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The complete series of five free courses on rural poverty reduction is now available on FAO’s e-learning Academy as a global public good. The e-learning series is a comprehensive learning path on rural poverty and rural poverty reduction, highlighting key concepts, tools and case studies proven to support efforts to eliminate poverty and hunger in rural areas. Developed by FAO’s Strategic Programme to reduce rural poverty in collaboration with the International Policy Centre for Inclusive Growth, and with the technical support of several technical divisions and external experts, the content was designed using a multi-stakeholder consultative process in 2018. 

Natural hazard‑induced disasters (NHID), such as floods, droughts, severe storms, and animal pests and diseases have significant, widespread and long‑lasting impacts on agricultural sectors around the world. With climate change set to amplify many of these impacts, a “business‑as‑usual” approach to disaster risk management in agriculture cannot continue if we are to meet the challenges of agricultural productivity and sustainability growth, and sustainable development. Drawing from seven case studies – Chile, Italy, Japan, Namibia, New Zealand, Turkey and the United States – this joint OECD‑FAO report argues for a new approach to building resilience to NHID in agriculture. It explores the [...]

The  Food  and  Agriculture  Organization  of  the  United  Nations  (FAO)  Strategic  Framework  2022-31  outlines  the organization’s  commitment  to  MORE  efficient,  inclusive,  resilient  and  sustainable  agri-food  systems  for  better  production,  better  nutrition,  a  better  environment,  and  a  better  life,  leaving  no  one  behind.  These  four  betters are the aspirations of FAO, and the organizing principles of our work for the coming decade. They demonstrate a  commitment to better nutrition, while linking sustainable production and decent livelihoods with the urgent need  to protect and regenerate our environment.

The COVID-19 pandemic exposed the vulnerability of agri-food systems to shocks and stresses and led to increased global food insecurity and malnutrition. Action is needed to make agri-food systems more resilient, efficient, sustainable and inclusive.The State of Food and Agriculture 2021 presents country-level indicators of the resilience of agri-food systems. The indicators measure the robustness of primary production and food availability, as well as physical and economic access to food. They can thus help assess the capacity of national agri-food systems to absorb shocks and stresses, a key aspect of resilience.The report analyses the vulnerabilities of food supply chains and [...]

The FAO Investment Centre provides a wide range of support services to help countries make more and better investments in food and agriculture. This review looks back at the work the Centre carried out with its partners in 2020. Despite a challenging year amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Centre’s global team supported investment-related policy and sector studies to increase policy dialogue and contributed to the design, technical assistance, supervision or evaluation of investment projects in 120 countries. The Centre increasingly linked both its policy work with investment support to scale up impact. And it promoted greater knowledge sharing and innovation, while [...]

There has been a surge in the attention to sustainable agricultural mechanization for Africa. The need to support agricultural mechanization in the value chain in order to achieve agricultural and rural development is well recognized. Therefore, it is vital to address the major challenge of ensuring that business models for mechanization hire services driven by the private sector (including farmers, cooperatives, and small and medium enterprises) are not only profitable, sustainable and inclusive for smallholder farmers and vulnerable community members including women and youth, but also resilient to the effects of climate change. For a better understanding of how agricultural [...]

This White/Wiphala paper on Indigenous Peoples’ food systems is the result of collective work by Indigenous Peoples’ representatives and experts, scientists, researchers, and UN staff. Over 47 different units, organizations, and institutions have contributed to the Paper from the seven socio-cultural regions. This final version of the White/Wiphala paper has been coordinated by the Global-Hub on Indigenous Peoples’ Food Systems and edited by a Technical Editorial Committee, and summarises the main points received.This Paper advocates that lessons can be learnt from Indigenous Peoples’ approach to food, which will contribute to the resilience and sustainability of food systems worldwide, as well [...]

The following publication "Indigenous youth as agents of change - Actions of Indigenous youth in local food systems during times of adversity" highlights six initiatives from Indigenous youth in regions around the world who are leading innovative solutions and collaborations in the face of adversity brought about by climate change and exacerbated by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The youth initiatives describe how grassroots groups, networks, and platforms established by Indigenous youth have been essential to the fulfillment of basic needs within their communities in the face of this adversity. The publication has been produced under the Koronivia Joint Work on [...]

In Burkina Faso, the exacerbation of conflicts over natural resources and the rapid development of insecurity are sources of major concern for both the public authorities and the populations. The report features the main findings of the conflict analysis that was carried out to: (i) take stock of conflicts over natural resources and other conflicts in rural areas; (ii) identify initiatives for conflict prevention and management; and (iii) formulate proposals to improve the effectiveness of conflict prevention and management mechanisms. The conflict analysis is one of the main activities implemented under the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations [...]

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has developed this three-year strategy to strengthen resilience of agriculture-based livelihoods in Nigeria under recurring threats from both conflict and natural hazard-induced disasters to better withstand shocks and thrive. It integrates the pathways for resilience through four main outcome areas. The first one is the strengthening of the national institutions and their entities for disaster risk reduction, natural resources management and food crisis prevention and management in the agriculture sector. Secondly, it aims to inform agriculture-based livelihood interventions with reliable data, analysis and a well-established early warning system against known and [...]