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, Family Farms and Youth 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, preserving biodiversity, while also coping with climate change and reducing the risk of disasters affecting agriculture, forestry and fisheries.
Our work
In their pursuit to ensure an equitable and sustainable future, governments can rely on FAO expertise in food and agriculture. Responding to the needs of Europe and Central Asia, the Organization is offering support in many specific areas.
Stories from the field
While efforts to increase food production through so-called “smart farming” might conjure images of artificial intelligence, robots and big data, improving agriculture isn’t always about cutting-edge technology. And when it comes to rural smallholder farming, being “smart” is often about finding affordable and clever ways of boosting crop production while using natural resources efficiently and without harming the environment.
That’s precisely what FAO’s “Smart Farming for the Future Generation” project is about.
Earlier this summer, renowned Georgian chef Guram Baghdoshvili prepared khinkali – a traditional Georgian meat-filled dumpling – on an Instagram live hosted by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and FAO. As Baghdoshvili took viewers through the steps – rolling out the dough, mixing the filling, shaping the dumpling just so to prevent seepage during boiling – he shared stories of khinkali’s roots, and the traditional way people ate them during the Middle Ages.
In the last two years, FAO and the European Union (EU) awarded a total amount of circa USD 5.1 million as a matching grant to the agricultural producers in Georgia. The grant support co-funds various capital investments in Georgia’s agriculture sector to increase competitiveness, create extra jobs, and ensure stability in food supplies.
















