Forest and Farm Facility

International Conference on Agrobiodiversity 

Pokhara, Nepal, 9-12 April 2024

Programme | Schedule | Speakers

Forest and farm producer organizations representing the world’s smallholder farmers, Indigenous Peoples and local communities gathered in Pokhara, Nepal, from 9–12 April and virtually (online) to explore how to best manage the world’s agrobiodiversity. Delegates from around the world addressed their common problems in maintaining agrobiodiversity while exploring innovative models to benefit members’ livelihoods.

The conference was facilitated by the Forest and Farm Facility, a partnership between the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the International Institute for Environment and Development, the International Union for Conservation of Nature and AgriCord.

With agriculture covering the largest portion (46%) of the global land surface area, its ecological health and resilience is critical to human survival. Of 7000 plants historically cultivated for food, today just three crops – rice, wheat and maize – make up over half of global plant-based calories. This poses a significant risk for biodiversity and a major challenge for smallholder farmers, Indigenous Peoples and local rural communities who maintain most of the world’s remaining agrobiodiversity.

Increased land degradation and escalating climate risks also pose significant challenges for frontline forest and farm producers. Small farms of less than 2 acres account for some 84 percent of all farms worldwide, producing roughly 35 percent of the world’s food on 12 percent of its agricultural land. These small producers face strong competition for resource rights, technical support and cost-competitiveness from large-scale industrial monocultures.

Conference objectives

Delegates will share best practices in policy, knowledge management, seed conservation, agronomy, enterprise development and finance.

The conference seeks to strengthen cooperation between producer organizations and governmental institutions, the private sector, finance institutions and other stakeholders to promote agrobiodiversity within forest and farm value chains.

Participants will be taken on a one-day field trip to witness first-hand how forest and farmer producer organizations are managing agrobiodiversity in Nepal.

The conference aims for agreed action to:

  • Expand the co-production of knowledge on agrobiodiversity management.
  • Promote the diversification of seed sources that sustain options for agrobiodiversity.
  • Pilot and upscale innovative business and financial models that incentivise agrobiodiversity conservation.

More information

Find more information regarding sessions and speakers at the website: Agrobiodiversity Conference 2024.