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With the global population approaching 8 billion, the role of agricultural value chains (VCs) is increasingly important in ensuring sustainable and equitable food production. However, in developing countries, market failures can prevent small farmers from fully participating in domestic and global value chains, and issues related to climate change create further challenges. Moreover, greening policies and actions, as well as concerns regarding nutritional outcomes, add complexity to providing nutritious high-quality food to feed a growing population. In this context, it is critical to examine how markets can be shaped to be pro-poor and to reduce negative social and environmental externalities.The [...]

Coffee is one of the key agricultural commodities in the Government of Uganda’s pursuance of economic growth and job creation, especially for the rapidly expanding youth population. A significant number of job opportunities exist for young people along the coffee value chain, not only in production but increasingly in processing, trade and marketing, as well as service provision. This policy brief provides recommendations for policymakers to support youth in realizing employment and entrepreneurship potential in the coffee sector, by facilitating their sustainable access to productive resources and markets, and equipping them with the necessary skills and capital.

The publication provides a description of the establishments that function to supply food to the population, in seven countries of the region. This analysis includes supermarkets, retail markets, wholesalers, restaurants and public companies in the food sector. It includes some general reflections, based on the cases analyzed, with a focus on measures that must be taken for their best performance in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.Last updated date 7/10/2020 Click here for more COVID19-related resources

The State of Agricultural Commodity Markets 2020 (SOCO 2020) aims to discuss policies and mechanisms that promote sustainable outcomes – economic, social and environmental – in agricultural and food markets, both global and domestic. The analysis is organized along the trends and challenges that lie at the heart of global discussions on trade and development. These include the evolution of trade and markets; the emergence of global value chains in food and agriculture; the extent to which smallholder farmers in developing countries participate in value chains and markets; and the transformative impacts of digital technology on markets.Along these themes, SOCO [...]

Under the Safe Access to Fuel and Energy (SAFE) programme, FAO has contributed to improving resilience and livelihoods for refugees and internally displaced people in 14 countries through four types of activities: clean cooking, forest management, renewable energy in agri-food chains and policy support.This publication evaluates FAO’s energy-in-emergency portfolio in Kenya, Uganda and South Sudan to define innovative programming options for efficient energy access within the humanitarian settings of these three countries.

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 than others, knowing how to navigate through them to promote sustainable consumption and production practices requires complex skill sets. This handbook is written for “sustainable food systems innovators” by a group of innovators from Asia, Africa, the Americas and Europe who are leading initiatives to grow, share, sell and consume more sustainable foods in their local contexts. [...]

In light of the uncertainties surrounding the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, policy makers must ensure that national responses to the virus do not trigger a food crisis. The Covid-19 outbreak can shift the balance between food demand and supply, especially considering many countries having declared lockdowns and their borders closed. Countries at the highest risk of suffering from a potential food crisis sparked off from the pandemic, are those in Africa. The following note elucidates how the current Covid-19 pandemic is affecting food security in Africa and some key African value chains (i.e. rice, maize, cashew etc.). This note also offers [...]

The anticipated transformation of the Kenyan livestock sector in the coming decades will result in increased public health risks. In order to well address these challenges, national and sub-national governments should adopt a One Health approach, which allows the mitigation of the negative effects of public health threats that originate at the interface between humans, animals and the different environments in which they operate. This paper provides an assessment on the extent to which the prevailing legislative framework facilitates the implementation of the One Health approach in Kenya, and opportunities for legislative reforms. We use a skeleton livestock value chain [...]

Agriculture is a key sector of the national economy of Ukraine, accounting for approximately one sixth of Gross Domestic product (GDP). The country became a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2008, and signed the Association Agreement with the European Union (EU) at the end of 2014. This has led to new export opportunities in the agricultural and food processing sectors. At the same time, new policy approaches, instruments and institutions are needed to support further growth, as well as reforms to make these sectors more effective and competitive. Against this background, the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and [...]

An FAO/WFP Crop and Food Security Assessment Mission (CFSAM) visited South Sudan from 15 to 20 December 2019 to estimate the cereal production during 2019 and assess the overall food security situation in the country. The CFSAM reviewed the findings of several Crop Assessment Missions conducted from June to December 2019 at planting and harvest time in different agro‑ecological zones of the country.