FAO Knowledge Repository BETA

The FAO Knowledge Repository is FAO's official open repository, providing access to all of its publications. Through its open access policy, FAO seeks to increase the dissemination of its knowledge and to contribute to the scientific and technical impact of the Organization. 

 

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Featured publications

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Action Plan for the implementation of the FAO Strategy on Mainstreaming Biodiversity Across Agricultural Sectors 2024–2027
The Action Plan for the implementation of the FAO Strategy on Mainstreaming Biodiversity across Agricultural Sectors 2024–2027 reflects experiences gained from the implementation of the 2021–2023 Action Plan. It takes into account the Framework for Action on Biodiversity for Food and Agriculture, endorsed by the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (CGRFA) and by the Council in 2021. It is aligned with the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), adopted by the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in December 2022.In alignment with the FAO Strategy on Mainstreaming Biodiversity across Agricultural Sectors, FAO implements the Action Plan based on the principles of effective governance, partnerships, a knowledge-based approach, inclusiveness, and gender equality and women’s empowerment.
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FAO publications catalogue 2023
This catalogue aims to improve the dissemination and outreach of FAO’s knowledge products and overall publishing programme. By providing information on its key publications in every area of FAO’s work, and catering to a range of audiences, it thereby contributes to all organizational outcomes. From statistical analysis to specialized manuals to children’s books, FAO publications cater to a diverse range of audiences. This catalogue presents a selection of FAO’s main publications, produced in 2023 or earlier, ranging from its global reports and general interest publications to numerous specialized titles. In addition to the major themes of agriculture, forestry and fisheries, it also includes thematic sections on climate change, economic and social development, and food safety and nutrition.
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The Impact of Disasters on Agriculture and Food Security 2023
Disasters are resulting in unprecedented levels of destruction across the world. These shocks and disruptions affect the functioning and sustainability of agricultural production and threaten the livelihoods of millions of people reliant on agrifood systems.Reducing the impact of disasters in agriculture requires a better understanding of the extent to which these events produce negative impacts in agriculture and necessitates an investigation into the underlying risks that make agriculture vulnerable to the effects of disasters.The FAO flagship report on ‘The Impact of Disasters on Agriculture and Food Security’ provides a timely and comprehensive overview of how disasters are affecting agriculture and food security around the world.Building on previous work of the FAO on this topic, the report estimates losses caused by disasters on agricultural production over the past three decades and delves into the diverse threats and impacts affecting the crops, livestock, forestry, and fisheries and aquaculture subsectors. It analyzes the complex interplay of underlying risks, such as climate change, pandemics, epidemics and armed conflicts, and how they drive disaster risk in agriculture and agrifood systems at large.The report provides examples of actions and strategies for investing in resilience and proactively addressing risks in agriculture. It demonstrates ways to mainstream disaster risk into agricultural practices and policies and calls for a deeper understanding of the context in which these solutions are implemented.
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Agrifood solutions to climate change
Amid a worsening climate crisis and slow progress in cutting greenhouse gases, sustainable agrifood systems practices can help countries and communities to adapt, build resilience and mitigate emissions, ensuring food security and nutrition for a growing global population. FAO is working with countries and partners from government to community level to simultaneously address the challenges of food security, climate change and biodiversity loss.But none of this will ultimately succeed unless the world commits to a significant increase in the quality and quantity of climate finance.

Trending publications

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    Book (series)
    Respecting free, prior and informed consent
    Practical guidance for governments, companies, NGOs, indigenous peoples and local communities in relation to land acquisition
    2014
    Improving governance of tenure is the objective of the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security (Guidelines), which serve as a reference and set out principles and internationally accepted standards for responsible practices. The Guidelines state that responsible investments should do no harm, safeguard against dispossession of legitimate tenure right holders and environmental damage, and should respect human rights. This technical guide on Respecting free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) sets out practical actions for government agencies to respect and protect FPIC and for civil society organizations, land users and private investors globally to comply with their responsibilities in relation to FPIC, as endorsed by the Guidelines.
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    Book (series)
    The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2023
    Urbanization, agrifood systems transformation and healthy diets across the rural–urban continuum
    2023
    This report provides an update on global progress towards the targets of ending hunger (SDG Target 2.1) and all forms of malnutrition (SDG Target 2.2) and estimates on the number of people who are unable to afford a healthy diet. Since its 2017 edition, this report has repeatedly highlighted that the intensification and interaction of conflict, climate extremes and economic slowdowns and downturns, combined with highly unaffordable nutritious foods and growing inequality, are pushing us off track to meet the SDG 2 targets. However, other important megatrends must also be factored into the analysis to fully understand the challenges and opportunities for meeting the SDG 2 targets. One such megatrend, and the focus of this year’s report, is urbanization. New evidence shows that food purchases in some countries are no longer high only among urban households but also among rural households. Consumption of highly processed foods is also increasing in peri-urban and rural areas of some countries. These changes are affecting people’s food security and nutrition in ways that differ depending on where they live across the rural–urban continuum. This timely and relevant theme is aligned with the United Nations General Assembly-endorsed New Urban Agenda, and the report provides recommendations on the policies, investments and actions needed to address the challenges of agrifood systems transformation under urbanization and to enable opportunities for ensuring access to affordable healthy diets for everyone.
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    Book (series)
    Compulsory acquisition of land and compensation 2008
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    Compulsory acquisition is the power of government to acquire private rights in land without the willing consent of the owner or occupant in order to benefit society and is often necessary for social and economic development and the protection of the natural environment. The exercise of these powers is frequently contentious and problematic. The guide explains what compulsory acquisition and compensation are, and what constitutes good practice in this area, examining the consequences of poor legi slation, procedures and implementation. It is likely to be of most use in countries that are seeking to understand good practice in this area and to improve their own legislation, procedures and implementation in compulsory purchase and compensation in the interests of society as a whole.
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    Book (stand-alone)
    Free Prior and Informed Consent: An indigenous peoples’ right and a good practice for local communities 2016

    This Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) Manual is designed as a tool for project practitioners of a broad range of projects and programmes of any development organization, by providing information about the right to FPIC and how it can be implemented in six steps.

    In an FPIC process, the “how”, “when” and “with and by whom”, are as important as “what” is being proposed. For an FPIC process to be effective and result in consent or lack of it, the way in which the process is conducted is paramount. The time allocated for the discussions among the indigenous peoples, the cultural appropriateness of the way the information is conveyed, and the involvement of the whole community, including key groups like women, the elderly and the youth in the process, are all essential. A thorough and well carried FPIC process helps guarantee everyone’s right to self-determination, allowing them to participate in decisions that affect their lives.

    This FPIC Manual will ena ble field practitioners to incorporate FPIC into project and programmes’ design and implementation, ensuring that indigenous peoples’ rights are duly respected. FPIC can be considered the “gold standard” because it allows for the highest form of participation of local stakeholders in development projects.

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    Book (series)
    The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2022
    Towards Blue Transformation
    2022
    The 2022 edition of The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture coincides with the launch of the Decade of Action to deliver the Global Goals, the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development and the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. It presents how these and other equally important United Nations events, such as the International Year of Artisanal Fisheries and Aquaculture (IYAFA 2022), are being integrated and supported through Blue Transformation, a priority area of FAO’s new Strategic Framework 2022–2031 designed to accelerate achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in food and agriculture. The concept of Blue Transformation emerged from the Thirty-fourth Session of the FAO Committee on Fisheries in February 2021, and in particular the Declaration for Sustainable Fisheries and Aquaculture, which was negotiated and endorsed by all FAO Members. The Declaration calls for support for “an evolving and positive vision for fisheries and aquaculture in the twenty first century, where the sector is fully recognized for its contribution to fighting poverty, hunger and malnutrition.” In this context, Part 1 of this edition of The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture reviews the world status of fisheries and aquaculture, while Parts 2 and 3 are devoted to Blue Transformation and its pillars on intensifying and expanding aquaculture, improving fisheries management and innovating fisheries and aquaculture value chains. Blue Transformation emphasizes the need for forward-looking and bold actions to be launched or accelerated in coming years to achieve the objectives of the Declaration and in support of the 2030 Agenda. Part 4 covers current and high-impact emerging issues – COVID-19, climate change and gender equality – that require thorough consideration for transformative steps and preparedness to secure sustainable, efficient and equitable fisheries and aquaculture.

Recently added

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    Book (series)
    渔业委员会鱼品贸易分委员会第十九届会议报告 — 挪威卑尔根,2023年9月11–15日 2024
    渔业委员会设立鱼品贸易分委员会作为讨论渔业和水产养殖产品国际贸易的多边磋商论坛。分委员会第十九届会议于2023年9月11–15日在挪威卑尔根举行。分委员会欢迎针对影响本产业的当前全球趋势所做介绍,包括贸易和生产方面内容,并注意到粮农组织与其他国际组织的持续协作情况。分委会收到一套关于水产品市场准入的工作文件,涵盖了粮农组织在广泛主题领域的工作,包括食品安全和质量、可追溯性和渔获登记制度、小规模渔业、非法、不报告和不管制捕鱼的经济影响、生物多样性保护计划和贸易协定。分委会还听取了关于与粮农组织工作相关的市场和水产食品利用之间关系以及粮农组织《社会责任指南》制定情况的通报。
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    Book (series)
    渔业委员会渔业管理分委员会第一届会议报告 — 线上会议,2024年1月15–18日 2024
    粮农组织渔业委员会(渔委)渔业管理分委员会于2024年1月15–18日线上举行第一届会议。渔委95个成员代表及1个成员组织、3个联合国专门机构代表、14个粮农组织其他成员国观察员、45个政府间组织和国际非政府组织观察员出席会议。分委员会强调渔业对于消除贫困、饥饿和营养不良的重要性,并强调需要实现有效的渔业管理,确保渔业可持续发展。
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    Book (series)
    Food safety in the context of limited food availability
    Risk assessment of 3-MCPD and fatty acid esters in nutrient supplements and therapeutic food
    2024
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    Lipid-based nutrient supplements (LNS) and ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF) are used to prevent and treat malnutrition in children. They are often produced in regions experiencing food insecurity and include edible oils obtained from oleaginous seeds or fruits that must be refined to remove undesirable substances and ensure adequate shelf-life for the product. However, the formation of the heat-induced contaminants 3-monochloropropane-1,2-diol (3-MCPD) fatty acid esters and glycidyl fatty acid esters (GEs) may occur during the refining process of edible oils. 3-MCPD and its fatty acid esters are present in many other foodstuffs and most of the total lifetime exposure is attributed to foods other than LNS/RUTF. While the only Codex standard developed for 3-MCPD is for liquid condiments containing acid hydrolyzed vegetable proteins, no Codex standards are available for GEs. This publication provides an overview of risk assessments for 3-MCPD and GEs previously performed by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA), European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and other authorities, based on chronic exposure. The use of LNS/RUTF is intended to be of finite duration and confined to a specific life stage. The aim of this report was to provide an assessment to characterize the risk of less-than-lifetime exposure to 3-MCPD (including 3-MCPD fatty acid esters) and GEs via LNS/RUTF in the context of limited food availability. The thresholds identified herein for concentrations of 3-MCPD and glycidol equivalents in LNS/RUTF products are considered to represent a level of exposure that is of low concern for human health.
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    Booklet
    Technical guidelines on soils for nutrition
    Sustainable soil management for nutrition-sensitive agriculture
    2023
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    These technical guidelines outline the role that soil health plays in the nutritional quality of food and provide soil management recommendations to increase the supply of micronutrients to the food chain. Micronutrient supply is part of a holistic view of soil health, where healthy soils contribute to a safe and healthy diet. The guidelines provide seven main actions, with concrete tools and instructions, including fertilization practices, the use of adapted varieties, the application of nature-based solutions, the development of policy guidelines and the development of training strategies. This document is addressed to all actors involved in food security and production, from farmers to policymakers, to engage them in sustainable soil management for nutrition-sensitive agriculture. The technical guidelines on soils for nutrition are the result of a review of existing scientific references on the topic and from field trials and demonstration sites developed under the Sustainable Soil Management for Nutrition-Sensitive Agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia project, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture. The project explored the links between soil health and plant micronutrient content in cropping areas in Bangladesh, Burkina Faso and Malawi, and tested the effectiveness of sustainable soil management practices in increasing the micronutrient content of food. Similar measurements are recommended in the long term to complement the observed results and to obtain additional information about the relationship between soil health and the quality of locally produced food. Similarly, through capacities developed locally, in extension services and in rural communities, a major increase in farmer participation is expected. This will contribute significantly to the dissemination of sustainable soil management practices that have been shown to have a positive effect on the production of more nutritious food.
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    Book (stand-alone)
    International dialogues on forest landscape restoration and wood energy
    Preliminary outcomes from multi-stakeholders consultations in sub-Saharan Africa
    2020
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    This working paper presents the preliminary outcomes of a project that FAO has been conducting in a collaborative effort with IEA Bioenergy and with the financial support of GIZ, to promote “International dialogues on Forest Landscape Restoration and wood energy” worldwide. It focuses on the outcomes of three dialogues organized in Sub Saharan Africa (SSA) at International (Global Landscape Forum Accra 2019) and at National level (in Togo and Ghana) on “Wood Energy and FLR”. The three events, whose organization and implementation benefited from the active contribution of various teams of work within FAO (e.g. GBEP, FFF, Forestry Department) and with other international organizations (e.g. IRENA, GIZ), brought together relevant stakeholders of the two realms, raised their awareness on the activities currently on-going on the same thematic area and spatial context, and created a network among them to enable synergies, thus accelerating the achievement of common goals (e.g. SDGs, NDCs). The dialogue approach proved extremely constructive and efficient. It provided Togo and Ghana with a cross-cutting analysis of their wood energy and FLR sectors, which resulted in tailor-made suggestions and targeted take home messages, ready to be incorporated in their wood energy- and climate-related strategies (e.g. NDCs), which are currently in the process of being reviewed/updated. We strongly hope that this work will encourage other SSA countries, primarily the ones that have committed to the AFR100 initiative, to replicate this experience, thus setting a more structured and solid basis for the development of sustainable FLR-modern bioenergy integrated systems.