About us
What we do
The Rural Institutions and Territorial Development (RITD) team works to strengthen inclusive and accountable institutions as drivers of inclusive rural transformation. This includes supporting cooperatives, producer organizations, community-based organizations and other forms of rural collective action that connect rural people to opportunities, services and decision-making processes.
Through institutional empowerment, entrepreneurship and collective action, the team helps rural people strengthen their voice, agency and organizational capacity, improve livelihoods, access opportunities and participate in agrifood systems.
Ultimately, strengthening rural institutions contributes to address structural inequalities, strengthened local governance, improved livelihoods, more inclusive territorial development and more sustainable agrifood systems, for Better Production, Better Nutrition, a Better Environment and a Better Life - leaving no one behind.
Areas of work
Our work supports more inclusive, resilient and sustainable agrifood systems. We focus on strengthening the capacities of rural people and organizations, improving market access and promoting coordinated action across territories.
By combining knowledge, policy support, capacity development and partnerships, we help small-scale producers, rural organizations and institutions take part more effectively in economic, social and governance processes.
Through collective action, they contribute to stronger local economies, better governance and overall agrifood systems transformation.
The team strengthens cooperatives, producer organizations and other member-based organizations. This helps them become more inclusive, accountable and effective.
The team strengthens cooperatives, producer organizations and other member-based organizations. Together with other tools — such as territorial diagnosis, participatory planning, multi-stakeholder governance and policy support — this can contribute to broader territorial development processes by making local actors more inclusive, accountable and effective.
By combining knowledge generation, policy support, institutional development, capacity strengthening and advocacy, we contribute to improved governance and greater participation of rural people in agrifood systems and rural development.
For example, the team represents FAO in the Committee for the Promotion and Advancement of Cooperatives (COPAC), contributing to inter-agency dialogue and the coordination of global initiatives on cooperatives.
The team works to strengthen market systems so that small-scale producers and vulnerable groups can participate more effectively in agrifood markets and benefit from economic opportunities.
Through market analysis, policy support, institutional strengthening and capacity development, we help create more inclusive, equitable and sustainable territorial marketss.
A key element of this work focuses on farmers’ markets. Under the Food Coalition, and in collaboration with the World Farmers Markets Coalition, the Global Network of Farmers Markets project promotes diverse market models and collective mechanisms.
These help small-scale producers engage in sustainable agrifood systems. The initiative also supports research, country mapping and global knowledge products to better understand the role of farmers’ markets in rural development.
The team strengthens the business, management and entrepreneurial capacities of small-scale producers, rural organizations and rural enterprises.
Through innovative learning approaches such as Farm Business School Forward (FBS Forward), the team supports farmers, rural organizations and enterprises to improve market engagement, identify business opportunities and develop sustainable agribusinesses.
To avoid fragmented or siloed interventions, these business development tools can be linked to broader territorial development processes. When combined with territorial diagnosis, participatory planning, collective action and multi-stakeholder governance, FBS Forward can help ensure that enterprise development responds to local food-system dynamics, territorial opportunities, market constraints and community priorities.
FBS Forward integrates inclusion, gender equality, innovation and collective action. It is now available through the FAO eLearning Academy as a flexible package that includes an e-learning course, handbook and exercise pack.
The team works for strengthening the business, management and entrepreneurial capacities of small-scale producers and rural enterprises.
Through innovative learning approaches such as Farm Business School Forward (FBS Forward), the team supports farmers, rural organizations and enterprises. It helps them improve market engagement, identify business opportunities and develop sustainable agribusinesses.
FBS Forward integrates inclusion, gender equality, innovation and collective action. It is now available through the FAO eLearning Academy as a flexible package that includes an e-learning course, handbook and exercise pack.
The team promotes territorial development as an integrated approach to transforming agrifood systems in inclusive, resilient and sustainable ways. Recognizing the strong links between rural and urban areas, this approach supports coordinated action across sectors, institutions, actors and levels of governance.
Through territorial diagnostics, policy support and multi-stakeholder engagement, the team helps governments and local actors design and implement strategies that strengthen local economies, improve governance and expand opportunities for small-scale producers, women, youth and Indigenous Peoples.
Within this broader approach, collective action, support to cooperatives and producer organizations, and entrepreneurship development are important tools for translating territorial priorities into concrete action. Their integration into territorial diagnosis and participatory planning helps avoid siloed interventions and ensures that development strategies respond to local assets, market opportunities, institutional capacities and community priorities.
By involving all relevant stakeholders, territorial development can support more effective development plans and contribute to more sustainable, inclusive and resilient food systems.
The team promotes territorial development as an integrated approach to transforming agrifood systems in inclusive, resilient and sustainable ways. Recognizing the strong links between rural and urban areas, this approach supports coordinated action across sectors, institutions and levels of governance.
Through territorial diagnostics, policy support and multi-stakeholder engagement, the team helps governments and local actors design and implement strategies that strengthen local economies, improve governance and expand opportunities for small-scale producers, women, youth and Indigenous Peoples.