www.asianfarmers.org

Today, there is a growing realization and commitment of the global community to achieve more sustainable and broad-based agricultural growth by addressing gender-related issues in agriculture through national, regional and global initiatives and partnerships.

The Road Map of the Global Conference on Agricultural Research and Development (GCARD) too has called for a radical reorientation of the agricultural research agenda to overcome the existing gaps and to face the emerging challenges of sustainable development and livelihood of resource-poor smallholder farmers, especially the women farmers. Urgent efforts are, therefore, needed to overcome the gender gap by empowering women in agriculture.

In view of this, the first Global Conference on Women in Agriculture (GCWA) was held last March 13-15, within the premises of the National Agricultural Science Complex (NASC) in New Delhi, India. The conference was organized by the Asia-Pacific Association of Agricultural Research Institutions (APAAARI) and Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), with the support of various regional and international institutions such as ADB, GFAR, WB, CGIAR, AusAid, Canada Fund, UKAid, among others.

During this conference, four plenary sessions on (1) Reforms in Empowering Women in Agriculture, (2) Institutional Changes for Capacity Building and Partnerships, (3) Strengthening Capacity Building and Partnerships and, and (4) Towards More Effective Joint Action were held. Six parallel sessions were likewise held: (1)Assessing Women Empowerment in Agriculture, (2) Agricultural Innovations for Reducing Drudgery, (3) Linking women to markets, (4) Role of women in household and food security, (5) access to assets, resources and knowledge, and (6) climate change related risks and uncertainties.

AFA Secretary General Esther Penunia was a panelist in the first parallel session together with six other speakers. Her presentation higlighted the initiatives of many AFA members in empowering their women farmer members. (Click here for the paper and click here for the powerpoint)

The synthesis report, made by the GCWA team and GCWA secretariat , and presented by  Ms. Uma Lele, said that evidence shows investment in women has huge benefits in terms of social, economic, productivity and nutritional/food security and other outcomes. Some evidence has pointed out that production and food availability does not necessarily lead to nutritional outcomes, and that increased education does not necessarily lead to increased voice in decision making, even at household levels. The Report highlighted though that we need more and contextual evidence.

Also, the Report identified five emerging priorities to drive change towards women’s empowerment:
-make women’s issues more visible
-generate evidence and knowledge to address women’s issues in agriculture
-foster collective action and leadership of women and men
-promote women’s ownership and control
-secure women’s rights more broadly

Another output of this conference was the formal launching of the Gender in Agriculture Partnership (GAP). It was welcomed as a global initiative embracing all actors involved in gender and agriculture. Between now and the GCARD 2 (Global Conference on Agriculture and Rural Development, to be held in Paraguay this September 2012), the GAP and its priorities will be developed in a participatory process with individuals, institutions and investors. The next GCWA will be held in 2015, to be hosted by FARA (the regional agriculture research fora in Africa).

Click here for the synthesis report presentation.

For more information, visit www.gcwa.in

(Photo credit: www.gcwa.in)

The Asian Farmers’ Association for Sustainable Rural Development (AFA) held various activities and decided on important matters on its recently concluded 5th general assembly, which was also a celebration of its 10th anniversary.

Vietnam Farmers Union (VNFU) hosted the event in Hanoi, Vietnam last March 9, 2012 back-to-back with regional farmers’ consultations on March 7-8 and a CSO consultation on the 31st FAO APRC that AFA attended on March 10-11.

The series of events officially opened on March 7 with a cultural presentation from a Vietnamese folk group, who also performed traditional songs and dances with participants from different Asian countries, and with welcome speeches from VNFU Vice-Chairperson Dr. Nguyen Duy Luong and incumbent AFA Chairperson Mr. Tsai, Shun-Te.

Around 45 representatives from 12 farmer organizations and partner NGOs from 10 Asian countries, such as API (Aliansi Petani Indonesia), FNN (Farmer and Nature Net) in Cambodia, VNFU (Vietnam Farmers Union), SorKorPor (Farmer’s Federations Association for Development Thailand), PAKISAMA (Pambansang Kilusan ng mga Samahang Magsasaka) in the Philippines, AINOUKAI in Japan, KAFF (Korea Advanced Farmers’ Federation) and WAFF (Women Advanced Farmers’ Federation) in South Korea, TWADA (Taiwan Wax Apple Development Association), TDFA (Taiwan Dairy Farmers Association), KKM (Kendrio Krishok Moitre) and Action Aid in Bangladesh, NLRF (National Land Rights Forum) and CSRC (Community Self-Relience Centre) in Nepal attended the event, and ADRA (Adventist Development and Relief Agency) in Mongolia.

Representatives from partner agencies, such as Nellie van der Pasch of Agriterra, Ignace Coussement of Agricord, Thomas Price of GFAR (Global Forum on Agricultural Research), Marlene Ramirez of AsiaDHRRA, Jose Osaba of WRF (World Rural Forum), Michael Commons of Green Net, and Dinah Fuentisima of WSPA (World Society for the Protection of Animals) also graced the occasion.

Review of accomplishments and decisions

Opening with a video showing photos of the past four general assemblies of AFA, the 5^th general assembly reviewed AFA’s accomplishments in the last two years (2010-2011) vis-a-vis the strategic plans it set for 2011-2015, while member FOs gave updates on their respective organizational activities.

The assembly also heard, discussed and adopted the Chairperson’s report regarding the administration and activities of AFA and confirmed decisions made by the Executive Committee in between general assemblies.

Exhibit, field visit, and courtesy call

As part of AFA’s knowledge sharing activities, each AFA member organization also put up an exhibit of its country’s agricultural products and traditional processed foods just outside the meeting room, where participants exchanged information on the items on display.

On March 8, participants also went on a field visit to an organic farming project, which is run mainly by women farmers.

It was followed by a short meeting with the VNFU chairperson and other leaders at the VNFU headquarters in a new building in Hanoi, where the two sides shared their aspirations and activities for farmers.

Two-year thrusts, new members, and new officers

The 5th General Assembly set the thrusts of AFA for the next two years, focusing mainly on governance and organizational development, capacity building, knowledge management, and policy advocacy.

The assembly welcomed AFA’s first two member FOs from South Asia — KKM (Kendrio Krishok Moitre) in Bangladesh and NLRF (National Land Rights Forum) in Nepal — whose applications for regular membership were previously approved by the AFA Execom.

It also determined the new set of Executive Committee members for 2012-2014, which in turn elected the new set of officers.

Through a collegial process that follows the tradition of leadership rotation, the Execom elected FNN President Uon Sophal as the new AFA Chairperson, the representative from Ainoukai as Vice-Chaiperson and the representative from API as Treasurer, while re-appointing Esther Penunia as Secretary General.

10th year anniversary, international women’s day, and tribute to farmer leaders

The general assembly was also an occasion for celebration and commemoration.

AFA celebrated its 10th year of existence through an exhibit of agricultural products, solidarity night, ritual of mixing and distributing traditional rice varieties from each Asian country, reading of solidarity statements from partners, awarding of plaques of appreciation, launching of a draft anniversary video and banners containing 10 themes, and the announcement of a plan to come out with a coffee table book highlighting AFA’s important achievements and future plans.

AFA also celebrated International Women’s Day during the field visit, courtesy call to VNFU headquarters, and solidarity night on March 8.

The Women Advanced Farmers’ Federation (WAFF), AFA’s first and so far only FO member composed solely of women, gave away gifts to women farmers during the field visit to the organic farming project.

VNFU’s Chairperson and other leaders also presented gifts to all AFA women during the courtesy call at the VNFU headquarters.

AFA’s women were again honored during the solidarity night, where they were given roses and asked to share their sentiments about the occasion.

Finally, the general assembly also set aside a special time to commemorate the heroism and martyrdom of farmer leaders in AFA who have died in the struggle for farmers’ rights.

The life and death of farmer leaders Lee Kyung Hae of South Korea; Vicente Paglinawan, Renato Penas, and Florita Caya of the Philippines; and women farmers Lamlaya Chamchamagar and Janak Kumari Chaudhary who died during the land rights campaign in Nepal were presented at the opening of the general assembly, followed by a moment of silence and a dedication of the event to their memory.

Click here for more photos

Click here for videos

Organic rice industry has a lot of potential for small scale women and men farmers in Asia. However, there is the challenge of increasing production and being ready for the market. It is also affected by a host of issues such as land grabbing, food price volatility, and climate change. Farmers are also concerned with global opportunities and challenges such as the declaration of 2014 as International Year of Family Farming (IYFF), Rio+20 processes, and the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program (GAFSP).

To address these issues, the Asian Farmers’ Association for Sustainable Rural Development (AFA), held regional consultations among its member farmer organizations in Hanoi, Vietnam last March 7-8. The consultations were hosted by the Viet Nam Farmers Union (VNFU), back to back with the 5^th AFA General Assembly.

The consultation was attended by around 45 representatives from 12 farmer organizations from 10 Asian countries, such as API, FNN, VNFU, SORPORKOR, PAKISAMA, AINOUKAI, KAFF, WAFF, TWADA, TDFA, KKM, and NLRF, as well as from partners such as Agriterra, Agricord, AsiaDHRRA, WRF, Green Net, and WSPA.

AFA member FOs in Cambodia (FNN), Indonesia (API), Philippines (PAKISAMA), Thailand (SORKORPOR), and Nepal (NLRF) conducted national consultations on organic rice industry analysis from last year until early this year.

The results of the consultations were shared during the regional consultation in Hanoi and became the inputs to further analysis and recommendations for the organic rice industry at the regional level.

AFA also took notice of global issues being discussed such as the IYFF, Rio+20 and GAFSP. Discussions drew out the concerns and proposals of farmers on the said issues.

The results of the regional consultation served as inputs to the CSO meeting held on March 10-11 in preparation for the 31st FAO-Asia Pacific Regional Conference in Hanoi, Vietnam.

The full proceedings of the consultations will be uploaded once it is already available.

Click on the links to download the presentations:

Organic Rice Industry in Cambodia

Organic Rice Industry in Thailand

Organic Rice Industry in Philippines

Organic Rice Industry in Nepal

Organic Rice Industry in Indonesia

Linking the Organic Rice Chain Experiences

International Year of Family Farming

FO involvement in GAFSP

Rio +20

FNN President and AFA Chairperson Uon Sophal and FNN Staff Noy Kimhong, together with AFA staff, wishes everyone a Happy Khmer New Year! (Suas sday chhnam thmey!)

CSOs from the Asian region gather in Hanoi, Vietnam on March 10-11, 2012 for the “CSO Meeting: Consolidating Efforts for Effective Engagement on Food and Agriculture Governance,” being held in conjunction with the 31st FAO-Asia Pacific Regional Conference on March 12-16, 2012.

Viet Nam Farmers Union (VNFU), a member of AFA, hosts the event

The CSO Meeting brings together representatives of farmers, fisher folk, Indigenous Peoples, rural women, rural youth, cooperatives, NGOs and other civil society organizations, to discuss the priority issues that are affecting the food security of the region. Partners from governments, donor community, international and intergovernmental bodies are expected to join.

The CSO Meeting aims to provide the 31st FAO-APRC critical inputs from various CSO perspectives and positions on the priority issues they have identified through consultative processes over the last several years. They are anchored on field experience, giving voices to the concerns and aspirations of the marginalized rural peoples.

Among the objectives of the CSO Consultation are:

1. To exchange situation of agriculture and food in the region and share experiences with a view to enhancing mutual understanding, solidarity, friendship, cooperation among the CSOs in South East Asia and South Asia for sustainable development of agriculture .
2. To analyze the situation of agriculture and food in Asia and the Pacific region and to make recommendations at the same time working out proactive, active and constructive measures to cope with common challenges / problems.
3. To facilitate the integration of the Civil Society Mechanism (CSM) in the FAO-CSO regional processes and promote other innovative CSO mechanisms in the region towards the strengthening of the role and participation of CSOs in the development processes at all levels.

Click here to go to the blog site of the 31st APRC Civil Society Consultation

Follow us on twitter via #cso31stfaoaprc

The Asian Farmers’ Association for Sustainable Rural Development (AFA) will hold the event entitled “AFA@10: Celebrating Successes, Taking On More Challenges: AFA Regional Consultations and 5th AFA General Assembly” on March 7-9, 2012 in Hanoi, Vietnam.

It will also be a celebration of the federation’s 10th anniversary.

The general assembly will be hosted by its member Viet Nam Farmers’ Union (VNFU) and will be attended by around 45 representatives from 12 farmer organizations from 10 Asian countries, as well as from partner civil society organizations and inter-government bodies.

During the 3-day event, AFA will hold consultations that aim to (1) come up with recommendations regarding policy measures to support smallholders to participate more in the value chain of organic rice (as a result of industry analysis), with particular emphasis on the needs of women and young farmers; (2) come up with an action plan for the women and youth wing of AFA; (3) discuss and formulate strategies and broad plans regarding Rio+20 processes; and (4) share experiences and lessons learned on FO involvement in processes of GAFSP (Global Agriculture and Food Security Program), as well as the International Year of Family Farming (IYFF) campaign.

The general assembly itself aims to (1) review the accomplishments of the past two years – 2010-2011, esp viz the Strategic Plans set for 2011-2015; (2) hear, discuss and adopt the report of the Chairperson regarding the administration and activities of AFA; (3) confirm decisions made by the Executive Committee in between General Assemblies; (4) decide on matters affecting the general interest of its members and stakeholders; (5) approve amendments to the constitution and bylaws of AFA, if necessary; (6) confirm new members of AFA; (7) set the thrusts /focus of AFA for the next two years (in between two GAs); (8) determine the new set of AFA Executive Committee members for 2012-2014; and (9) from among the new Executive Committee members, elect the Chair and Vice Chair as well as appoint/re-appoint the Treasurer and Secretary General.

AFA was launched in May 2002 in Malaysia, after a series of farmer exchange visits in several countries in Asia conducted by its partner NGO AsiaDHRRA.

Today, it has members from Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Japan, Taiwan, and Korea, with two new members joining from Bangladesh and Nepal.

The federation wishes to celebrate 10 meaningful years of its existence by recalling its achievements, learning from its experiences and facing the opportunities and threats that face small-scale farmers in Asia.

Click here to know more about AFA

On the occasion of the fifty-sixth session of the Commission on the Status of Women taking place at the United Nations Headquarters in New York from Monday, 27 February to Friday, 9 March 2012, AFA is re-posting this article that first appeared in the special issue of World Rural Forum’s New Earth in celebration of World Rural Women’s Day on October 15, 2010.

Our world is now reeling from four interrelated crises – food, fuel/energy, financial and climate change. The hardest hit by these crises are the small scale women and men farmers, fishers, pastoralists and indigenous peoples, as they comprise the majority of the world’s most poor and vulnerable. These global problems brought opportunities to re-examine agriculture. Now, after three decades of neglect, agriculture is back in the international agenda. Its role in poverty reduction and sustainable development is again being harped. But it is now agriculture with a much different system and focus , or “away from business as usual” . Respected rural development think tanks and intergovernmental organizations have realized that it is sustainable, integrated, diversified agriculture done by small scale farmers, with a particular focus on women, that is a key measure for longer lasting rural development.

Read the rest of this entry »

The Rural Women Leadership Project was implemented in the Philippines in 2010-2011 by AFA and PAKISAMA, in partnership with WOCAN. Leadership stories of 45 women and 15 men were gathered to capture the lessons learned on women leadership. This video shows nine of these stories.

Click here to watch the video “Women Farmer Leaders as Agents of Change”

AFA attended the preparatory CSO meeting last January 18-19, 2012 in Hanoi, Vietnam hosted by AFA member Viet Nam Farmers Union (VNFU). The objective of the meeting was to discuss the details of preparation for the CSO parallel forum to the 31st FAO Asia- Pacific Regional Conference which will be held on March 12-16, 2012. The meeting was able to come-up with key agreements on the design and the institutional arrangements related to the conduct of CSO parallel forum. The body was able to agree to form an organizing committee (OC) that will anchor the over-all conduct of the CSO parallel forum as well as ensure the meaningful interaction of CSO delegates to the official FAO-APRC process. The organizing committee is composed of VNFU as the head and representatives from established regional platforms engaging FAO (AHC and IPC) including AFA, APNFS, PAN-AP and IMSE. (Report and photo by Lany Rebagay, AFA Advocacy Officer)

The following was read by Ms. Rachel Kalaba, a representativeof young farmers in Zambia, during IFAD Governing Council meeting on February 22, 2012.

Synthesis of Deliberations of the Fourth Global Meeting of the Farmers’ Forum
in Conjunction with the 35th Session of IFAD’s Governing Council
Rome, 20-21 February 2012

1. We the participants in the the 4th global meeting of the Farmers’ Forum, representing millions of small- and medium- scale family farmers, pastoralists and artisanal fishers (including rural youth), reiterate our appreciation of the Farmers’ Forum process and its contribution to bringing the voice of smallholder farmers into the country strategies and programs of IFAD. There are encouraging achievements in the coverage and diversity of our partnerships in country programmes. There is considerable potential to build upon and improve what has been achieved. Yet a lot more needs to be done. This is of utmost urgency, given the challenges that we face.

2. Demands on agriculture are ever increasing. Natural resources – land, seeds, water, fisheries,pastures – are being depleted and contaminated, while competition for these resources is becoming ever more fierce. A serious threat to the future of agriculture is that young people face great hardship in building a dignified life in the rural areas. More often than not, they are given no viable alternative, but to abandon their villages and migrate to cities or abroad.

3. 500 million smallholder and family farms produce four fifths of the food consumed in the developing world. Sustainable smallholder and family agriculture is, therefore, the foundation of food security, poverty reduction and sustainable management of natural resources.

Read the rest of this entry »

On the second day of the fourth global meeting of the Farmers Forum on February 21, 2012, the Medium Term Cooperation Program with FOs in the Asia Pacific got a good review.

The IFAD social reporting blog says:

The results of the first phase of the MTCP were very encouraging. “Consultation with FOs in the design of new IFAD projects, and in the formulation of new Country Strategic Opportunities Programmes, is now the norm!”, said Sana F K Jatta, IFAD Task Manager for the Farmers’ Forum process in the Asia Pacific Division.

Maybe that’s because IFAD and FOs have a common objective, which is poverty reduction. As Nguyen Manh Hung, Director of International Cooperation in the Viet Nam Farmers’ Union, said: “When you have common objectives, you can shake hands.”

(In the photo: lower right – Mr. Manh Hung, Director of International Cooperation Department, Viet Nam Farmers Union)

Click here to read the full article at the IFAD social reporting blog

Click here to read more about FAFO 2012

Click here to see the Agenda of FAFO 2012

Click here to watch the live webcast of FAFO 2012

At the opening session of the fourth meeting of the Farmers Forum 2012 on February 20, 2012, the Asian Famers’ Association (AFA), a Steering Committee member of FAFO, asked IFAD to partner with farmers organizations in upscaling and mainstreaming sustainable agriculture.

In the opening statement read by Secretary General Ma. Estrella Penunia, AFA informed IFAD of the victories of small farmers and producers since the last FAFO in 2010.

These successes include the UN declaration of 2014 as the International Year of Family Farming, implementation of the Medium Term Cooperation Program in the Asia Pacific, implementation of the Global Agriculture for Food Security Program with FO participation, and organization of the Civil Society Mechanism for the UN Committee on Food Security also with FO participation.

Ms. Penunia also pointed out challenges such as the Rio+20′s non-inclusion of small scale farmers and producers and the silence on sustainable, agroecological, smallholder family farmer agriculture; lack of clear decision on climate financing for adaptation in the UNFCC meeting in Durban; and lack of operationalization and involvement of FOs in the ASEAN and SAARC framework on food security and climate change.

Thus, AFA called on IFAD to partner directly with FOs in involving more women and youth in agriculture; in participating in dialogues with governments at all levels; in efforts at knowledge management; and in truly involving FOs in IFAD’s governance processes.

(In the photo: AFA Execom Member Vicente Fabe from PAKISAMA in the Philippines)

Download the full Opening Statement in PDF

Click here to read more about FAFO 2012

Click here to see the Agenda of FAFO 2012

Click here to follow the IFAD social reporting blog

Click here to watch the live webcast of FAFO 2012

Opening Statement
Farmers’ Forum 2012
Asian Farmers’ Association (AFA)
February 20, 2012

Good morning to everyone!

In behalf of the Asian Farmers Association, we greet you all a belated happy lunar new year of the Water Dragon!

Since we last met in 2010, we have made some victories. First, the UN has declared 2014 as the International Year of Family Farming – we have endorsed this declaration in our synthesis of deliberations in FaFo 2010. Second, in the Asia region, the medium term cooperation program aimed to build the capacities of farmers’ organizations was started, after three years of negotiations, and now is in its third year of implementation. The Global Agriculture for Food Security Program or GAFSP also started implementation in 2010, and involved three CSO members in its global steering committee, including one from Asia. The GAFSP has approved some funds in several countries, including five in Asia. And the farmers organizations in these countries have started to engage their governments in the design of the final proposal, for implementation hopefully this year 2012. Lastly, the Civil Society Mechanism for CFS was organized in 2010, promoting the participation of farmers’ organization in CFS processes not only as observers but as participants.

These are for us, clear manifestations of the growing commitment of international agencies, especially IFAD to strengthen partnership with FOs in the region, and we would like to thank IFAD for this.

Read the rest of this entry »

ON the first day of the FAFO 2012 in Rome, Italy, AFA asserted the role of smallholders in agricultural development.

IFAD social reporting blog quotes AFA Secretary General Esther Penunia as follows:

Other speakers asserted that small-scale producers should be more directly involved in the design and implementation of rural development plans at all levels. For instance, the UN Year of Family Farming – scheduled for 2014 – will be meaningful only if it involves smallholders in policy advocacy, said Estrella Penunia Banzuela of the Asian Farmers’ Association.

(In the photo: AFA Secretary General Esther Penunia – second from left, FNN Executive Director Pan Sopheap, AINOUKAI representatrive Ryoko Tsuboi, and WAFF/KAFF representative Young Ran Choi -fourth, fifth, and sixt from the left respectively- at the Farmers’ Forum, 18 February 2012, IFAD HQ, Rome. Also attending the FAFO 2012, but not in the photo, are: API representaitve Ms. Ika Krishnayanti; VNFU ICD Director Manh Hung and VNFU Vice-Chairperson Mr. Le Hoang Minh; and PAKISAMA Chairperson Vicente Fabe)

Read more at the IFAD social reporting blog

Mr. Mohammad Nuruddin, Secretary General of API and active ExeCom member of AFA, gives an opening message during the ASEAN Session on “Civil Society Organization (CSO) and the Agriculture and Forestry Sector in the ASEAN Region, held at the ASEAN Headquaters in Jakarta, Indonesia last February 16, 2012. The activity was attended by Dr. Surin Pitsuwan, ASEAN Secretary General and other key ASEAN staff and Dialogue partners and CSOs. The objective of the session was to encourage building enabling environment for meaningful engagement between ASEAN & civil society organizations in agriculture and forestry sector development. AFA and its partner AsiaDHRRA also presented their experience in relating with ASEAN in the panel discussion.

In his message, Mr. Nuruddin said, “I hope that through this CSO 101 session, the small spaces for participation at the member state level and at the ASEAN level can be widened to hear more loudly the grassroots voices  of small-scale women and men farmers, fishers, indigenous peoples and other marginalized sectors.”

“We hope that through this “getting- to-know you” session, we can find more allies and friends from the ASEAN member state representatives and staff who will recognize and appreciate our role in building a more food secure, healthy, happy and caring ASEAN community,” he added.

Click here to download Mr. Nuruddin’s Opening Message

Click here to download AFA -AsiaDHRRA’s Powerpoint Presentation

AFA representatives are attending the fourth meeting of the Farmers Forum (FAFO) being held at the IFAD Headquarters in Rome, Italy from on Feburary 20-21, 2012.

The FAFO is being webcast live at http://webcasting.ifad.org/gc2012.

The photo is a screen grab of the webcast on the first day of the FAFO.

Ms. Youngran Choi (third row on the left) is representing the Korean Advanced Farmers Federation (KAFF) and the Women Advanced Farmers Federation (KAFF) from South Korea.

Ms. Ika Krishnayanti (first row on the left) is representing Aliansi Petani Indonesia (API).

Ms. Ryoko Tsuboi (first row on the right) is representing AINOUKAI from Japan.

Also in the meeting, but not in this photo, are Ms. Esther Penunia, AFA Secretary General; Mr. Pan Sopheap, Executive Director of Farmer and Nature Net (FNN) from Cambodia; and Mr. Manh Hung, Director of the International Cooperation Department, and Mr. Le Hoang Minh, Vice-Chairperson of the Viet Nam Farmers Union (VNFU); and Mr. Vicente Fabe Chairperson of National Confederation of Farmers Organizations in the Philippines (PAKISAMA).

Click here to read more about FAFO 2012

Click here to see the Agenda of FAFO 2012

AFA is participating in the special session of the 2012 Farmers’ Forum entitled “Youth in Agriculture” being held on February 18, 2011 at the IFAD Headquarters in Rome, Italy.

Read more about the special session at: http://www.ifad.org/farmer/2012/youth/index.htm

Over 60 per cent of the world’s rural population is made of youth, with half of them being young women and girls. Due to their limited access to assets (in particular land), markets, finance and education and skills training, rural youth are often unemployed or work informally – often in unpaid, very low-skilled, insecure and sometimes hazardous jobs. If young people living in rural areas do not find enough incentives, profitable economic opportunities and attractive environments in which to live and work, they will continue to migrate to cities. This trend would not only contribute to the mega urbanization and growing urban unemployment that is already under way, but is expected to affect global food production: who will then feed the global population that is projected to reach 9.2 billion people by 2050?

AFA is co-organizing a regional sharing session dubbed as ASEAN CSO 101 together with ASEAN, ASFN, NTFP-EP, ASIADHRRA and AFA  with support from SDC and the government of Indonesia . The session aims to encourage building enabling environment for meaningful engagement mechanisms and initiatives between government bodies & civil society organizations in agriculture and forestry sector development. Specifically, the session hopes to  have a clearer picture of the CSO sector and the various perspectives and approaches used by various CSOs in rural development, particularly in forestry and agriculture sector initiatives, to bring forth and highlight positive examples of CSO–government/intergovernmental collaborations, and to further identify key themes and points where ASEAN-CSO engagement and constructive dialogue is crucial in rural development,  forestry and agriculture sectors towards sustainable development.

Mr.Muhamad Nuruddin, API Sec.General and a member of AFA ExeCom will be giving an opening message to all the participants and Ms.Lany V.Rebagay, Policy Advocacy Officer of AFA will also be sharing the AFA and AsiaDHRRA experience in engaging ASEAN.

Given the right opportunities, women farmers take leadership roles and do it well. This is one conclusion that came out strongly in a research validation workshop and reflection session of women farmer leaders held in the Philippines recently.

Eight women farmers belonging to PAKISAMA gathered at Ciudad Christia, Montalban, Rizal last December 16-18, 2011 in order to validate the initial findings of a research project on women leadership and reflect on their experiences as leaders in their communities and organizations, and to draw lessons from these experiences.

With the support of IFAD, WOCAN, Agriterra, and AFA, the validation and reflection session was held as part of a four-country Rural Women Leadership project, which in the Philippines is being implemented by PAKISAMA.

The women leaders were joined by staff of PAKISAMA, AFA, and an independent researcher.

The lessons drawn by the research project will be shared in a learning event to be organized by WOCAN in Nepal in January next year.

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With 925 million people going hungry every day, the food insecurity crisis in the South cries out for solutions for long-term and sustainable food security.

Thus, this year’s Global South-South Development Expo, being held at the FAO headquarters in Rome, Italy on December 5-9, brings together country, civil society, private sector and UN agency representatives to allow sharing of success stories and exploration of new ideas to achieve food security.

The Asian Farmers’ Association for Sustainable Development joins the expo as it taps into South-South Cooperation, which is based on solidarity and sharing of solutions and expertise among developing countries.The expo features a series of “solution exchange forums” covering: agriculture, food security and capacity development; social protection, agriculture and food security; environment, agriculture and food security; nutrition, HIV/AIDS, agriculture and food security; and health, agriculture and food security and agribusiness, food security and education.

These fora aim to help countries move towards the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals through the sharing and discovery of solutions that are adapted to each country’s realities.The expo also includes a Leadership Roundtable on food security moderated by BBC news presenter Zeinab Badawi.

AFA Secretary General Esther Penunia participates in this roundtable, which is being webcast live.

Click here to go to the Global South-South Development Expo website

Click here to watch the live webcast of the Leadership Roundtable on food security