Participants at a side-event entitled “Agriculture at Rio+20: What should be decided – and what kind of agriculture should be promoted?” discussed a number of aspects of the components of a sustainable agriculture system in response to the outcomes of a High-level Round Table on Food and Nutrition Security and Sustainable Agriculture held during March 2012.
22 March 2012: In a side-event entitled “Agriculture at Rio+20: What should be decided – and what kind of agriculture should be promoted?” that was held on the margins of the first round of “informal informal” negotiations on the zero draft of the outcome document of the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20), participants discussed the outcomes of High-level Round Table on Food and Nutrition Security and Sustainable Agriculture held during March 2012.
Presented by Biovision, Millennium Institute, and the More and Better Network, delegates heard from David Amudavi, Director, Biovision Africa Trust, who noted five key concerns arising from the roundtable, including the inability to unlock the potential of smallholder farmers. Underscoring key outcomes suggested by the panel, which included recognizing the urgent need for change in current agriculture and food systems, he noted the need for enabling frameworks for sustainable agriculture and improved monitoring mechanisms among others. He then called on governments to support a more meaningful text on sustainable agriculture in the outcomes of Rio+20.
Practitioners from the agriculture sector stressed the importance of having a sustainable agriculture system that is flexible and continually adapts to the surrounding environments. Noting that such a system would comprise many types of farmers, including smallholder and peasant farmers, the practitioners further stressed the need to ensure to access to seeds, markets and technologies for all in the sector. The importance of traditional knowledge and gender mainstreaming was also highlighted.
Country representatives from Brazil, Norway and Switzerland also shared their perspectives on sustainable agriculture and its inclusion in the Rio+20 outcomes. They reaffirmed the importance of a flexible, adaptive system that was continually transforming, and noted the need for these systems to be economically viable, resource efficient and environmentally resilient. Many representatives also emphasized the important role agriculture can play in the green economy and poverty eradication. Several also highlighted good governance, access to research and waste reduction as key considerations for sustainable agriculture. State support was highlighted as a method to both reinforce smallholder farmers and to ensure that vulnerable populations receive adequate food and nutrition. [IISD RS Sources]