Convened on the theme, ‘trees for life – accelerating the impacts of agroforestry,' the World Congress on Agroforestry saw the launch of India's National Policy of Agroforestry.
The Policy is intended to facilitate improved access to credit and insurance and support market access for agroforestry products.
10 February 2014: Convened on the theme, ‘trees for life – accelerating the impacts of agroforestry,’ the World Congress on Agroforestry saw the launch of India’s National Policy of Agroforestry. The Policy is intended to facilitate improved access to credit and insurance and support market access for agroforestry products.
The Congress, opened by Shri Pranab Mukherjee, the President of India, is the third such Congress and was attended by more than 1,000 participants. In the opening address, Mukherjee noted the importance of trees in India’s society and highlighted the opportunity for agroforestry to provide an avenue for environmentally sustainable food production. The opening also included the presentation of Congress Awards to two children for essay writing and painting, and the granting of the Krishi Karman Awards to Indian states with significant increases in grain production.
In statements during the Congress, Eduardo Rojas-Briales, Assistant Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) and Chair of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF), highlighted the successes of agroforestry in supporting multiple ecosystem services in highly populated areas, especially in comparison to other land uses. Tony Simons, Director General of the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF), emphasized the importance of engaging with political, business and development spheres while noting with concern, the low number of women participants and lack of focus on gender during the Congress.
In an opening statement, S. Ayyappan, Director General of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), emphasized the need to accelerate the inclusion of agroforestry within development initiatives, noting the different social and environmental benefits that can be achieved through agroforestry. Similarly, a number of Ministers from India delivered statements calling for global efforts to remove barriers to agroforestry and highlighting its importance in providing multiple ecosystem services and supporting dynamic and highly productive agricultural systems.
The World Congress on Agroforestry was convened from the 10 to 14 February 2014 by ICRAF, ICAR and the Indian Society of Agro-forestry (ISAF). ICRAF is a member of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). [ICRAF Press Release] [ICAR Press Release] [Government of India Press Release] [FAO Newsroom] [World Congress on Agroforestry Website]