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Chapter 1

Introduction

The relationships between human society and the land have been progressively transformed as a result of dramatic changes in the course of the 20th Century, particularly by increasing industrialisation, the mechanisation of agriculture, immediacy in global trade and communication, rapid increases in population size and densities, and the expanding use of biotechnologies. National, regional and international perspectives on agriculture must examine these and other factors in order to provide the best possible basis for allocating resources, establishing rules, formulating policy and making decisions. The emerging awareness that agriculture contributes in many varied forms to societal goals leads to a need for better understanding of the "multiple functions of agriculture." Other economic activities have strong relationships to land use, but agriculture also has unique social and environmental dimensions.

The first and foremost function of agriculture remains to provide food security, defined by FAO as "the access for all people at all times to enough food for an active, healthy life." The 1996 World Food Summit emphasised access to sufficient and adequate food as a universal human right. Clearly permanent availability, reliability of supply, relative autonomy, and population access and equity are all critical issues.

In addition to producing food, agriculture also produces a wide range of non-food goods and services, shapes the environment, affects social and cultural systems and contributes to economic growth. All these functions of agriculture can contribute to the achievement of sustainable development.

But agriculture also presents major challenges to sustainable development, among which the most important are:

FAO and other institutions focused attention in the 1970s and 1980s on emerging developments in agriculture that could address concerns about future food security, productivity and sustainability. Thinking was crystallised as an approach to "Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development (SARD)," with the principal characteristics being that "such sustainable development (in the agricultural, fisheries and forestry sectors) conserves land, water, plant and animal genetic resources, is environmentally non-degrading, technically appropriate, economically viable and socially acceptable." Significant accomplishments have included support to improvements in farm-level information, technology and organization as well as a better understanding of the linkages between rural areas and external institutional and commercial forces.

Evolving from SARD, the concept of the Multifunctional Character of Agriculture and Land (MFCAL ) is defined as the entire range of associated environmental, economic and social functions of agriculture. The concept encompasses all the multiple goods and services generated by agriculture and related land-use. Analysis of the multifunctional character contributes to understanding the combination of potential synergies and trade-offs necessary to achieve sustainability in agriculture and rural development.

The concept of multiple functions captures the complexity, scope and significance of this wide range of inter-relationships and interactions between the agricultural sector (assumed to include forestry and fish farming) and the environmental, economic and social domains, helping to describe and understand the multiple and often combined functions of agriculture. A multifunctional analysis can furnish a description of current conditions and sufficient information to determine the likely impacts of specific actions. The approach can thus inform discussion on critical issues such as trade, food security, biodiversity and rural employment and help to identify potential synergies and trade-offs and formulate better policies to achieve the ultimate goal of sustainability in agriculture within the related resource base.

This paper covers MFCAL concepts, issues and policies. Along with the accompanying Taking Stock Paper and six Background Papers, the paper constitutes the principal input to the FAO/Netherlands Conference on the Multifunctional Character of Agriculture and Land at Maastricht in the Netherlands from 12-17 September 1999. The Conference is expected to contribute to the Eighth Session of the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD-8), which will take place in April, 2000, by assessing progress in terms of success stories, contributing factors, best practices and lessons learned, and determine how best to continue progress towards implementing Agenda 21 globally in the next century.

The overall objective of the Conference is to identify the new practices and the necessary enabling environments that will lead to increased agricultural sustainability. Its particular emphasis is on raising international, national and local awareness of the range, diversity and positive potential of the multiple contributions that agriculture and related land use can make to improving both food security and sustainability in the broad sense.

The principal tasks of the Conference are to:

The context for the Conference and this series of input papers is set out in the boxes below.

BOX 1: RIO DECLARATION ON ENVIRONMENT AND DEVELOPMENT

Principle 3

The right to development must be fulfilled so as to equitably meet developmental and environmental needs of present and future generations.

Principle 4

In order to achieve sustainable development, environmental protection shall constitute an integral part of the development process and cannot be considered in isolation from it."

Principle 5

All States and all people shall cooperate in the essential task of eradicating poverty as an indispensable requirement for sustainable development, in order to decrease the disparities in standards of living and better meet the needs of the majority of the people of the world.

Principle 8

To achieve sustainable development and a higher quality of life for all people, States should reduce and eliminate unsustainable patterns of production and consumption and promote appropriate demographic policies.

 

BOX 2: THE ROME DECLARATION ON WORLD FOOD SECURITY

"Convinced that the multifaceted character of food security necessitates concerted national action, and effective international efforts to supplement and reinforce national action, we make the following commitments:

  • we will ensure that an enabling political, social, and economic environment designed to create the best conditions for the eradication of poverty and for durable peace, based on full and equal participation of women and men, which is most conducive to achieving sustainable food security for all;
  • we will implement policies aimed at eradicating poverty and inequality and improving physical and economic access by all, at all times, to sufficient, nutritionally adequate and safe food and its effective utilization;
  • we will pursue participatory and sustainable food, agriculture, fisheries, forestry and rural development policies and practices in high and low potential areas, which are essential to adequate and reliable food supplies at the household, national, regional and global levels, and combat pests, drought and desertification, considering the multifunctional character of agriculture;
  • we will strive to ensure that food, agricultural trade and overall trade policies are conducive to fostering food security for all through a fair and market-oriented world trade system;
  • we will endeavour to prevent and be prepared for natural disasters and man-made emergencies and to meet transitory and emergency food requirements in ways that encourage recovery, rehabilitation, development and a capacity to satisfy future needs;
  • we will promote optimal allocation and use of public and private investments to foster human resources, sustainable food, agriculture, fisheries and forestry systems, and rural development, in high and low potential areas;
  • we will implement, monitor, and follow-up this Plan of Action at all levels in co-operation with the international community. 

We pledge our actions and support to implement the World Food Summit Plan of Action."

The next chapter of this paper describes the MFCAL concept and its origins and sets out the main relationships and interactions between agriculture and related land use and the environmental, economic, social and cultural domains, both in terms of benefits and challenges. Chapter 3 discusses the findings of the series of case studies presented in the Taking Stock Paper and uses these to illustrate particular features of the concept of the multifunctional character of agriculture. This is followed by a chapter describing a conceptual framework which charts the complex sets of relationships and interactions in terms of geographical dimensions, such as the locations of agricultural potential and resilience, and institutional dimensions, such as the levels of development of markets, institutions and public capacity. The final chapter looks at possible ways forward, in terms of the actions, collaboration and partnerships needed to realise the potential contribution of MFCAL and other relevant concepts to the achievement of sustainability.

Together, the Issues and the Taking Stock Papers provide a broad, integrated and thematically coherent examination of MFCAL issues for the benefit of policy-makers, technicians, practitioners and other interested parties. The analysis seeks to inform and guide but not prescribe national and international policies and actions.

References appear as footnotes, and are listed at the end of the paper.

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