Unite Small holder producers! : FaFo agreed to have more concrete, United and more decentralized actions during coming years,

Statement to the Governing Council of IFAD by Farmers Forum

18th of February  11h00-12h00

Dear members of the Governing Council, dear president of IFAD, dear participants to the 2016 Governing Council,

We, delegates of the 6^th Global Meeting of the Farmers’ Forum want to bring you the following statement.

The special Session on Pastoralism underlined that pastoralism is the main livelihood on marginal agricultural land. We call upon IFAD to take a pastoralist-centered approach to policy guidance as well as to investments and to reinforce institutional capacities of pastoralist organizations.

Based on an autonomous evaluation and the discussions in the Farmers Forum we invite you to support the implementation of the following recommendations: 

A qualitative evolution is needed to ensure a more effective dialogue between smallholder organizations and IFAD. It is agreed that the Global Meeting of the Farmers Forum will take place every 4 years with 5 Regional Fora in between, in order to decentralize the process. The establishment of regional and national spaces that respect the principles of the governance and processes of the Global Farmers’ Forum  should be supported. Along side the dialogue process with IFAD, small-scale producers’ organizations will continue to organize their autonomous space.

Strengthen  support for further analysis of the country programs and develop strategies on a case-by-case basis regarding how to achieve adequate participation of small holder, family farming organizations. This includes the mobilization of resources to support their participation.

The increase,  expansion and further strengthening of  specific programs for  women, youth, small scale fishers, pasto

ralists and livestock breeders (as recommended in past special sessions of the Farmers Forum); as well as of programs that build the capacities of smallholders such as SFOAP and MTCP.

Support the strengthening of small holder initiatives around agro-ecological food production and control over local seeds and local livestock breeds as a key approach and an appropriate response to climate change.

Strengthen initiatives that promote secured access to natural resources and agrarian reform,  as well as efforts to stop and prevent grabbing of lands from smallholders and pastoralists , by supporting the effective implementation at national levels of the land tenure guidelines (VGGT) and the follow up of ICARRD. 

Continue to support the implementation of the Guidelines on Small Scale Fisheries [VGSSF] and to adopt them in IFAD bodies as stated in the Farmers Forum 2014.

Support the development of value chains by small holders themselves through processing and marketing of their own produce, and reduce their dependence and  increase their benefits from industrial value chains and markets by ensuring   adequate investment.

We encourage IFAD to strengthen synergies with other agencies, especially FAO and develop further support for  the implementation of decisions by the UN Committee on World Food Security.

We encourage IFAD to support other initiatives important for small scale producers, such the Treaty on rights abuses by multinationals and a UN Declaration for the Rights of Peasants in the UN Human Rights Council.

We expect concerned governments to implement the appropriate measures in order to ensure the autonomous and effective participation of small holder organizations in the Farmers’ Forum process, in IFAD- supported projects and programs on agriculture and food.

Organizations of smallholders, family farmers in the Farmers Forum, the large majority of them commits to  continue the process of strengthening the different spaces ,  inclusive nature and effectiveness of the Farmers Forum as well as our autonomous space. We commit to follow, together with IFAD, the implementation of recommendations and decisions as reflected in this  statement to the Governing Council of IFAD . 

Thank you very much