Family Farming

Social Capital proves critical to success of System of Rice Intensification (SRI) farming in Tanzania

Social capital is defined as the enduring connections of networks, reciprocity and social norms that exist among a group of people. In farming, social capital has various benefits such as facilitating farmer-to-farmer knowledge sharing, increasing access to information, and connecting farmers to different sources of support. In Tanzania, social capital was a key contributor to the success of the implementation of System of Rice Intensification (SRI), as part of the

An innovative agricultural competition inspired by football

In the village of Mudjoga, in North Kivu, DRC, farmers have devised an innovative agricultural competition inspired by football. The competition is called “agricultural match” and it consists of farmers demonstrating the application of certain cultivation practices. The exercise itself is inspired by football, or “soccer”. It pits farmers against each other in a friendly competition where each demonstrates an agricultural technique. They are supervised by a jury of judges

In vivo experience of the benefits for farmers' organizations, IFAD, Governments & projects to come together

From 15 to 18 November, in Grand-Bassam, Côte d’Ivoire, was held the second edition of the Regional Farmers’ Forum in conjunction with the 12th Regional Implementation Workshop for IFAD-supported projects in West and Central Africa (WCA). Hosted in Grand Bassam, Côte d’Ivoire, this regional event welcomed about 200 participants from 23 countries of the region. The Regional Farmers’ Forum was  sponsored by Kobenan Adjoumani Kouassi, Minister of State, Minister of

Sex-disaggregated data, the key to understanding gender gaps in agriculture

The lack of data makes it difficult to monitor the progress on gender equality and rural women’s empowerment in agriculture, food security and nutrition. The Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is supporting countries with the analysis necessary to make second-generation National Agriculture Investment Plans (NAIPs) and Regional Agriculture Investment Plans (RAIPs) gender responsive. FAO Representation in Ethiopia held a Stakeholders’ Validation Workshop on the use of

Summary of the First Global Forum of the UN Decade of Family Farming 2019-2028 (UNDFF)

After three years of implementing the UNDFF, co-organized by FAO-IFAD, the UN Decade of Family Farming 2019−2028 (UNDFF) hosted its First Global Forum of the UN Decade of Family Farming 2019-20128 (UNDFF) from 19 to 22 September 2022. The forum served as a platform for sharing lessons, experiences, challenges, and outcomes of the UNDFF implementation across regions that will guide and shape the UNDFF agenda in years to come. Day 1 –

World Food Day 2022: Safe food today for a healthy tomorrow

World Food Day is October 16, 2022. This year’s theme is “Safe food today for a healthy tomorrow.” World Food Day 2022 raises awareness of the need for more efficient, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable agri-food systems. It calls for action across sectors to ensure that our agri-food systems deliver enough affordable, nutritious, and safe food for all. To achieve this transformation, the world needs to change policies, mindsets, behaviours, and

Join a roundtable event on the impacts of COVID-19, conflicts, and crises on the right to food and food sovereignty

On 22 September at 12:00 PM – 14:00 PM (GMT, UTC +0),14:00 PM – 16:00 PM (SAST, UTC +2) and 15:00 PM – 17:00 PM (EAT, UTC +3), join a virtual roundtable to dialogue with a roundtable of panellists from African civil society, local authorities, national governments, continental institutions and international agencies, to find solutions to our food crises that respect human rights, biodiversity, and unity for all life on

The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2022

This year’s report should dispel any lingering doubts that the world is moving backwards in its efforts to end hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition in all its forms. We are now only eight years away from 2030, but the distance to reach many of the SDG 2 targets is growing wider each year. There are indeed efforts to make progress towards SDG 2, yet they are proving insufficient in the

Farm Radio, other stakeholders, mark Africa Smallholders Farmers' Summit 2022

Farm Radio International, a non-profit organization focused on using radio to help African farming communities has joined other stakeholders to mark the fourth edition of the Africa Smallholders Farmers’ Summit 2022. The program which was hosted at the School of Agriculture, University of Ghana in the Greater Accra Region, brought together agriculture input dealers, organizations and smallholder farmers across Africa to stay abreast of the innovations and technologies improving best

Western tree planters association's ambitious plan for commercial forestry begins with trees on farm census

According to Kenya Forestry Research Institute, Commercial forestry is contributing 3.8% of Kenya’s GDP, excluding charcoal and direct subsistence uses. This points to the need for a closer look at the sector by various stakeholders, even as the country seeks to achieve 10% forest cover. With commercial forestry supporting Kenya’s most productive sectors, including agriculture, fisheries, livestock, energy, wildlife, water, tourism and trade, smallholder farmers are undoubtedly key players in