Women’s empowerment through collective action: How forest and farm producer organisations can make a difference
Half of the 1.5 billion people globally who rely on forest landscapes for subsistence and cash income are women. Many see the benefits of participating in various forest and farm producer organisations (FFPOs). These include both general community, smallholder farmer and indigenous people’s...
State of knowledge of soil biodiversity - status, challenges and potentialities
There is increasing attention to the importance of biodiversity for food security and nutrition, especially above-ground biodiversity such as plants and animals. However, less attention is being paid to the biodiversity beneath our feet, soil biodiversity, which drives many processes that produce...
Enabling sustainable food systems - Innovators’ handbook
Sustainable food systems are fundamental to ensuring that future generations are food secure and eat healthy diets. To transition towards sustainability, many food system activities must be reconstructed, and myriad actors around the world are starting to act locally. While some changes are easier...
Near-real-time monitoring of food crisis risk factors for improved early warning early action
This document summarizes the online discussion Near-real-time monitoring of food crisis risk factors for improved early warning early action, held on the FAO Global Forum on Food Security and Nutrition (FSN Forum) from 16 September to 18 October 2020. The discussion was facilitated by Betina...
Call for good practices in the field of digital agriculture
The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) are accepting submissions on good practices from Europe and Central Asia in digital agriculture.
This call is the first phase of the regional contest entitled “Digital Excellence in Agriculture in Europe and Central Asia”, aiming at collecting good practices in the field of digital agriculture and providing a mechanism for identifying outstanding initiatives, projects, and programmes across the regions to be awarded with a special recognition of Digital Excellence in Agriculture.
It will enable individuals and organizations using digital agricultural practices to share knowledge, solutions, and suggestions that highlight the potential of stepping up good practices in the region of Europe and Central Asia.
The regional contest will have six phases:
- Submission of good practices open from 4 November until 11 December 2020;
- Nomination of outstanding practices in January 2021;
- Production of a stocktaking report including all good practices collected;
- Selection of the finalists and award recipients;
- Production of a special promotional video focusing on outstanding good practices, as well as production of the Digital Excellence in Agriculture report;
- Award ceremony where the finalists will receive an opportunity to present their good practices and outstanding achievements during the “Digital Excellence in Agriculture in Europe and Central Asia” event (February-March 2021), and the winners will be awarded with a special recognition and a trophy.
Submissions are accepted in the following categories:
- Regulatory frameworks/Enhanced market access/Financial services and insurance;
- Capacity development and empowerment;
- Agriculture innovations systems and sustainable farming;
- Disaster risk management and early warning systems;
- Food safety and traceability.
This regional contest follows a joint ITU-FAO Study on the Status of Digital Agriculture in 18 Countries of Europe and Central Asia, that clearly demonstrated how Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) are playing an emerging role in the agriculture of Europe and Central Asia.
This call will contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and, in particular, SDG2 on “Zero Hunger”, by contributing to close the digital, rural, and gender disparaties, known as the triple divide, and ensure an inclusive digital transition. The contest is also an important milestone in the implementation of the Regional Initiatives of both, the ITU and FAO.
For more information, please visit http://www.fao.org/europe/resources/call-on-digital-excellence/en/
Inclusive public school food procurement to improve schoolchildren nutrition
Public School Food Procurement can be an effective tool for improving the nutrition of schoolchildren and to integrate local producers into school food programmes. The aim of this discussion is to exchange experiences and lessons learned among experts of the region, as well as to identify good practices, challenges and barriers to an effective public school food procurement.
The State of the World’s Forests 2020
As the United Nations Decade on Biodiversity 2011–2020 comes to a close and countries prepare to adopt a post-2020 global biodiversity framework, this edition of The State of the World’s Forests (SOFO) examines the contributions of forests, and of the people who use and manage them, to the...
Young pastoralists in towns and cities: supporting the economic and social integration of young pastoralists – Chad and Burkina Faso
In an international context characterized by migration and security agendas, normative discourses about young people and pastoralism in the Sahel tend to link violent conflicts to resource degradation and climate change. Empirically grounded, to understand the processes of change and the drivers of...
Agricultural extension in transition worldwide - Policies and strategies for reform
This publication contains twelve modules which cover a selection of major reform measures in agricultural extension being promulgated and implemented internationally, such as linking farmers to markets, making advisory services more demand-driven, promoting pluralistic advisory systems, and...
Social assistance and productive support policies implementation in rural areas
Many studies have provided global and regional overviews of the state of social protection policies and their importance to poverty reduction, food security and nutrition. However, little is known about how such policies are designed and implemented in rural areas, or how they complement and link to...