10 September 2012, Rome - A new FAO publication says carefully tailored policy and institutional changes can help to unlock the livestock sector's poverty reduction potential.

"Although an estimated 750 million poor have a major stake in the livestock sector, only a small minority of them have so far been able to take advantage of the opportunities provided by livestock sector growth" the authors write.

"In most instances, governments do not deliberately formulate policies that are anti-poor; rather they fail to realize that economic growth, although necessary, is not always sufficient for poverty reduction," they explain.

The book, Livestock sector development for poverty reduction: an economic and policy perspective, collates evidence from a broad array of sources and perspectives showing that investing in livestock can sustain livelihoods and spur economic growth. It illustrates that good policies and institutions are essential to the support of equitable livestock sector development.

But it equally warns that the specific context of each country means that a blueprint approach to policy and institutional change does not work: Identifying the most appropriate institutional and policy reform requires making space for experimentation and learning from the associated successes and failures.

The authors also argue it is important for governments, donors and others to make a distinction between livestock sector-related policies that lead to economic growth, and policies and institutional change which help the very poorest families to survive or improve their livelihoods.

This is especially critical in areas where the depth of poverty among livestock keepers is particularly high. For example, in sub-Saharan Africa it is estimated that more than 85 percent of poor livestock keepers live in extreme poverty.

For people living in extreme poverty, the authors note, "livestock may not provide many growth opportunities, but are more likely to act as safety nets - tools for survival, rather than tools for development."

The book, subtitled Livestock's many virtues, is the last in a series of publications written under FAO's decade-long Pro-poor Livestock Policy Initiative (PPLPI), a global endeavour funded primarily by the United Kingdom's Department for International Development (DFID) to improve livestock sector policy in ways that increase the benefits to poor people.

More than half of all urban Africans live in slums, up to 200 million survive on less than $2 a day, and poor urban children are as likely to be chronically malnourished as poor rural children.

"The challenge of achieving a "zero hunger" world - in which everyone is adequately nourished and all food systems are resilient - is as urgent in African cities as it is in rural areas," reads the foreword by Modibo Traoré, FAO Assistant Director-General for Agriculture and Consumer Protection.

"African policymakers need to act now to steer urbanization from its current, unsustainable path towards healthy, ‘greener' cities that ensure food and nutrition security, decent work and income, and a clean environment for all their citizens," the foreword continues.

The book was released in advance of the sixth session of the World Urban Forum in Naples, Italy (1-7 September). The Forum was established by the United Nations to examine one of the most pressing problems facing the world today: rapid urbanization and its impact on communities, cities, economies, climate change and policies. 

By the end of the current decade, 24 of the world's 30 fastest growing cities will be African. The publication cites surveys showing that between 2010 and 2030, the urban population of sub-Saharan Africa is projected to double, from about 300 to 600 million.

Sustainable market gardens

Growing greener cities in Africa voices particular concern about the future of market gardening - the irrigated, commercial production of fruit and vegetables in designated or other urban areas.

Market gardening is the single most important source of locally grown, fresh produce in 10 out of 27 countries surveyed, and the number-two source in six other countries. But market gardening has grown with little official recognition, regulation or support. In some cities, it is becoming unsustainable: to maximize returns, market gardeners have increased the use of pesticides and polluted water.

The publication urges national governments and city administrations to work together with growers, processors, suppliers, vendors and others to give market gardens and urban and peri-urban agriculture the political, logistical and educational support necessary for sustainable development.

Among the specific recommendations, policymakers are advised to zone and protect land and water for market gardens, and encourage growers to adopt FAO's "Save and Grow" farming model. Save and Grow seeks to boost yields while conserving and enhancing natural resources. It includes applying the right amount of appropriate, external inputs at the right time - such as pesticides, fertilizers and seeds.

FAO and urban gardening

FAO's Programme for Urban and Peri-urban Horticulture helps cities to ensure a year-round supply of affordable, fresh produce that meets the nutrition needs of their populations. It does that, first, by promoting market gardening, usually within 30 kilometres of city centres.

FAO also supports action to help low-income urban households to "grow their own", as a way of improving the quality of their diet, saving cash to spend on other needs, and earning income from the sale of surpluses.

A manual published by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization aims to help countries minimize the risks to public health, while protecting the vital role that bats play in agriculture and the environment.

The guide, "Investigating the Role of Bats in Emerging Zoonoses: Balancing Ecology, Conservation and Public Health Interest," is a hands-on reference to bat history, biology, monitoring, handling, and disease screening. The text is especially relevant as diseases transmitted by bats appear to be on the rise for various reasons.

Agricultural expansion and the use of natural resources are encroaching on bat-occupied territories, leading to increases in the interaction between bats, livestock and people. Understanding the changes that affect these populations is critical to addressing the risks, and limiting the exchange, of viruses between species.

The publication is designed for use by epidemiologists, wildlife officials, farmers, livestock veterinarians, zoologists, and any number of different professionals who might come into contact with bats. It was written by veterinarians, wildlife biologists, virologists, and disease experts, and includes field techniques for studying bats and infectious agents that do not cause disease in bats, but which can cause other animals or humans to become sick.

Natural allies in farm production

"Bats really are natural allies to the environment. They pollinate plants, spread seeds, and some species can devour about 25 percent of their body weight in insects. These benefits far outweigh their potential for transmitting disease. Yet, we cannot ignore the fact that development, demographics, and consumption of natural resources are bringing people, livestock and bats into closer and more frequent contact with one another. This increases the risk that bats can transmit potential pathogens and associated diseases to other animals and people," said Scott Newman, FAO wildlife veterinary epidemiologist, and co-author of the guide.

In the Philippines, the pollination provided by bats is crucial to maintaining ecosystems like the Subic Bay Forest Watershed Reserve. Government ministries responsible for Health, Agriculture and Wildlife have worked together to protect bat habitats while monitoring them to protect pigs and humans from disease spread.

Disease transmission

The bat manual is part of a broader effort by FAO and its partners to build awareness of the importance of wildlife to agriculture, ecosystems, and animal and human health.

In Malaysia and Bangladesh, fruit bats have been known to transmit Nipah virus, a previously unknown, contagious and deadly disease which was first recorded in pigs and humans in the 1990's. Disease studies showed that bats directly infected pigs in Malaysia, while in Bangladesh, humans picked up the virus primarily by ingesting date-palm sap that had been contaminated by bat excretions.

In Latin America, vampire bat-variant rabies causes a significant number of human deaths each year. In Southeast Asia and Africa, bats are being evaluated for the role they play in Ebola outbreaks.

Fruit bats from the order Pteropodidae are the animal reservoirs for Ebola, which can cause a deadly hemorrhagic disease in humans and other mammals.  Outbreaks of Ebola in human populations are relatively rare, but mortality rates can reach up to 90 percent.

"It's important to realize that, while bats may pose a risk to human health, in most cases, disease exposure from bats is usually a result of human activity. This means that we can study bats and learn healthier ways to share our farms, forests and communities with them," Newman added.

"The new guide supports countries in their efforts to improve management of bats' natural habitats while ensuring the health of humans, livestock and other wildlife species."

Balancing act

FAO's new manual looks at these concerns within a One Health approach. One Health is a framework that addresses zoonotic diseases by using a multi-disciplinary perspective to understand and monitor the connections between different species and their agro-ecological habitats, with the aim of protecting the health of all.

"FAO has started using the bat manual for capacity development in keeping with the One Health concept, specifically in the Field Epidemiology Training Programme for Veterinarians (FEPTV). We plan to distribute this manual to our member countries in Eurasia, Africa and the Americas," says Newman.

The new manual will also be used in regional disease-monitoring projects being implemented by FAO and partners in Thailand, the Philippines, and Vietnam. The projects will study how the interface between wildlife, livestock and humans can affect the spread of Henipah, Lyssa and Corona viruses - all pathogens capable of causing illness and death in domesticated animals and humans.

Investigating the Role of Bats in Emerging Zoonoses: Balancing Ecology, Conservation and Public Health Interest" was produced, in part, with financial support from the government of Australia, APHCA, and technical and in-kind support from various partners.

• Farmer Field Schools developed by FAO in Asia, and subsequently in Africa, have enabled millions of small farmers to analyze their production systems; identify their risks and opportunities and test solutions, and adopt new practices that lead to improvements in their livelihoods and food security.

• West African and Indian farmer groups have helped members to obtain short-term credit through a "warehouse receipt system". In collaboration with micro-finance institutions, they have provided storage facilities for agricultural products. The receipts are then used as guarantees to obtain short-term credit.

• In India, where a disastrous harvest can lead poor people to mortgage their lands, a women's association has provided loans to release mortgaged land and free borrowers from dealing with money lenders.

• In Cameroon, farmers' groups, collectors, buyers, resellers and researchers collaborated to select a new plantain variety that fetches a higher price than traditional plaintains. The new variety is also used to make specialty dishes and chips. This has led to the emergence of small groups, including dozens of women's groups, concerned not only with the production and sale of bunches, but also with processing the plantain into chips.

• In the Gambia, the National Fisheries Post Harvest Operator Platform is a mechanism for dialogue where governments can learn about small producers' needs while producers express their concerns and preferences.

• In Honduras, greater control over natural resources was transferred to local communities as part of the decentralization process, resulting in better land management and cropping practices. These Community Development Councils, representing rural families, participated in the Municipal Council and managed to ban slash-and-burn agriculture.

Some of the case studies also demonstrate the importance of including youth in small producer organizations and in decision-making processes.

"While highlighting the success factors for small producer organizations to thrive, these good practices can allow development practitioners and other stakeholders to learn from successful initiatives in various countries, to support them and replicate them. We hope that policy-makers and development practitioners in developing countries will build on insights from this set of case studies to promote innovative types of partnerships involving relevant stakeholders for effective food security strategies and rural development," write Graziano da Silva and Nwanze.

Support for women

Women in developing countries are among those who have benefited from rural organizations and other innovative institutions.

Women make up, on average, 43 percent of the agricultural labour force in developing countries, but tend to have lower-paid, less secure forms of employment and less access than men to agricultural resources like land, livestock, farm labour, education, extension services, credit, fertilizers and mechanical equipment.

The Good practices publication shows how rural organizations, including cooperatives, can help women farmers to overcome the social, economic and environmental constraints they face, by providing services such as access to markets, information, extension, and natural resources:

• In India, members of a women's association increased their vegetable production through better management of natural resources. The women have used watershed development techniques, such as building stone bunds, or ridges, and vegetative barriers, to control soil erosion, and reclaimed 3 000 hectares of ravine lands in 73 villages.

• In Burkina Faso, a microfinance network has provided short-term credit to women in order to support their development of parboiled rice, which tends to be more marketable due to its improved flavour and nutritional values.

• A water-use association in Ghana helps women to gain access to land for vegetable production by collecting a fee for annual membership that entitles each woman to a vegetable plot.

Producer organizations combined with links to non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the research community, and public and private actors also help small-scale producers, both men and women, to voice their concerns and interests in order to influence policy-making processes.

Possible areas of cooperation include improving agricultural statistics, the use of communication and information technologies to benefit agriculture as a whole, and small-scale farmers in particular, in addition to supporting the development of a scorecard system.

During the meeting, Graziano da Silva presented Gates with a permanent building pass to FAO, in a symbolic gesture of FAO's commitment to working closer with the private sector and civil society.

Information innovation and cooperation

Graziano da Silva highlighted the value of innovative partnerships and of increasing South-South Cooperation to support smallholder producers.

Emphasizing the foundation's commitment to supporting small-scale farming, Gates addressed the need to make sure the benefits of the digital revolution and scientific innovations reach poor farmers worldwide and are better used in gathering and analyzing data.

FAO has also long advocated the need for greater access to information, innovation and cooperation to reduce hunger, malnutrition and extreme poverty through agriculture. In the meeting, the value of information technology to help small farmers obtain market information, link them to new and existing markets, and improve their productivity and business decision-making was also highlighted.

Before meeting at FAO, Gates discussed agriculture and sustainable poverty reduction during a question-and-answer session at the 35^th Session of the Governing Council of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). He said that the world had the opportunity and the obligation to imagine a different future.

"This future will begin with another revolution in agricultural productivity. Sustainable yield increases will lead to a better living for farm families; they will also make food more accessible and cheaper for the growing number of poor families living in cities. In short, more productive small farmers are the key to achieving the Millennium Development Goals on hunger and poverty. If you care about the poorest, you care about agriculture," said Gates.

• In the Lempira Sur district in Honduras, where slash-and-burn agriculture was taking a toll on natural resources, community development councils representing rural families increased the power of communities over decision-making at the municipality level. Ultimately, they were influential in the adoption of improved natural resource management and the banning of slash-and-burn methods. They also fostered the re-introduction of indigenous techniques that were less damaging to the environment.
  
  
• In Niger, poor dispersed farmers in rural areas who are unable to get conventional bank credit are able to use their stored agricultural products as collateral, by using the "inventory credit" or warehouse "receipt" system. A cooperative provides storage facilities for the small-scale producers and the stocks work much like a savings account. The warehouse "receipt" or "inventory credit" system provides rural producers with a means to access credit.

• In eight countries across eastern, southern, western and central Africa, FAO has been helping to strengthen the relationship between farmer organizations and buyers of various products, including cotton, cassava, oil palm and rice.

• In Fiji, papaya growing has been making the transition from a traditional gardening activity to a source of farming for export. A national cooperative has helped to improve the flow of information, marketing opportunities and the quality and consistency of production.

Regional and international farmer and peasant organizations and movements, fisherfolk, youth, pastoralists and indigenous peoples have also been instrumental in policy-making processes, including the ongoing Committee on World Food Security-led Intergovernmental negotiations of the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests.

Graziano da Silva has also announced that FAO is planning to open liaison office spaces for cooperatives, the private sector and civil society at the organization's headquarters.

The theme of the GSSD Expo is ‘Solutions, Solutions, Solutions!' as a concrete response to the strong
commitment made by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to help the Global South realize its shared aspirations of achieving sustainable and equitable development.

"We have already seen great progress thanks to southern solutions," stressed the Secretary-General in his statement. "We must now confront interlinked challenges through a broader campaign for sustainable
development."

"Recent price hikes in world food prices are threatening to reverse decades of hard-won development gains in the South," said Macharia Kamau, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Kenya to the United Nations and President of the UN General Assembly High-level Committee on South-South Cooperation in his opening statement. "But," he added, "despite these growing concerns, there is reason for optimism in success stories of countries in the South that have transformed themselves from basket cases to bread baskets."

Rebecca Grynspan, Associate Administrator of the UN Development Programme said increased capacity and regional integration have fueled economic progress, and South-South flows of finance, technology, and trade have grown significantly, with large emerging economies playing a particularly strong role.

"These factors have contributed to the significant progress made towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals in many developing countries, as evidenced by the steep reductions in poverty and extreme hunger, improved child health and education, including for women and girls."

Manoj Juneja, FAO Deputy Director-General, said that a time when nearly a third of the world's population remains unable to adequately feed itself, the world also has the technological capability, and is actually producing enough food to feed everyone. "Sadly," he said, "while one in seven people on earth go hungry and are unable to consume even a basic meal, it is estimated that approximately a third of all food that is produced is wasted through either post-harvest losses or once it has reached the meal plate."

"We know a farmer's productivity increases nearly nine percent with four years of primary schooling," said Getachew Engida, Deputy Director-General of UNESCO. "We estimate that investing in girls' education could boost sub-Saharan Africa agricultural output by 25 percent."

Since its inception in 2008, the GSSD Expo has featured contributions from hundreds of partner countries, UN agencies, private sector enterprises and civil society organizations. The six thematic areas of GSSD 2011 are: (1) Agriculture, Food Security and Capacity Development; (2) Social Protection and Food Security; (3) Climate Change, Environment and Food Security; (4) Nutrition and HIV/AIDS; (5) Global Health and Food Security; and (6) Agribusiness, Renewable Energy and Food Security.

"It is not that we don't have the right policies and strategies," said Yiping Zhou, director of the UNDP Special Unit for South-South Cooperation. "It is that these are not where they are most needed!"

Training will remain a key component of FAO's work and an indispensable tool, but current efforts need to be comprehensive to help countries adopt more sustainable methods to foster development.

India, for example, sought a sustainable approach to growing cotton while reducing the use of pesticides. FAO teamed up with national partners to create Farmer Field Schools (FFS), training nearly 50 000 farmers in four Indian states. This led to the participation of another 100 000 farmers. Several Indian states adopted FFS as the official approach to sustainable field management practices. Agricultural extension services and policies in the country were reoriented and partnerships between scientific and research institutions, universities and policy-makers were formed.

"Thanks to the support of the EU and with the backing of our many partners in agriculture and forestry, REAFOR is now reaching completion," says Ndiaga Gueye, FAO Representative in DR Congo.

REAFOR, he explains, is led by FAO, working with a host of specialised partners, including the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), the National Institute for Agronomic Study and Research (INERA) and the University of Kisangani (UNIKIS).

In the area of forestry, 13 PhD-students and 35 MSc-students are carrying out research aimed at safeguarding one of the world's most valuable ecosystems, while at the same time improving the livelihoods of the people living in and around the forest, who greatly depend on it for their income and subsistence.

24 students are enrolled in agricultural research projects, 5 PhDs and 19 MScs. Their projects focus on basic Congolese food crops such as cassava and plantain, on how to produce more and better plants, while preserving the environment and the ecosystem.

Meanwhile, research stations from the heart of the rainforest to the high hills bordering Uganda or the southwestern savannahs, are being rehabilitated and equipped with state of the art material, so that the students have what they need to perform.

Where goes the system?

 "Our aim is to provide Congo with the means to re-establish a critical mass of scientists for itself," says FAO's project manager, Nehru Essomba. Now that the students are preparing to defend their theses, and with REAFOR reaching completion, Essomba is confident that one of the immediate goals, the training of students and the rehabilitation of assets, will be achieved.

Moreover, he would like to leave behind the awareness that institutional reform is urgent.  "Because a system cannot develop itself when it doesn't know in what direction it is going."

"We have reached our objectives," the EU's Patrick Houben agrees. He adds that the question now is how to keep research going. "And that," he concludes, "is up to the Congolese."

Dihé is a rich source of protein, iron and betacarotene and can enhance the nutritional value of diets that are poor in these nutrients.

FAO Project

In Chad Dihé is customarily harvested by vulnerable women of the low "Blacksmith" caste from the shallow pools of water where it forms at certain times of the year. Launched in 2007, the project showed them how to do the job more efficiently and hygienically, and how to process, package and market the produce.

Traditionally, Dihé is filtered out directly on the sandy ground near the Wadis (river beds, where conditions are suitable for the development of natural Spirulina), dried into a thin biscuit and subsequently made into a bitter-tasting sauce.  

According to Mahamat Sorto, the project's coordinator in Chad, ten tons of improved Dihé have now been produced and sold through pharmacies and groceries in the country, generating 50 million CFA Francs (€75,000) of profits for 500 women.

He estimated that production can be increased tenfold while maintaining the delicate ecological balance which allows the algae to grow under natural conditions. In order to reproduce naturally in the open, it needs a very specific environment - such as that of the brackish water pools that form on the northeastern shore of Lake Chad at the end of the rainy season. It also needs daytime temperatures of 35-37C dropping to 15-20 C at night. 

Market Potential

Commercially-produced Spirulina currently has a rising niche market as a dietary supplement. The algae are grown commercially in anaerobic digesters but Sorto claimed the naturally-produced Chad variety has better nutritional value. It is also 100 times cheaper than the produce retailed in developed countries.

However, prior to broader promotion and marketing further tests on the product may be needed and international certification obtained.

The UNITAR/FAO interactive tutor-facilitated online courses will be certified using internationally recognized quality standards schemes, and will be based on self-paced e-learning materials developed by FAO and partners as part of the Information Management Resource Kit.

The first online course, jointly designed by UNITAR and FAO, is entitled: "Innovative Collaboration for Development" and covers social media tools, social networking, collaboration and knowledge exchange.  The course will focus on training development professionals to realise the potential of social media tools to enhance the efficiency of their work, increase their organizations' outreach, and contribute to the effectiveness of their work. The online course is scheduled for the third quarter of 2010.

The UNITAR/FAO partnership aligns with the United Nations calls for enhanced interagency collaboration and improved synergies among agencies in capacity development. The partnership builds on the strengths of both institutions in providing high quality courses taking full advantage of digital technologies to provide learning opportunities to professionals in developing countries.

A growing network

From trade to improved food security

The additional income generated through sale of certified products is mainly used for purchasing food or clothing, for paying school fees and for medical expenditures, thereby improving living conditions and food security.

The project's impact at the community level resulted in creating jobs for workers involved in the production of certified products as well as supportive services. Furthermore, the new organic production methods have also been adopted by farmers who are not members of the producer groups and some of them have already expressed the desire to join the groups.

The project also supported national networks of organic farmers, exporters and fair-trade organizations, including the Fédération Nationale de l'Agriculture Biologique (FENAB) in Senegal.

Struggle for sustainability

In development projects, the critical moment comes when outside funding ends. Will the baby walk on its own? The 20 primary schools that have taken up the teaching method are having their problems. Their gardens aren't as productive as the older established gardens, which were put near water sources.

Mr Walter, standing in his dusty school garden, explains: "We started by ourselves because we were desperate. We're not assisted but we hope for assistance.

"We want the children to get the knowledge so they'll continue being farmers. We don't want them to beg."

The Junior Farmer Field and Life School concept, devised and tested by FAO in 2004, is now operating in 12 African countries with more countries starting schools this year. Over 17 000 orphans and other vulnerable children have graduated from the schools.

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