In 2016, Colombia reached a peace agreement with its largest guerrilla group. As part of the deal, the Government committed to enhancing rural development and partnered with FAO to help implement this goal. Farmers tell FAO their stories of hardship, allowing them to heal from the past and embrace a future filled with a newly found hope.

The fourth annual World Food Forum (WFF) 2024 concluded today in Rome, marking the end of an impactful week at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) dedicated to transforming global agrifood systems.

FAO welcomed today the adoption of the Rome Declaration on Water Scarcity in Agriculture aimed at addressing water scarcity increasingly exacerbated by the climate crisis – one of the world’s greatest challenges affecting global food security, natural resources and the lives and livelihoods of millions of people, particularly in vulnerable regions.

One year into the conflict, the risk of famine remains high across the whole Gaza Strip with more people likely to fall into severe hunger as conflict intensifies and winter approaches, according to a new report published by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) global initiative.

In October, across Canada, the skies will light up blue for World Food Day 2024! Wherever you are, you can see Canada's magnificent monuments in a whole new way, spreading awareness of the "Right to Foods".

The third edition of the FAO Science and Innovation Forum (SIF 2024) opened today under the theme Inclusive Science and Innovation for Agrifood Systems Transformation, Leaving No One Behind. SIF 2024 is taking place until 18 October 2024 under the umbrella of the World Food Forum (WFF), together with the Global Youth Forum and the Hand-in-Hand Investment Forum. 

Over its six decades, the Investment Centre has helped design more than 2,400 partner-financed projects in 157 countries, totaling over $257 billion in public investment when adjusted for inflation. This trend is poised to continue today, with the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, European Investment Bank and New Development Bank among the Centre’s newest partners.

The global ceremony marking World Food Day 2024 took place in Rome, with participants underlining the need for universal access to enough diverse, nutritious, affordable, and safe foods. The event came amid growing global tensions and conflicts and climate shocks, which are among factors contributing to the challenge of hundreds of millions of people worldwide facing hunger and billions being unable to afford a healthy diet.  

World Food Day is live! Stay tuned throughout the day as we take you to Rome for the main event at 10am local time at the headquarters of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), with messages from the UN Secretary-General, Pope Francis and more events from around the world.

In Ghana, a project recently implemented by FAO, in collaboration with Chef Fatmata Binta has given women farmers the knowledge that they can rely on an ancient indigenous West African cereal year-round. The project aims to support women fonio producers to enhance their cultivation skills and boost productivity and income.

The World Food Forum’s (WFF) Global Youth Forum opened today at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), marking a week of activities dedicated to youth-led solutions and actions for transforming agrifood systems under the theme “Good food for all, for today and tomorrow”.

The fourth edition of the World Food Forum (WFF) flagship event, the largest annual gathering of agrifood systems stakeholders globally, opened today with a high-level ceremony at FAO headquarters in Rome. Running from October 14 to 18, the event brings together global experts, young changemakers, investors, and visionary leaders to create new pathways for a sustainable, inclusive, and food-secure future.

Spanning six countries, EWAT promotes women’s participation in the context of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). The programme’s objective is to increase women’s competitiveness in trade through strengthened knowledge, skills and access to finance, capitalizing on the new prospects for regional trade created by the AfCFTA agreement.

 Indigenous and non-indigenous researchers, experts and officials from across the globe gathered today at the Global-Hub on Indigenous Peoples’ Food Systems, whose opening ceremony was held in a Nomadic tent of the Saami People from the Artic, transforming a space in the heart of Rome into an Indigenous Peoples’ territory.

Aspiring and established plant scientists from around Africa gathered in Kenya’s capital for a workshop co-sponsored by FAO to review what has been achieved so far by the African Orphan Crops Consortium (AOCC). The AOCC has empowered more than 172 scientists, nearly 40 percent of whom have been women, and 28 African countries in the use of genomics-assisted approaches to crop improvement.

Experts from the FAO Agrifood Systems and Food Safety Division accompanied officials from the Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) on a tour of the n!Biomachines facility, a Canadian subsidiary of German company The Cultivated B, located in Burlington, Canada. 

The FAO Farmer Field School (FFS) introduced Jacqueline to several innovations that helped revolutionize her farming. The biggest of these changes was turning FFS groups into cooperatives, with a focus on connecting farmers to markets. Now part of a cooperative, she wasn’t just learning better techniques—she was becoming part of a larger network that would help her access markets, sell her products and boost her income.

On 10 October 2024, stakeholders from various parts of the world gathered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, for a global meeting on cell-based food and precision fermentation. The meeting welcomed approximately 60 participants, including representatives from various departments and agencies of the Government of Canada, to discuss various technical issues around foods derived from cell culturing and precision fermentation.

Within the global context of an increasing number of crises due to unabating conflicts, extreme weather events and economic shocks, Director of the Office of Emergencies and Resilience of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Rein Paulsen was in Washington, D.C. for the Inter-agency Standing Committee (IASC) Deputies meeting, where he also met with high-level officials from USAID and U.S. Department of State.  

FAO successfully concluded the Training of Trainers on Nutrition and Fuel-Saving Techniques for women in the conflict-affected BAY states of Nigeria —Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe. As a key component of the project "Emergency Agriculture-Based Livelihoods Sustenance for Improved Food Security and Nutrition in Northeast Nigeria," funded by USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA), the programme aims to tackle the pressing issues of food insecurity, impacts of climate change, rising fuel costs, and limited access to essential resources in these conflict-affected regions.