Results
Case study
2018
The Role of self-employed women’s association (SEWA) in providing financial services to rural
The Partnership note aims at providing readers with an overview of the work carried out by the Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA) – one of the largest organizations of informal workers in the world– in bolstering financial inclusion for poor women, both in India (where SEWA is based) and abroad. The four-decade experience that SEWA can boast in providing financial services to poor women around the world - together with the unique financial innovations that the organization has developed through trial-and-error for its members - make SEWA an extremely interesting case study within the domain of development finance.
Issue paper
2018
Aligning policy and legal frameworks for supporting smallholder farming through public food procurement. The case of home-grown school feeding programmes. Working paper number 177. December 2018
Through the Purchase from Africans for Africa programme (PAA Africa), the FAO has been engaging in providing technical support to African Governments for building adapted and operational public food procurement methods from smallholder farmers for school feeding. The methods of public procurement fostered by PAA Africa were developed in complex contexts of food insecurity and malnutrition, presenting occasional food deficit and / or chronic food insecurity, low agricultural productivity, institutional fragility and lack of governance, with population relying on food aid to overcome food insecurity. The publication aims at presenting best practices and lessons learned along of five years of [...]
Training & e-learning
2018
Climate-Smart Agriculture. Training Manual. A Reference Manual for Agricultural Extension Agents
This manual is designed for a four-day training course on climate-smart agriculture that would take the learner from the basics of climate science to the impacts of climate change and the linkages among climate, agriculture and food security. It contains four modules, each addressing a particular aspect and consisting of several sessions that are held either in plenary, as one group, or in smaller work groups. The content and structure of this manual has been developed and tested through fieldwork involving extension agents and agricultural producers in Zambia, Malawi and Viet Nam.
Tool
2018
Participatory Guarantee Systems (PGS) for Sustainable Local Food Systems
The global market of organic products increased fivefold between 1999 and 2014, Organic Monitor projects growth to continue. This trend is also true for the Asian region where the third largest market for organic products in the world and forty percent of the world’s organic producers are located (a total of 0.9 million producers, mostly concentrated in India). Consumers in the region are increasingly demanding organic products to ensure food safety. This trend represents an opportunity for smallholder farmers practicing organic production to increase their sales and improve their livelihoods.
Yet, this opportunity is not readily available to smallholder farmers in [...]
Tool
2018
Strengthening Sector Policies for Better Food Security and Nutrition Results. Public Food Procurement. Policy Guidance Note 11
This policy guidance note is part of a series that the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and partners are producing to support policy makers address the food security and nutrition situation in their country. Each note provides guidance on how to sharpen the focus of sector policies in order to achieve sustainable food security and nutrition outcomes. By supporting countries to formulate and adopt policies and programmes to eradicate hunger and attain food security, FAO contributes towards its Strategic Programme 1: help eliminate hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition.
Public procurement has been commonly used as a tool [...]
Tool
2018
Strengthening sustainable food systems through geographical indications. An analysis of economic impacts
The purpose of this publication is to showcase the importance of Geographical Indications (GIs) and their positive impact on food quality and safety, as well as the economy. Reaffirming the right of every person to have access to safe, sufficient and nutritious food, consistent with the right to adequate food and the fundamental right to be free from hunger, the Second International Conference on Nutrition (19–21 November 2014) adopted a Framework for Action that provides a set of recommendations for governments. In particular, recommended actions for sustainable food systems promoting healthy diets include: strengthening local food production and processing, especially [...]
Video
2018
Securing sustainable small-scale fisheries in the context of food security and poverty eradication
Empowering small-scale fisheries: the Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication.
Short animated video that wants to trigger awareness and discussion about key challenges faced by small-scale fishing communities, despite their critical contribution to nutrition, food security, national economies and poverty alleviation. It introduces ways to address those challenges, as well as the Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication (SSF Guidelines) as an important tool in this context. It is suggested to use this video to have discussions with various stakeholders on [...]
Briefs
2018
Training farmers and enhancing food security in Swaziland
Agriculture has traditionally been the backbone of Swaziland’s economy but has experienced severe decline. Its contribution to GDP has decreased gradually over the last two decades due to a number of factors, including recurring drought, chronic underinvestment and the impact of HIV and AIDS. Despite this, agriculture-based products account for around 75 percent of the country’s total export revenues. With key extension officers lacking the skills to disseminate nutrition and gender-sensitive agricultural technologies and practices, the project sought to strengthen national capacities through the establishment of Farmer Field Schools, with farmer representatives trained as facilitators in order to support on-the-ground [...]
Briefs
2018
Organic agriculture and small-scale farmers in Cambodia, Lao people’s Democratic Republic and Myanmar
Organic producers have new opportunities to supply their products to the markets as the demand for safe product is increasing in Asia and in the world. The high cost and paperwork associated with the third-party certification hamper smallholder farmers to benefit from this trend. At the same time, consumers are faced with difficulties to trust organic or safe products in the market. In response, a pilot project in Lao People’s Democratic Republic and Cambodia addressed the certification and marketing issues through the promoting of Participatory Guarantee Systems (PGS). Through a training of trainers (ToT) 13 participants (46 percent women) from [...]
Briefs
2018
Using seasonal forecasts to support farmer adaptation to climate risks. FAO Agricultural Development Economics Policy Brief 14
The brief uses a unique set of data from Zambia collected from smallholders before and after the 2015/2016 ENSO event, which was widely anticipated by regional and global forecast services to contribute to dry conditions in southern Zambia and an overall shorter growing season. Three findings emerge from the analysis. Farmers receiving seasonal weather forecasts are more likely to adopt cropping systems and seed varieties that are adapted to the expected weather conditions, yet access to weather information remains limited. Access to competitive private markets increases the probability that a farmer will adopt drought tolerant cropping systems and improved seeds [...]
