The SDC and the Swiss NGO Biovision, which was founded by Hans Herren, winner of the Right Livelihood Award in 2013 (also known as the "Alternative Nobel Prize") and the World Food Prize in 1995, have joined forces to improve food and nutrition security among the rural poor. 70% of the 1.4 billion people who live on less than USD 1.25 per day live in rural areas. Of this total, 1 billion suffer from hunger or malnutrition. All too often, today's food systems are insufficient to feed the world's population and at the same time are negatively impacting the natural resources that are key to future food production. The aim of the project is to improve food security and increase rural prosperity through the implementation of sustainable agricultural and food policy at the global and national levels. At the UN Conference on Sustainable Development in June 2012 in Rio de Janeiro, where the international community renewed its commitment to sustainable development, thanks in part to the SDC's efforts the issue of sustainable agriculture was also integrated into the final document of the conference. Currently, within the framework of this project, the SDC is working to ensure that the issue is taken into consideration in the new agenda for development and sustainability – the post-2015 agenda.
Locally adapted methods for smallholder farms
In recent years the international community has been increasingly calling for a shift in agricultural policies and practices towards locally adapted methods for smallholder farmers and towards sustainable agriculture. The agricultural systems of tomorrow need to conserve natural resources for future generations and be both economically viable and socially sustainable at the same time. Sustainable agriculture is less input-intensive and therefore more easily accessible for the rural poor. Better agricultural access can have a major impact on the livelihoods of the rural poor. On this basis the SDC's project should lead to a change of direction in national and international policy.
Support for the integration of sustainable agriculture in national policy
As part of the project, national agricultural policies in Kenya, Senegal and Ethiopia were analysed. Based on those findings, the SDC is now helping those countries' governments to integrate efficient, comprehensive and long-term planning for sustainable agriculture in their action plans. Adapting national policy in this way should ultimately benefit smallholder families and grass-roots organisations, whose sustainable practices are being promoted. The aim is that by 2017, three national or regional authorities will have adopted comprehensive national policies and agricultural strategies that support the development of sustainable agriculture in the long term.
Inclusion of sustainable, global agriculture in the post-2015 agenda
As part of the project, at the global level, the integration of sustainable agriculture and food and nutrition security were promoted as key topics at the UN Conference on Sustainable Development in June 2012 in Rio de Janeiro (Rio+20). Rio+20 was an opportunity to launch an international debate on a shift in global agriculture. Thanks in part to the SDC's major commitment, the issues were included in the Rio+20 outcome document. The SDC will continue to work to ensure that these issues are taken into consideration at the international and multilateral levels. Its focus will therefore lie on the post-2015 framework and the UN Committee on World Food Security (CFS).
The project includes proposing partnerships with different actors, with which sustainable agricultural principles can be integrated into national, regional and global development plans. It also provides for the participation of multilateral institutions in promoting, funding and implementing sustainable agricultural practices. The activities of the project are based on the findings of a report by the International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science, and Technology for Development (IAASTD) of 2008.
Finally, the SDC, Biovision and other partners will work to ensure sustainable agriculture is integrated in internationally binding agreements such as the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD).
