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Climate change issues are among the leading causes of hunger and affect all dimensions of food security in the Upper West region of Ghana, including access to food, availability and stability of supplies and nutrition. To address this situation, the project aimed to increase the productivity of selected crop commodity value chains (maize, cowpea, soya bean, Sorghum and groundnut) and develop information, education and communication materials for training and capacity-building in disaster management. Emphasis was also placed on Good Agricultural Practices to reduce risk and improve natural resource management.

Severe Tropical Cyclone Winston was one of the strongest tropical cyclones to make landfall in Fiji. The loss of food crops, livestock, fisheries and related infrastructures caused by the cyclone was extensive and a State of Natural Disaster was declared by the Government of Fiji on 20 February 2016. The objective of this emergency project was the rapid re-establishment of agricultural and fisheries production in the most affected households. The project aimed to provide the inputs and technical support needed to revive livelihoods and restore food security to households and communities in the most affected areas.

The increased frequency and severity of natural hazards and disasters, partly largely caused by climate change and variability, has adverse serious negative impacts on the agriculture sectors, threatening peoples’ lives and livelihoods as well as national economies.  To tackle this challenge, it is important to invest in disaster risk reduction measures that can both increase sustainable agricultural production and boost the resilience of current and future generations. Even in the absence of a disasters event, these investments can yield provide significant benefits, for example by encouraging households to protect existing  assets and build new ones, as well as by promoting entrepreneurship [...]

This report presents the findings of a multi-year FAO study undertaken on over 900 farms in ten different countries that measured, using field data, benefits gained through the use of innovative farming practices designed to boost the resilience of farmers in the face of natural disasters and other shocks. Its findings show that the use of good disaster risk reduction practices offer significant economic gains at the household level, and also that – because they are usually low-cost and easily implemented – they hold significant potential for reducing disaster risks at the national and regional scales as well. These results [...]

A regional strategy developed by technical officers from Ministries of Agriculture of CELAC countries and its PPT in El Salvador with technical assistance from FAO and UNISDR to improve disaster risk management in agriculture in Latin America and the Caribbean through a a collaborative approach between countries. It was approved during CELAC’s IV Ministerial Meeting on Family Farming and Rural Development, held on 12 and 13 December 2017 in San Salvador, El Salvador. The Strategy seeks to contribute to the CELAC Plan for Food and Nutrition Security and the Eradication of Hunger 2025 (FNS-CELAC Plan). Specifically, to its fourth pillar on [...]

Uganda is one of the largest refugee hosting countries in Africa, with more than 1.1 million refugees. The Uganda Refugee Policy (2006) and the Refugee Regulations (2010) grant refugees wide-ranging rights hinged on a strategy of allocating refugees land, freedom of movement and the right to seek employment. This policy aims to build refugees’ food, nutrition and income security and self-reliance. The framework provides an opportunity to support early recovery of affected populations and create a foundation for self-sufficiency. Under the leadership of the Office of Prime Minister (OPM) of the Government of Uganda, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the [...]

The objective of this corporate Framework (the ‘Framework’) is to guide the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in carrying out its mandate in its areas of competence and comparative advantage, i.e. food security, nutrition and sustainable agriculture, towards a more deliberate and transformative impact on sustaining peace. Following the April 2016 Security Council and General Assembly resolutions on peacebuilding, the concept “sustaining peace” encompasses activities aimed at preventing the outbreak, escalation, continuation and recurrence of conflict, including addressing root causes and moving towards recovery, reconstruction and development. The United Nations Secretary-General has called on all UN entities to [...]

Natural disasters have cost billions of dollars in lost agricultural production. The human food chain is under continuous threat from an alarming increase in the number of outbreaks of transboundary animal and plant pests and diseases. Conflict and protracted crises are putting more and more people in conditions of poverty, food insecurity and displacement. This has become the "new normal" and the impact of climate change will further exacerbate these threats and challenges.  Agriculture often bears a disproportionate share of disaster impacts, many of which are borne directly by smallholders. As resources become increasingly scarce, objective evidence is needed to effectively [...]

After decades of progress, hunger is on the rise again. The figures from The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2017 report show an increase in the absolute number of people affected by chronic hunger and a rise in the global prevalence of undernourishment. Globally, the number of chronically malnourished people is estimated to have increased to 815 million from 777 million in 2015. In 2017, four countries faced a very real threat of famine and many more saw increasing numbers of people facing severe hunger. Protecting livelihoods by providing emergency agricultural assistance from the onset of a [...]

This policy brief has been devloped to provide an insight into the Early Warning Early Action modality at a country level and explore the benefits, both primary and secondary, for herding communities in Mongolia.