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The MENA region is known for its water scarcity situation and competition over the limited natural resources to grow grain in order to enhance domestic food supplies, or to grow high-value fruits and vegetables for export is intense and escalating. The choice between food security and lucrative exports is not simple because land and water continue to remain a fundamental part of people’s cultural identity, social relations, livelihood strategies and economic well-being. The trade-offs are critical and many aspects and may stakeholders need to be brought to the decision table. The proposed approach helps stakeholders to select and put into practice those land uses that will best meet [...]

Nearly three years ago, world leaders agreed to the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – the central framework for guiding development policies throughout the world. This edition of The State of the World’s Forests is aimed at enhancing our understanding of how forests and their sustainable management contribute to achieving several of the SDGs. Time is running out for the world’s forests: we need to work across sectors, bring stakeholders together, and take urgent action. The State of the World’s Forests 2018 identifies actions that can be taken to increase the contributions [...]

This video shows how the clubs in Niger have been crucial in ensuring women’s access to land and water , while contributing to nutrition, food security, gender equality and the reduction of rural poverty at the same time.  ”Access to Water and Land” is part of a series that illustrates the impact of FAO-Dimitra Clubs, a successful gender-transformative approach developed by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). FAO-Dimitra Clubs are groups of rural women and men who decide to meet regularly to discuss the challenges they face in their daily lives, make decisions together and take collective action [...]

FAO’s best-selling 2011 publication, Save and Grow, proposed a new paradigm of agriculture, one that is both highly productive and environmentally sustainable. This new book looks at the application of “Save and Grow” practices and technologies to production of the world’s key food security crops – maize, rice and wheat. With examples drawn from developing countries worldwide, it shows how eco-friendly farming systems are helping smallholder producers to boost cereal yields, improve their  incomes and livelihoods, conserve natural resources, reduce negative impacts on the environment, and build resilience to climate change. The book will be a valuable reference for policymakers [...]

Forests play important provisioning and supporting roles in the livelihoods of rural households (Byron and Arnold, 1999, Sunderlin et al., 2005) and the majority of those who live in extreme poverty are reliant on forests for their livelihood. Products from non-cultivated ecosystems such as natural forests, woodlands, wetlands, lakes, rivers, and grasslands can be a significant income source for rural households providing energy, food, construction materials and medicines both for subsistence and cash uses. Beginning with seminal studies on environmental resource use (e.g. Cavendish, 2000) the contribution of forest and other environmental resources to household income accounts were found to [...]

Following the introduction, Chapter 2 provides an overview of mitigation in the forest sector, addressing the handling of forests under UNFCCC. Chapters 3 to 5 focus on forest-based mitigation options – afforestation, reforestation, REDD+ and forest management – and Chapters 6 and 7 focus on wood-product based options – wood energy and green building and furnishing. The publication describes these activities in the context of UNFCCC rules, assessing their mitigation potential and economic attrac tiveness as well as opportunities and challenges for implementation. Chapter 8 discusses the different considerations involved in choosing the right mix of options as well as [...]

The demand for food is expected to increase by 60 percent in the next 37 years as the world’s population is estimated to reach 9.2 billion by 2050. Mobile technology would effectively improve the transmission of agricultural research results forapplication in farmer’s fields.

El presente estudio revisa las tendencias en la inversión y financiamiento rural y, particularmente, en el sector agropecuario de la región latinoamericana con el fin de ofrecer una perspectiva crítica de dónde están las principales limitantes para lograr sistemas financieros rurales más inclusivos y proponer áreas de intervención pública y privada que puedan favorecer dicho objetivo, de acuerdo con la evidencia recopilada de experiencias innovadoras en varios de los países de la región. Para ello, este estudio pretende analizar conjuntamente las tendencias en los mercados agropecuarios y las tendencias en los mercados financieros rurales para luego mostrar vínculos relevantes para el [...]

Over 700 thousand people lost their lives as a result of disasters between 2005 and 2015. Approximately 23 million were made homeless. The total economic loss is estimated at more than US $1.3 trillion. Stephan Baas, Strategic Advisor of the FAO Resilience Management Team together Nina Koeksalan, Climate Change Officer describe the importance of reducing risks and strengthening resilience for improved food security and nutrition in rural communities particularly vulnerable to natural hazards and disasters. They describe the FAO policy work, including key policy messages. This video forms part of a series of policy and governance videos being produced by [...]

Rwanda has made remarkable progress since the 1994 genocide, which severely impoverished the population, particularly in delivering education and health services to the poor. The proportion of people suffering from hunger has been halved and the progress toward reducing under-nourishment has been commendable. However, 44 percent of Rwandans still live under the national poverty line.