, we generate almost 2.5 quintillion bytes of data every day. The next generation of agriculture heavily depends on data. The ability to capture, sort, analyze and extract actionable intelligence from large data sets to reveal patterns (human, climate, market) and related trends is an important emerging field.  The increase in the use of Internet of Things (IoT) devices would only add to this data deluge. The Economist rightly called data as the world’s most valuable resource, while some calling data the new oil. Agriculture would be one of the major users of IoTs. How can individuals, organizations and [...]

Forests and woodlands in the United Republic of Tanzania play an important role in the economy and in nature conservation, with forests ensuring a beneficial environment for community livelihoods by providing a variety of products and services. However, forest degradation and deforestation are among the challenges faced by the national forest sector. In response to this, the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania sought technical and financial support from FAO to support a review of forest policy.

This summary identifies key trends in agriculture in the Caribbean and the related opportunities for investments in support of growth, poverty reduction, and sustainability. It presents, to the extent to which available data and information allow, a sectorial review of agriculture in the region and identifies opportunities, prospects and investment priorities. The document presents a description of the structure of the rural environment, demography, the supply of goods and services, the main inequalities, levels of poverty, importance and role of family agriculture and other economic activities (diversification), the main features of rural society and the presence of the private sector. It [...]

The IGAD member states are situated in a region exposed to recurrent natural shocks, political instability and characterized by internal and cross-border population displacement. Conflict is the root cause of food insecurity in South Sudan where about 6 million people were estimated to be severely food insecure in September 2017. Internal and cross-border displacement prevents households from engaging in typical livelihood activities, inhibits economic growth and disrupts markets and trade routes. Consequently, income-earning opportunities are limited, and the Government’s earnings in United States dollars are very low, which has led to hyperinflation. The European Union funded “Strengthening the Livelihoods Resilience [...]

The case study explores which skills and training opportunities young people need in order to gain access to decent employment in rural areas. The research was undertaken in order to develop recommendations to support the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) and FAO Cambodia in developing appropriate recommendations to support rural young people, especially those of the 15 to 17 age cohort. The study highlights the limited decent employment opportunities that currently exist along various agricultural value chains in rural Cambodia. Poverty and the structural problems of the agricultural sector are the main barriers for youth in accessing decent rural employment. [...]

Agricultural production more than tripled between 1960 and 2015, owing in part to productivity-enhancing technologies and a significant expansion in the use of land, water, and other natural resources for agricultural purposes. Today, more than ever, agriculture faces multiple and complex challenges. It has to provide sufficient, safe, and nutritious food to meet boosting demand by a growing and progressively more prosperous population, and ensure food security for all.  Prepared to support the G20 Presidency of Japan and the G20 Agriculture Deputies, these three background notes provide an overview on the following interlinked issues: (i) the policy challenges for strengthening [...]