Lauch of a new CoP on Evaluation for Food Security, Agriculture and Rural Development
EVAL-ForwARD is a new Community of Practice on evaluation for Food Security, Agriculture and Rural Development, jointly promoted by the evaluation offices of the Rome-based agencies: CGIAR (formerly known as the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research), FAO, IFAD and WFP.
Its first public launch took place at EvalColombo2018 during the side event The role of Evaluation in the public sector: how best to support national capacities. Conference participants had the opportunity to engage with the Directors of the Evaluation offices of FAO, IFAD and WFP on the aims, opportunities and thematic focus of this initiative.
The objectives of EVAL-ForwARD are to enhance awareness and capacities at country-level about evaluation in the agriculture, food security and rural development sectors, with a close focus on the evaluation of efforts to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 2 – End Hunger.
Evaluators, development practitioners, researchers and government officials are welcome to join the Community of Practice and:
- Exchange evaluation information, practice and knowledge;
- Propose resources and blogs;
- Post information about events, conferences, training opportunities.
The first EVAL-ForwARD webinar on Evaluating with a Sustainable Development Goal 2 lens: experiences to date is planned for the second half of October and aims to uncover the challenges encountered and the good practices on which the development community could build, fostering further discussion and exchanges on the topic, which is at the core of the Community’s mandate.
EVAL-ForwARD uses a Dgroup mailing list for knowledge-sharing and a website as a repository of information and resources. To sign up to the Community and to find out more, please visit: www.evalforward.org
The State of Food and Agriculture 2017
Today, the 2017 edition of the State of Food and Agriculture has been released. This year, the theme of the report is “Leveraging food systems for inclusive rural transformation”.
The new report looks at how population growth, increasing urbanization, technologies, and climate change are transforming rural and urban areas, and how the world’s food systems are evolving. The report concludes that fulfilling the 2030 Agenda depends crucially on progress in rural areas, which is where most of the poor and hungry live today, and outlines a strategy for how agriculture and rural economies in developing countries can provide prosperity.
Please visit the following website to download the report and additional material one of the six UN languages:
http://www.fao.org/state-of-food-agriculture/en/.
Leaving No One Behind: Achieving Gender Equality for Food Security, Nutrition and Sustainable Agriculture
12:30 - 14:30 Rome time, FAO Headquarters.
This Special Event will provide government representatives, UN entities, civil society and the private sector and other stakeholders with a platform to share experiences in accelerating progress towards gender equality and rural women’s empowerment. It will highlight forward-looking strategies and partnerships in the fight against hunger, malnutrition and extreme poverty.
Rural women play an important role in agriculture and rural development, and make a strong contribution to food security and nutrition at household and community levels. Worldwide, there is an increasing recognition that rural women must be at the centre of any intervention to promote sustainable agriculture and eradicate food insecurity and poverty. The 2030 Agenda envisages a future in which no one is left behind, where achieving gender equality and empowering women is an absolute precondition to break the cycle of poverty and hunger, and to achieve the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The event can be followed on webcast: http://www.fao.org/webcast
Programme
Opening remarks
José Graziano da Silva, Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, FAO
Presentation on FAO’s technical work on Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment
Kostas Stamoulis, Assistant Director-General, Economic and Social Development Department, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, FAO
Panel discussion
- His Excellency Hugo Martinez, Minister of Foreign Affairs of El Salvador
- Her Excellency Néziha Labidi, Minister of Women and Family Affairs of Tunisia
- Her Excellency Fatimata Dia Sow, Commissioner for Social Affairs and Gender of ECOWAS
- His Excellency Ty Sokhun, Secretary of State, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Cambodia
- His Excellency Ali Recep Nazli, General Director of Foreign Relations and EU Coordination of Ministry of Food Agriculture and Livestock of Turkey
- Haowa Bello, CEO and Founder of Madame Coquette - Beneficiary of the Youth Employment in Agriculture Programme
- Jessica Vega Ortega, Coordinator of the Yani Tundavii Dikuintií Collective of the Network of Young Indigenous Peoples of Latin America, Focal Point for the Global Indigenous Youth Caucus
Questions and answers
Concluding remarks
Online discussion on "Agroecology and Nutrition"
TECA (Technologies and practices for small agricultural producers), FAO’s free web based online information and communication platform for smallholders, has launched an online discussion on "Agroecology and Nutrition". The objective of this discussion is to identify successful agroecological farming practices which contribute to nutritious food systems.
Many successful experiences have already been documented on various platforms of FAO, e.g. TECA (during the previous discussions on “Sustainable agriculture through Agroecology” and “Agroecology and Soil Health”) and on Agroecology Knowledge hub. Based on these and other experiences, a three-week discussion will be held, inviting you to share your knowledge and experiences on agroecology and successful agroecological farming practices and approaches.
The discussion page can be accessed through the following link: http://teca.fao.org/discussion/agroecology-and-nutrition
The discussion will be available from 20 March until 12 April 2017.
For any further information please contact: [email protected].
The State of Food and Agriculture (SOFA) report for 2016 has been released
The State of Food and Agriculture 2016 report (SOFA 2016), FAO’s annual flagship publication, has been released yesterday.
SOFA assesses issues on agricultural and rural development in the context of global food security. This year’s SOFA report centres on the double challenge of food security and climate change, presenting alternatives to tackle the two as a whole.
The report and furher information are available in all UN six languages at: http://www.fao.org/publications/sofa/en/
Policies for Effective Rural Transformation, Agricultural and Food System Transition
Experiences of multi sectoral policy approaches to promote rural transformation, inclusive agricultural transition and economic growth, across sectors and developing regions will be discussed during an event taking place at FAO headquarters on 17 October from 13:00 to 14:30 CEST.
The structural transformation of economies is a clear pathway out of poverty and hunger when the
process is characterized by inclusive productivity growth in both agricultural and non-agricultural sectors
and by strong linkages between sectors and urban and rural areas.
For further information on this event and on this area of work please contact: [email protected]
Vacancy Announcement: Policy Officer for FIRST Programme
Food and Nutrition Security Impact, Resilience, Sustainability and Transformation (FIRST) is a FAO and the European Union partnership programme with the purpose of providing a policy assistance mechanism for improved food security and nutrition and sustainable agriculture.
FIRST has a vacancy in Pakistan for a Policy Officer, who will work under the overall technical guidance of FIRST Manager (FAO/Rome) and working in close collaboration with the EU Delegation and relevant government ministries/institutions, as well as other stakeholders and development partners. The officer will seek to develop and implement coherent, nitrated, and effective policy assistance and capacity development. The officer will work to provide technical and policy advice and supports the Government of Sindh in development and implementation of their strategies and policies including the Zero Hunger. The officer will facilitate and advocate for an inclusive policy dialogue and supports the establishment of multi-sectoral food and nutrition coordination mechanisms and institutional structures such as SUN, IPC TWG etc. at the federal, provincial and regional level as well as developing strategic partnerships around FNSSA.
The VA closing date is 15 July 2016.
The full VA, including a detailed list of key functions, may be found at: http://www.fao.org/fileadmin/user_upload/VA/pdf/IRC3417.pdf
The State of Food and Agriculture 2015 - Social protection and agriculture: breaking the cycle of rural poverty
The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) on reducing poverty have been met by many countries, yet many others lag behind and the post-2015 challenge will be the full eradication of poverty and hunger. Many developing countries increasingly recognize that social protection measures are needed to relieve the immediate deprivation of people living in poverty and to prevent others from falling into poverty when a crisis strikes.
This edition of The State of Food and Agriculture 2015 makes the case that social protection measures will help break the cycle of rural poverty and vulnerability, when combined with broader agricultural and rural development measures.
The State of Food and Agriculture 2014
More than 500 million family farms manage the majority of the world's agricultural land and produce most of the world's food. We need family farms to ensure global food security, to care for and protect the natural environment and to end poverty, undernourishment and malnutrition. Goals can be thoroughly achieved if public policies support family farms to become more productive and sustainable; in other words policies must support family farms to innovate within a system that recognizes their diversity and the complexity of the challenges faced.
The State of Food and Agriculture 2014: Innovation in family farming analyses family farms and the role of innovation in ensuring global food security, poverty reduction and environmental sustainability. It argues that family farms must be supported to innovate in ways that promote sustainable intensification of production and improvements in rural livelihoods.
International course at Wageningen University - Agriculture in transition
General introduction
Unique opportunity to participate in a course at one of the world's leading universities in its field. Wageningen UR is recognized as a world-leader in research and education in the domains of healthy living environments, safe and secure food, and sustainable value chains. We offer a wide range of courses which will help you to develop the capacities, leadership qualities needed to be creative, adaptive and responsive to the dynamics of a rapidly changing world. In our courses we connect WUR’s technical and scientific expertise with cutting-edge processes of innovation and learning.
Course introduction:
To go beyond just an increase in outputs to feed 9 billion people in 2050, an integral redirection of current farming practices is required. Nowadays there is a compelling need for creative thinkers that lead the way to innovative and more sustainable agricultural production. This two week’s intensive course will give you new tools and perspectives to become one of them. For information about this course please visit the following website:
Funding
For this course there are NFP Fellowships. A limited number of fellowships is available from Nuffic - the Netherlands Fellowship Programme (NFP) for nationals of certain countries. In order to apply for such a NFP fellowship, you have to register at the following website: http://www.studyinholland.nl/scholarships/scholarships-administered-by-nuffic/netherlands-fellowship-programmes/scholarships-online-sol.
You will be informed by Nuffic whether your application has been accepted. For more information visit: http://www.wageningenur.nl/en/Expertise-Services/Research-Institutes/centre-for-development-innovation/short-courses/how-to-apply.htm
The application deadline for the NFP fellowships is 1 October 2013.
Registration deadline: 24th of March 2014
How to apply:
For more information about registration for his course visit:
Or contact: [email protected]
Location: The Netherlands