A unified voice for small-scale farmers on the international stage
For decades, smallholder farmers— essential to sustaining biodiversity, addressing climate change, and ensuring global food security—have faced challenges in influencing global decision-making. Despite their vital role, their unified voice was often missing from international climate and biodiversity dialogues. However, at the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) COP16 in Cali, Colombia a significant shift occurred: small-scale farmers demonstrated their emerging strength as key advocates for sustainable solutions at the intersection of agriculture, biodiversity, and climate.
A growing voice for change
While Indigenous Peoples have long been recognized as influential players in international policy stage, smallholder farmers have struggled to achieve similar visibility in international forums like COPs. Barriers such as lack of coordination among farmer organizations and limited access to decision-making platforms kept their perspectives out of crucial discussions. The dynamics at COP CBD showed progress.
A key milestone at COP CBD was the formal inclusion of forest and farm producer organizations (FFPOs) in a newly established technical body for local communities and Indigenous Peoples. This inclusion marked an important step toward acknowledging rural producers as essential contributors to biodiversity conservation and climate adaptation.
From visibility to influence
At COP16, smallholder farmers went beyond symbolic participation. Their presence provided unique insights into biodiversity and climate resilience, showcasing how their solutions address global challenges.
Farmer representatives from organizations such as the Asian Farmers’ Association (AFA), the Confederation of Family Producers' Organizations of Greater Mercosur (COPROFAM), the Eastern Africa Farmers Federation (EAFF), the Intercontinental Network of Organic Farmers Organisations (INOFO), the PanAfrican Farmers Organization (PAFO), and the World Rural Forum (WRF) actively engaged in panels and discussions on regenerative agriculture, climate adaptation, climate finance solutions, and biodiversity conservation.
One notable event, “Common Ground on Regenerative Agriculture for a Sustainable Future,” provided a platform for FFPOs to share innovative approaches to integrate sustainability with rural livelihoods.
Esther Penunia, Secretary-General of AFA, highlighted the need for economic incentives to enable farmers to adopt agroecological and climate-resilient practices. "Our question always is: how do you transform farms into more diverse and climate-resilient systems? Economic incentives are very important for farmers to transition to sustainable or climate-resilient and agroecological approaches,” said Ms Penunia. “Like public procurement and premiums for our products, participatory guarantee systems and direct farmer-consumer relationships.”
Such contributions demonstrate how partnerships blending environmental stewardship with sustainable livelihoods can empower farmers to lead biodiversity conservation efforts.
Building farmers’ advocacy
The progress seen at COP16 reflects years of dedicated efforts to build smallholder farmers' capacity to engage in global policy discussions.
Initiatives like the Forest and Farm Facility (FFF), a partnership led by FAO, IUCN, IIED, and AgriCord, have been instrumental in strengthening the advocacy skills of FFPOs through targeted training, mentoring, and campaigns. With support from the FFF, grassroots organizations, regional networks, and global farmer alliances have worked together for years to build a shared voice for smallholder farmers, advocating for policies that integrate agroecological approaches and address the dual crises of climate change and biodiversity loss.
“These processes take time,” explains Pascale Bonzom, Global Head, Food and Agricultural Systems, Center for Societal Transformation, at IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature. IUCN leads the regional and global work of the FFF. “Building a common voice is a gradual effort, but each step brings farmers closer to influencing decisions that directly affect their livelihoods and the planet.”
A notable milestone is the Family Farmers for Climate Action (FFCA) campaign, launched in 2024. Representing over 50 million farmers through 11 family farmer organisations across Africa, Latin America, Asia and the Pacific, FFCA aims to amplify smallholder farmers' voices in global climate conversations.
In addition to direct advocacy, the FFF supports FFPOs in creating climate-resilient landscapes, scaling agroecological practices, and forging partnerships for inclusive, sustainable development. For example, FFF has connected FFPOs with global platforms like the UNCCD Civil Society Organizations Group, enabling stronger environmental governance and greater visibility.
Bridging the gaps
While the progress made in Cali (and other recent international events) signals a shift in the narrative, significant challenges remain limited access to climate finance and systemic barriers in policymaking still hinder smallholder farmers’ full participation. As part of the FFCA campaign, a recent report, “Money Well Spent?” , was released. The report underscores the urgent need for equitable financing and greater advocacy to ensure farmers can contribute meaningfully to climate resilience and food security.
The report revealed that only 14 percent (USD1.3 billion) of international climate finance for agriculture and land use reached small-scale farmer-relevant activities in 2021-2022. It adds further weight to previous findings which show that small-scale farmers are severely side-lined in terms of finance and voice when it comes to climate funding, frequently using their own limited resources to fund action.
Looking ahead
The inclusion of small-scale farmers in forums like CBD COP16 is a testament to their growing influence in global decision-making. By continuing to strengthen their advocacy, secure equitable financing, and foster inclusive partnerships, the indispensable role of family farmers in building a sustainable and resilient future can finally be recognized—for the benefit of people and the planet.
The momentum generated at COP16 shows that smallholder farmers, when united, can be powerful agents of change in addressing the interconnected crises of climate, biodiversity, and food insecurity.
To sustain this momentum, we call on governments, donors, and private sector actors to increase investments in smallholder farmers. Join us in empowering family farmers to build a more sustainable, climate-resilient future.