The second International Conference on Agrarian Reform and Rural Development (ICARRD+20) will take place from 24 to 28 February 2025 in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia, bringing together governments, international organizations, Indigenous Peoples, farmer, Afro-descendant communities, rural women, and youth to strengthen the global dialogue on equitable access to land, agrarian reform, and sustainable rural development.

Building on the commitments of the first ICARRD held in Brazil in 2006, ICARRD+20 marks 20 years of advancing land reform as a cornerstone for reducing hunger, tackling rural poverty, and promoting peace.

Through its work, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) supports the restoration of degraded agricultural lands, strengthens tenure security, and promotes resilient livelihoods. At ICARRD+20, FAO will discuss how equitable land and water governance can drive rural development, enhance sustainability in all its dimensions - environmental, social and economic - and empower local communities, particularly smallholders, women, youth, and Indigenous Peoples.

Featured sessions on water tenure, land restoration and inclusive agrarian reform at ICARRD+20

Tuesday, 24 February 2026

16:00-17:30 (UTC-5) | Salón Berta Cáceres

Unified Vision for Land: Aligning productivity, scale and governance

This session will offer a presentation of the core findings and insights from three FAO land reports: The State of Food and Agriculture (SOFA), The State of the World’s Land and Water Resources for Food and Agriculture (SOLAW 2025), and The Status of Land Tenure and Governance (SLTG), which will officially launch during ICARRD+20 on 27 February 2026. Together, these reports form a consolidated body of knowledge that highlights common challenges, such as land degradation, water stress (or scarcity), and governance gaps, while also identifying emerging opportunities for sustainable land and water management. The discussion will connect common challenges, policy implications, and pathways for action needed at local, national, and global levels.

Flickr Album available here>>>

Thursday, 26 February 2026

14:00 – 16:00 (UTC-5) | Auditorio Getsemani

Water, food and wellbeing, land for life

This session will provide an overview of the current challenges linking land, water, climate change, environmental degradation and food insecurity, highlighting the need for equitable and sustainable water governance. It will introduce the Principles for responsible governance of water tenure, inspired by the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security (VGGT), and promotes dialogue on the ways that access to, use of and control over water resources enables rural development and agrarian reform. Participants will have the opportunity to exchange experiences, discuss key challenges and explore how responsible water tenure governance can enhance water security, gender equity and environmental sustainability for rural, Indigenous and local communities.

Flickr Album available here>>>

Friday, 27 February 2026

14:00 – 15:30 UTC-5 | Auditorio Getsemaní

Land, Water and Drought-Proof Agrarian Reform: High-Level UNCCD-FAO Decision 19 COP.16 Consultation on Avoiding, reducing, and reversing land and soil degradation of agricultural lands

The restoration of degraded agricultural lands is a global priority to achieve Land Degradation Neutrality, ensure food security, and advance sustainable rural development. This session will emphasize the centrality of secure land and water tenure—particularly for smallholders, Indigenous Peoples, women and youth—for long-term stewardship. It will also underscore the need for strengthened land and water governance, integrated land use planning, and coordinated action across sectors to support agrarian reform and resilient agrifood systems.

Flickr Album available here>>>

Check the reading list >>>

See the full agenda of FAO at ICARRD+20 >>>