Communication and collaborative action for #FamilyFarming.
The UNDFF Global Action Plan (GAP) provides a blueprint for promoting policy change and achieving the goals of the Decade. The GAP recognizes communication as a central element to engage family farmers and their organizations and recommends working in this field along three main priorities: promote rural communication services as part of family farming policies and programmes; strengthen producer organizations’ communication and ICT capacities; and give voice to family farmers.
Farmers’ organizations, institutions, community media and communication practitioners are actively involved in carrying forward these lines of action through Participatory Communication Plans in different regions.
Learn more about the UNDFF Participatory Communication Plans for Africa, Asia Pacific and Latin America.
Communication is key to family farming and sustainable rural development. Communication for Development (ComDev) combines participatory communication processes with the appropriation of media and ICTs by rural people. It raises the voice of family farmers, fosters multi-stakeholder dialogue and enhances the sustainability of development efforts.
To harness the full potential of communication, FAO launched three regional Communication for Development initiatives that support family farming policies and programmes, and the UNDFF. Yenkasa Africa, ComDev Asia and Onda Rural are facilitated by specialized communication institutions and networks in partnership with farmer organizations, development institutions and community media, and they steer the implementation of the UNDFF Participatory Communication Plans. Each initiative allows experience sharing about communication and the use of ICTs in the agricultural sector, as well as collecting evidence for establishing rural communication services and the training of institutions, community leaders and giving special attention to women and youth. Extensive networks of community media and communication practitioners offer a diffuse capacity to address the communication challenges related to family farming.