South-South Cooperation: share know-how and ensure technology transfer
International Day for South-South Cooperation is commemorated on 12 September.
What is South-South cooperation (SSC)?
Developing countries of the South are meeting their development goals through the sharing of knowledge, solutions, skills, expertise, and resources. The adoption of SSC in FAO's work began in 1979 with the establishment of a focal point to promote, coordinate and integrate Technical Cooperation Among Developing Countries (TCDC) in all activities of the Organization.
“South-South” Triangular cooperation (SSTC)
Sometimes, these relationships involve a donor from a developed country or multilateral organization, which then becomes Triangular Cooperation through the provision of funding, training, capacity development opportunities and technology. Donor countries and multilateral organizations play a key role in promoting South-South initiatives.
SSTC is an important mechanism to advance the realization of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially SDG1 and SDG2, SDG13 and SDG17.
FAO has over 40 years of experience as a leading promotor and facilitator of SSTC in agriculture, food security and nutrition. FAO unites countries that have development solutions with countries that are interested in applying them and ensures the technical quality of these exchanges. One of the most common methods of SSTC is the exchange of expertise, such as the deployment of experts or technicians from one country to another for a couple months or even several years.
Involving the private sector in SSTC projects advances the uptake of technological innovations through market mechanisms and private investment. SSTC can play an effective role in addressing challenges and vulnerabilities in food systems in the developing world, especially in view of the impacts of COVID-19 and related shocks.
More than 10 countries in Europe and Central Asia are expressing their needs for knowledge sharing and capacity building with other member states having similar development experiences. Currently the Russian Federation is among the countries that provide solutions to the region for agricultural development and food security.
In 2018, PhosAgro, Russia's leading phosphate-based fertilizer producer, signed an agreement with FAO to donate $1.2 million to improve farmers' skills in sustainable soil management and enhance the capacities of national soil laboratories in Africa, Latin America and the Near East.
Innovative solutions in the South are key for tackling issues of hunger and poverty. By combining partners’ knowledge and resources, countries contribute to scaling up of good practices accelerating our path to Zero Hunger.
New horizons for South-South and Triangular cooperation open in conjunction with the Hand-in-hand, new initiative by Qu Dongyu, FAO Director-General. Hand-in-Hand is FAO’s evidence-based, country-led and country-owned initiative to accelerate agricultural transformation and sustainable rural development to eradicate poverty (SDG 1) and end hunger and all forms of malnutrition (SDG2).
Learn more about SSC and SSTC on the website.
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