Around the world, small-scale farmers are increasingly adopting agroecology and agroforestry as sustainable farming methods that enhance food and nutritional security while minimizing the use of chemical inputs. These approaches leverage natural solutions for managing soil nutrients, pests, and weeds, often in response to health concerns and financial constraints.

This brief emphasizes the urgent need to lessen our dependence on synthetic pesticides, highlighting agroecology and agroforestry as viable and sustainable alternatives. The aim of this paper is to equip policymakers with science-based evidence regarding the use of synthetic pesticides and the available alternatives. It elaborates on how agroecology and agroforestry can enhance safe agricultural practices while also shedding light on the challenges related to accessing bioinputs.

This policy brief serves as a valuable resource for shaping policies, making a compelling case for the production and distribution of bioinputs, and promoting further research in this area.