The Right to Food

States spearhead the protection of the right to food of small-scale fisheries

On the ground - 31.01.2022

31 January 2022, Rome- States hold the primary responsibility for preventing and addressing business-related human rights abuses including against communities living off small-scale fisheries, FAO Right to Food Team underlined at the Business and Human Rights Consultation last 10th December.

At her intervention during the high-level event organized in Djerba (Tunisia), Marie-Lara Hubert-Chartier, FAO Right to Food Specialist, explained that to the full extent of its available resources, the state is required to adopt appropriate legislative, institutional, budgetary, administrative and other measures for the progressive realization of the right to adequate food.

However, while the state is the primary duty bearer, businesses also have the responsibility to respect, protect and fulfil human rights, Hubert-Chartier added. All actors in the food systems are essential in contributing to the sustainable enjoyment of this right, including the private sector, consumer organizations, civil society and non-governmental organizations, United Nations, and researchers.

The food security and nutrition of the small-scale fisheries and their communities is at risk. Every day, they face many threats, including tenure rights to coastal and waterfront areas, overexploitation of resources, poor access to health, education and other social services due to remote and isolated areas, and the effects of climate change and asymmetrical competition leading to potential forced displacement.

It is vital to put in place policy solutions based on human rights, through transparent strategies, programmes and plans, and accountable institutions. This means identifying who are often the most vulnerable and marginalized, such as women, youth, disabled persons and Indigenous Peoples, analysing not only the risks they face but also the risk of not taking action in adequately targeting them. This required to understand their context-specific challenges, ensure they are socially protected and are enabled to participate in inclusive decision-making.

The Right to Food Guidelines and the Small-Scale Fisheries Guidelines, two policy tools adopted by FAO, are guiding states to support the achievement of the Agenda 2030. Through a human rights-based approach, small-scale fishing communities can be better assisted and included in policy processes related to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). When these Guidelines are implemented together, they improve the realization of human rights and help tackling critical issues of poverty, as indicated by a recent FAO handbook.

The small-scale fisheries sector is a very important source of nutrition, employment and livelihoods for millions around the world. The International Year of Artisanal Fisheries and Aquaculture 2022 aims at empowering these groups and recognizes their relevance for the realization of the right to adequate food.

Business and Human Rights in Tunisia

Held from 10-12 December 2021 and organized by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Business and Human Rights Consultation brought together a wide range of stakeholders. “It served as a key venue to strengthen engagement towards effective and comprehensive implementation of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights”, said Corrado Quinto, UNDP Chief technical advisor on justice and human rights. “The consultation provided the floor to build synergies in implementing the ‘Protect-Respect-Remedy’ framework and accomplishing sustainable development goals (SDGs), to explore ways to strengthen judicial and non-judicial mechanisms in order to provide effective remedies to affected individuals”, he underlined.

Tunisia implicitly guarantees the right to adequate food in its Constitution through broader human rights and has ratified in 1969 State the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), the instrument through with the right to adequate food is a legally binding human right in international law.

FAO Right to Food Team participated in this consultation within the framework of the Flexible Multi Partner Mechanism (FMM), subprogramme “Leveraging global instruments and knowledge products”.

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