As 2020 draws to a close, it’s a good time to reflect on what seems like a pivotal year. It’s a new decade, and we are facing challenges new and old. The COVID-19 crisis took over the agenda this year, changing how we work, live, and interact with each other. However, old challenges did not take a backseat during this crisis. Food security, nutrition, gender-based violence, early marriage, education, and
On Dec. 2, women in West Africa gathered online to save the local milk market in West Africa which is overrun with palm oil-fattened milk powder from Europe. They say this powdered milk, sold up to 50% cheaper than local milk, weakens our milk producers. Badly labeled, this milk can be confused with real milk without having the nutritional qualities. This can harm your health and that of your children.
La Via Campesina (LVC) is a champion for the rights of small-scale food producers, working for food sovereignty and social justice, and struggling in solidarity with peasant farmers, small- and medium-sized producers, rural women, indigenous people, rural youth and agricultural workers to improve their rights. And they have had success. With the adoption of the UN Declarations of the Rights of Peasants in 2018, La Via Campesina found success. But
CSO STATEMENT TO THE 31th FAO REGIONAL CONFERENCE FOR AFRICA Honourable Chairperson, Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates and Observers, Ladies and Gentlemen, We, the 53 representatives of small and medium-scale farmers, rural women and youth, fisherfolk, agricultural workers, livestock keepers, pastoralists, indigenous peoples, cooperatives, consumers, and NGOs, representing national, regional and international CSOs coming from 22 countries met in Harare, Zimbabwe, from 25th to 27th of February 2020 for the Civil Society
By 2050, the global population of youth (ages 15-24 as defined by the UN) is projected to rise to 1.8 billion, with 35 percent estimated to live in Africa. This presents a challenge of creating economic opportunities for this growing segment of the population. Furthermore, the growing global demand for food and nutrition also presents a challenge, with some estimates citing a need to increase food availability by 70-100 percent.
The UN Decade of Family Farming 2019-2028 aims to shed new light on what it means to be a family farmer in a rapidly changing world and highlights more than ever before the important role they play in eradicating hunger and shaping our future of food. Family farming The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) launched the United Nations’ Decade of Family Farming
Tanzanians who participated in the System Rice Intensification training shared their delightful stories of how implementing a new rice growing system improved their lives and wellbeing. These interesting experiences can be a motivation to others. Tanzania implemented a bottom-up approach resulting in a more inclusive initiative, which finally led to achieving a successful outcome. Tanzania is one of the participating countries in the “Partnership for Sustainable Rice Systems Development in
The Fall armyworm is a caterpillar, a member of the Lepidopteran family, that feeds in large numbers on a wide variety of plant species, but its favourite food is maize. This caterpillar is native to tropical and sub-tropical regions of the America, but since 2016, it has been spotted across the African continent, munching on maize crops. Farmers were caught unaware – unsure of how to deal with this new
Shea production is a growing sector with its produce (shea butter) having great benefit to health, skin and hair. Shea butter is an extract from the nuts of the Karite tree fruits. This tree grows majorly in Africa and has been used for various health and body remedies for years. It is produced by crushing the nuts through a machine. These crushed nuts are further put out under the sun
The 23rd edition of the World Rural Women’s Day celebrated under the theme ‘Empowering rural women through the development of effective partnerships’ has given the Bangangté Local Council the opportunity to revitalize local governance approaches to better align rural women to its empowerment mission. For quite some time now, this Local Council in the West region of Cameroon, which covers a population of about 215 000 inhabitants, has realized the need
