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Download the FAO VCA-Tool  This analytical tool allows users to systematically gather, store and manage data for the implementation of cost-benefit and value-added analyses. Users can build different scenarios and analyze the socio-economic impact of various policies — such as domestic prices liberalization, opening to international trade, new technologies adoption. Users can use the software to build a baseline scenario which corresponds to a benchmark situation; once users generate the policy measures or changes in the value chain, their impacts will modify the original reference scenario.  The software is the complementary tool to the "Value Chain Analysis for Policy Making: Methodological Guidelines for [...]

Effective governance of modern aquaculture must reconcile ecological and human well-being so that the industry is sustainable over time. Without effective governance, there will be misallocation of resources, and perhaps stagnation of the industry and irreversible environmental damage. Four principles – accountability, effectiveness and efficiency of governments, equity and predictability of the rule of law – are suggested as necessary for effective aquaculture governance. These principles should guide the administration, legislative and regulatory framework of aquaculture. In addition to governments, other stakeholders such as communities, non-governmental organizations and producers should also be involved in the governance of the industry.

The "International Symposium on Food and Nutrition Security: Food-based Approaches for Improving Diets and Raising Levels of Nutrition" was organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) to better document the contribution that food and agriculture can make to improving nutrition. These proceedings are a useful resource for decision and policy makers, programme planners and implementers, and health workers, all of which work to combat hunger and malnutrition. The proceedings of the Symposium aim at collecting and better documenting evidence that demonstrates the impact, effectiveness and sustainability of food-based approaches for improving diets and raising levels of nutrition. [...]

Fish plays a key role for food security. It is a primary source of protein and essential nutrients. Fisheries, aquaculture and related activities provide income and livelihoods for numerous communities across the world, including small-scale fisheries. The growing demand for fish questions the sustainability of marine fisheries and aquaculture, now a fundamental supplier of fish. The report considers the environmental, social and economic challenges faced by all actors towards a sustainable supply of fish, sustainable livelihoods of fish-dependent communities and an equitable access to fish for the good nutrition of all populations worldwide. It presents policy-oriented analysis and recommendations addressed [...]

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and its national, regional and international partners are committed to monitoring and analysingfood and agricultural policies (MAFAP) in order to provide policy-makers in developing countries, as well as their development partners and other stakeholders in civil society, with the best possible information on the effects of policies and public expenditure influencing agricultural investment decisions and ultimately foodsecurity. Furthermore, MAFAP supports governments in their efforts to identify, articulate and assess options for reforming food and agriculture policies. MAFAPworks with national and regional partners to: establish a community of practice on policy [...]

This volume outlines a simple and practical way to analyse the design and implementation of food and nutrition security (FNS) policies and programmes from a right to food perspective. The right to food approach, as an instrument to help formulate FNS policies and programmes, is emphasized. The primary focus is on national overarching FNS policies. The question of how to assess sector policies that may have direct or indirect impacts on food security and nutrition security is also addressed. Good policies need an enabling implementation environment, which includes evidence-based decisions, adequate financial and human resources and sound governance. These aspects [...]

This publication presents evidence with regard to the effectiveness of policies and programmes introduced in response to rising food prices in eight selected Latin American countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Mexico, Nicaragua and Peru. The case studies provide insights into the economic and policy environment at the time of the first price spike of 2007–08, analyse the measures that were introduced in response and discuss the evidence on the effects on the food security situation. As such they provide lessons learned in terms of the effectiveness of the different measures in achieving the intended food security goals, including [...]

The aim of this policy brief is to increase awareness among policy makers and the general public about the vital role of tropical forests in providing environmental services and the increasing need for beneficiaries to compensate forest owners or managers for those services. The brief builds on the insights gained at the International Forum on Payments for Environmental Services of Tropical Forests, which was held in San José, Costa Rica, in April 2014. It sets out the rationale for, and the constraints faced by, PES schemes, and key recommendations for scaling them up.

Policy-makers worldwide have traditionally assumed that fisheries are a male domain. The policy agenda has for decades given priority to the production sphere,  where men generally predominate, and has largely neglected processing and  marketing activities, where women often play a key role. Recent sex-disaggregated  data (from the World Bank, FAO and WorldFish Center) represent an initial, positive  step in providing the quantitative evidence needed to convince policy-makers of  the impo rtance of women in the sector. The data indicate that women represent  47 percent of the 120 million people engaged in capture fisheries. Worldwide,  they are even more important in [...]

Wheat is of paramount importance in Pakistan, with 80 percent of farmers growing it on a total of about 9 million hectares (ha) - close to 40 percent of the country’s total cultivated land. The crop is grown by predominantly small (0.5 to 5.0 ha) and medium-sized (5 to 10 ha) farmers, whose livelihoods depend on it. Wheat yields in Pakistan remain low, lagging behind those in other countries with comparable agroclimatic conditions. The agro-ecological potential for irrigated wheat in Punjab, Pakistan’s primary production area, suggests that yields of about 6 tonnes/ha could be attained, compared with current yields of 2.5 to 3 tonnes/ha. Assuming that this potential [...]