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These guidelines are primarily directed towards decision-makers responsible for integrating the goals and targets of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development into national policies and programmes. They will be of value to public and private actors, including investors, researchers and technical practitioners, involved in the broad area of food and agriculture, and rural development. Complementing FAO’s Common Vision for Sustainable Food and Agriculture and its five principles, this publication presents 20 practical and interconnected actions with the aim of transforming food and agriculture and driving achievement across the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

E-agriculture or ICT in agriculture holds great promise in providing access to innovative solutions to many challenges faced by smallholder resource-poor farmers. Access to the right information at the right time makes a great impact on the livelihoods of communities involved in agriculture and allied activities. This publication presents case studies in innovative use of emerging technologies to significantly improve the living standards of farming communities.  

Despite government efforts to reduce poverty and food insecurity, Ethiopia remains one of the world’s poorest countries, with around 25 million people living in extreme poverty. The country is exposed to a wide range of natural hazards, especially recurrent drought, such as that induced by El Niño in Amhara and Tigray Regions in 2014/15. The aim of the project was to provide emergency assistance in these regions for vulnerable smallholder households affected by the 2014/15 drought, many of whom  had consumed their seed reserves. It would do this by distributing cereal, potato and vegetable seed, and hand tools to assist [...]

Livestock and poultry-keeping are crucial to the farming and livelihood systems of Ghana. In May 2015, outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) threatened these systems and made it essential that measures be put in place to forestall losses caused by the disease in the affected areas and elsewhere. The project was designed to control the disease in Ghana and, above all, to prevent its spread to non-affected regions of the country and to neighbouring countries, by means of an immediate response. Find more Project Highlights here.

This study report, developed in collaboration with the Bright Futures of Burkina Faso, is based on the case study in Burkina Faso. It, through a survey of 183 women and 6 men including 36 leaders of shea groups, provides quantitative analysis on the economic resilience derived from shea nuts in terms of income, assets and savings; on the social indicators of wellbeing, education, health and living standards; and on the political implications, especially with regard to women’s decision making at home and at work, participation in the shea value chain and personal aspirations.

This brief summarizes FAO’s analysis of NDCs and provides an overview of how the Organization, through policy processes, capacity development and technical interventions on the ground, supports the implementation of NDCs in the agriculture sectors. 

This document summarises the online discussion "What role can agricultural extension and advisory services play in realizing gender equality and improved nutrition?" which invited to reflect on the role that agricultural extension and advisory services (AEAS) can play in contributing to reducing gender inequities and improving nutrition. The online discussion was hosted on the FSN Forum from 16 June to 9 July 2017.  See all ongoing and past discussion on the Global Forum on Food Security and Nutrition • FSN Forum  

This document contains the report of the first meeting of the Ad Hoc Working Group (Part 6 Working Group) established by the Parties to the Agreement on Port State Measures to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing, held in Oslo, Norway, from 1 to 2 June 2017. The Part 6 Working Group discussed the main requirements and priorities of developing States in the implementation of the Agreement and recommended that support should consider legal and policy aspects, institutional set-up and capacity, and operations and procedures. It recognized that assistance should be tailored to accommodate the specific needs of countries and regions, and highlighted the [...]

Indonesia has charted impressive economic growth since the Asian financial crisis of the late 1990s. The national top priority is becoming self-sufficient in rice, maize, soybeans, sugar and beef. To achieve this, the Government is providing farmers with significant market price support, fertilizer subsidies and setting import restrictions. Social protection is being strenghtened through the consolidation of the RASKIN programme, the introduction of nutrition and cash transfer programmes and the substitution of fuel subsidies For more country policy briefs by FAPDA please see here.

Achieving the SDGs to end hunger and extreme poverty by 2030 will depend crucially on developing rural areas in the poorest nations of the world. More resources need to be allocated for investment in rural areas, not just because that is where most of the poor live, but also because these areas have great potential for economic development. The FAO report The State of Food and Agriculture 2017 (SOFA) shows that, across all regions, rural-based economic activity can be just as effective for poverty reduction as that of urban sectors. See the complete series here.