FAO.org

On February 26, 2021, a meeting between the FAO, CARE International UK and the Consultative Group for International Agriculture Research (CGIAR) was held to discuss the next steps for the technical working paper they will be producing together. This work is being produced alongside the Conflict and Peace Unit (CPU), sitting under the umbrella of the Agrifood Economics Division (ESA) and the Office of Emergencies and Resilience (OER).

As announced last month, this joint publishing will contribute to developing an improved understanding of the intersections between climate change and conflict, with particular attention to crisis contexts in dryland forests and agrosilvopastoral areas. Moreover, it will reflect on how humanitarian, development and peace responses can adapt to address these challenges. Kindly follow the link above to read up on this partnership and the aims of this joint publication. 

The meeting focused on the detailed description of the objectives as well as the aim and progress of the working paper, now that all partners have submitted their case-studies. The three partners discussed the appropriate method to analyze and categorize the cases and extract the key messages. 

It was decided that a coordination meeting would be held between FAO and CGIAR to produce a pathway analysis uncovering the mechanisms linking climate change and conflict. This tool aims to facilitate the identification of the drivers of conflict and risk in the case-studies.

Partners also agreed on the importance of highlighting the complementarity between humanitarian relief and long-term development action. Recommendations should be drawn from projects that have implemented successful mitigation strategies.

It was then mentioned that the working paper should be concise and designed to efficiently target decision-makers. An interactive map will be presented along with the paper to show the significant overlap between Climate Change and Conflict and provide key information for each region. The substantial amount of data that has been gathered for the production of the map will be shared with all partners to help identify key drivers.

Finally, another concrete step will be that of consulting international and regional Think Tanks to gain insights from the ground level and receive evidence-based feedback to strengthen the key messages that will be presented to decision-makers.

The findings stemmed by this strategic partnership will be launched in the context of the  2021 Food Systems Summit. Stay tuned!