Prospects for cereal production in Europe and Central Asia are generally positive, but a reduction...
Regional Initiatives
As economic reforms in the 1990s shifted land ownership into the hands of private smallholders, family farmers became the predominant source of agricultural production in the region. To address the absence of well-developed institutional support, FAO is implementing a Regional Initiative on Empowering Smallholders and Family Farms for Improved Rural Livelihoods and Poverty Reduction.
While international trade policy is usually implemented at the border, adherence to food safety and quality standards concerns national food safety systems as well as food safety and quality control at the enterprise level. This means that a supportive policy environment for modern agrifood trade encompasses not only border policies, but also policies and institutions at the national and enterprise level.
The impact of climate change can already be felt on food production systems in the region, posing considerable challenges for agricultural production and food security. FAO is helping countries to manage their natural resources sustainably, while also coping with climate change and reducing the risk of disasters affecting agriculture, forestry and fisheries.
Stories from the field
A new FAO project catalyzing the efficiency and sustainability of Azerbaijan’s hazelnut sector "HAZER" was virtually launched in June, under the FAO-Azerbaijan Partnership Programme.
Azerbaijan is among the world’s top five hazelnut producer countries, predominantly exporting raw hazelnuts to Russia and other countries. In the recent years, the government has introduced various incentives for the sector that still has a great – yet unused – potential to sustainably expand in quantity and quality, contributing to the diversification of the economy.
Water is a scarce natural resource consumed not only by humans, but much more by agriculture. The Isfara river in north Tajikistan, shared with Kyrgyzstan, has been the centre of conflicts over water for many years until five United Nations Agencies stepped in to foster cooperation through fair and sustainable water management under the framework of the South-South Cooperation.
Obidjon Rahmonov had one ambition: to become an agricultural entrepreneur and run his own vegetable production business. Although it seemed a far-off dream, Obidjon worked abroad in Moscow for over two years to earn enough money to support his family and put aside some savings to start his enterprise.