This paper has been prepared by FAO to inform the current discussions on bioeconomy including in the G20 Initiative on Bioeconomy (GIB). It focuses specifically on how bioeconomy can ensure food security and nutrition and, at the same time, on the need to transform agrifood systems to advance the sustainable development of the bioeconomy.Global coordination and cooperation are an integral part of sustainable bioeconomy development.

This toolbox provides a methodology to guide the development of bioeconomy strategies, and other elements to support its deployment, from dedicated governance systems, to monitoring frameworks to action on the ground. Many of the examples in this toolbox refer to knowledge gained through FAO experience, while being forward-looking and designed to help more countries and regions embark on or continue their journey towards building a sustainable bioeconomy.

FAO Members endorsed Bioeconomy for Sustainable Food and Agriculture as one of 20 programme priority areas (PPAs) in FAO’s Strategic Framework for 2022–2031. The bioeconomy PPA is led by the FAO Office of Climate Change, Biodiversity and Environment, and co-led by the FAO Agrifood Economics Division. FAO’s approach to bioeconomy has a special focus on Sustainable Development Goal 12 (responsible consumption and production), in particular on achieving more sustainable natural resource management, less pollution and less waste. It also aims to promote bioeconomy innovations to support food security, rural livelihoods, Indigenous rights, gender and youth empowerment, climate action, and biodiversity and ecosystem restoration.

The Abidjan metropolitan area has over 6 million inhabitants and its urban population is growing by more than +3% every year. Access to employment, waste management and the sustainability of its food system are some of the many challenges associated with this very strong growth. As part of its circular economy strategy, the Autonomous District of Abidjan intends to implement the FAO's Green Cities Initiative within its territory, and has therefore requested technical assistance from the FAO. The "Circular Bioeconomy in Abidjan: from food waste to fork" (BioDAF) project is a concrete response to these challenges. It involves setting up a Farm School for the production and rearing of Black Soldier Fly larvae in Abidjan. In addition to producing agricultural inputs (dried larvae and digestate) to meet the needs of urban and peri-urban agriculture, the project aims to train around twenty people in Black Soldier Fly larvae rearing, who will in turn be able to develop grow-out units in their neighborhoods, based on the collection of bio-waste from Abidjan's markets. At the end of the project, successive cohorts will be able to come to the School Farm for training, advice and services that will enable this activity to be scaled up throughout the city, thereby contributing to the clean-up of the city through the valorization of bio-waste as part of a profitable activity useful to urban and peri-urban agriculture.

Este informe, se centra en cómo monitorear la sostenibilidad de la bioeconomía y describe cómo desarrollar dos sistemas de monitoreo; flujos cualitativos de biomasa de los principales productos básicos agrícolas y su sostenibilidad y circularidad, y el análisis de sectores de base biológica dentro de la economía en general. Ambos se complementan para obtener un análisis exhaustivo de la sostenibilidad de la bioeconomía y proporcionar una base sólida para evaluar la circularidad en los flujos de biomasa y el desarrollo intersectorial de la bioeconomía. This publication focuses on how to monitor the sustainability of the bioeconomy and describes how to develop two monitoring systems; qualitative biomass flows of major agricultural commodities and their sustainability and circularity, and analysis of bio-based sectors within the wider economy. Both complement each other to obtain a comprehensive analysis of the sustainability of the bioeconomy and to provide a solid basis for assessing the circularity in biomass flows and cross-sectoral development of the bioeconomy.