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RIO2012IssuesBriefs
ProducedbytheUNCSDSecretariat December2011

No.9

FoodSecurityandSustainableAgriculture

1. Introduction
Food security exists when all people, at all times, have physical
and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to
meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and
healthy life. Food security covers availability, access, utilization
and stability issues, and in its focus on individuals also
embraces their energy, protein and nutrient needs for life,
activity, pregnancy, growth and longterm capabilities .
Sustainable agriculture is not officially defined but generally
refers to the capacity of agriculture over time to contribute to
overallwelfarebyprovidingsufficientfoodandothergoodsand
services in ways that are economically efficient and profitable,
sociallyresponsible,andenvironmentallysound. 2
Thisbriefreviewsinternationaltimeboundandsomequalitative
commitments in the area of food security and sustainable
Table1.Summaryoftimeboundcommitmentsandprogress
agricultureagreedtoin:Agenda21(1992);RomeDeclarationon
World Food Security (1996) 3 ; JPOI (2002); MDGs (2000) and
CSD17 decision on agriculture, rural development and drought
and desertification. Implementation activities against these
commitments are reviewed as well as proposals made so far by
memberstatesandotherstakeholdersinthecontextofRio+20to
fillgapsinimplementation.
1
2. Existingtimeboundcommitments
Chapter 14 of Agenda 21 is dedicated to sustainable agriculture
and rural development (SARD).The chapter contains ten time
bound commitments and crossreferences are made to chapter
18 (with three agriculturerelated timebound commitments),
19(with four), and 21 (with one). Those taken up again at
JohannesburgwereonlyincludedonceintheJPOI.

Sourcedocument Target DeliveryDate Progress

Agenda21Chapter14
A.Agriculturalpolicyreview,
planningandintegrated
programmesinthelightofthe
multifunctionalaspectof
agriculture,particularlywith
regardtofoodsecurityand
sustainabledevelopmentPara
14.8
E.Landconservationand
rehabilitation
Para14.45
Promotingsustainableagricultureandrural
development
a)toreviewand,whereappropriate, 1995 Notachieved.Severalefforts
establishaprogrammetointegrate suchasIAASTDhaveadvance
environmentalandsustainabledevelopment thinking,butwithout
withpolicyanalysisforthefoodand consensus.
agriculturesectorandrelevant
macroeconomicpolicyanalysis,formulation
andimplementation;
b)Tomaintainanddevelop,asappropriate, 1998 Somecountrieshavemade
operationalmultisectoralplans,programmes progress,e.gCAADP
andpolicymeasures,includingtoenhance Notachievedby2005but
sustainablefoodproductionandfood CAADPhelpedby2008
security;
c)Tomaintainandenhancetheabilityof 2005 Idem
developingcountries,particularlytheleast
developedones,tothemselvesmanage
policy,programmingandplanningactivities
(a)Toreviewandinitiate,asappropriate, 2000 a)Progressinmethodsand
nationallandresourcesurveys,detailingthe toolsforlanddegradation
location,extentandseverityofland assessments.
degradation;(b)Toprepareandimplement b)Somecountrieshavemade
comprehensivepoliciesandprogrammes progressinconservationtillage
leadingtothereclamationofdegradedlands systems,groundwater,and
andtheconservationofareasatrisk,aswell watershedmanagement.
asimprovethegeneralplanning,
managementandutilizationofland
resourcesandpreservesoilfertilityfor
sustainableagriculturaldevelopment.
1
G.Conservationand
sustainableutilizationofplant
geneticresourcesforfoodand
sustainableagriculture
Para14.57
I.Integratedpestmanagement
andcontrolinagriculture
Para14.75
J.Sustainableplantnutritionto
increasefoodproductionPara
14.85
Agenda21Chapter18
F.Waterforsustainablefood
productionandsustainable
ruraldevelopment
Para18.68
Agenda21Chapter19
A.Expandingandaccelerating
internationalassessmentof
chemicalrisksPara19.13
B.Harmonizationof
classificationandlabellingof
chemicalsPara19.27
(c)toadoptpoliciesandprogrammesforin 2000 Someprogramsareinplacebut
situonfarmandexsituconservationand fundingislacking
sustainableuseofplantgeneticresourcesfor
foodandagriculture,integratedinto
strategiesandprogrammesforsustainable
agriculture.
(a)toimproveandimplementplant 2000 Limitedprogresshasbeen
protection&animalhealthservices,including madeonIPM,moreneeded
mechanismstocontrolthedistributionand
useofpesticides,andtoimplementthe
InternationalCodeofConductonthe
DistributionandUseofPesticides;
(c)toestablishoperationalandinteractive 1998 Progressedinsomecountries,
networksamongfarmers,researchersand especiallyonIPManddeclined
extensionservicestopromoteanddevelop inothers
integratedpestmanagement.
(a)todevelopandmaintaininallcountries 2000 Notachieved.Severalareasare
theintegratedplantnutritionapproach,and nutrientdepleted
tooptimizeavailabilityoffertilizerandother
plantnutrientsources;
(b)toestablishandmaintaininstitutionaland 2000 Notachieved
humaninfrastructuretoenhanceeffective
decisionmakingonsoilproductivity.
Protectionofthequalityandsupplyof
freshwaterresources:applicationof
integratedapproachestothedevelopment,
managementanduseofwaterresources
FAOprojectionsforimprovedirrigation, 2000 Partiallyachievedthroughlarge
drainageandsmallscalewaterprogrammes scaleirrigationsystems
for130developingcountries:(a)15.2million Modernisationlagging.
hectaresofnewirrigationdevelopment;(b) SubSaharanAfricalacksbasic
12millionhectaresof infrastructureinmanycases
improvement/modernizationofexisting
schemes;(c)7millionhectaresinstalledwith
drainageandwatercontrolfacilities;and(d)
10millionhectaresofsmallscalewater
programmesandconservation.
EnvironmentallySoundManagementof
ToxicChemicals,IncludingPreventionof
IllegalInternationalTrafficinToxic
&DangerousProducts
Tostrengtheninternationalriskassessment. 2000 Partiallyachieved.(e.g.DDTuse
Severalhundredprioritychemicalsorgroups inStockholmConvention)
ofchemicals,includingmajorpollutantsand
contaminantsofglobalsignificance,should
beassessed,usingcurrentselectionand
assessmentcriteria.
Globallyharmonizedhazardclassificationand 2000 Harmonizedsystemdeveloped.
compatiblelabellingsystem,including Uptakeisslow
materialsafetydatasheetsandeasily
understandablesymbols,shouldbeavailable,
iffeasible.
2
C.Informationexchangeon Asfeasible,fullparticipationinand 2000 Achievedin2004through
toxicchemicalsandchemical implementationofthePICprocedure, RotterdamConvention
risks.Para19.38 includingpossiblemandatoryapplications
throughlegallybindinginstruments,taking
intoaccounttheexperiencegainedwithin
thePICprocedure.
E.Strengtheningofnational Nationalsystemsforenvironmentallysound 2000 Someprogressmade.Limited
capabilitiesandcapacitiesfor managementofchemicals,including resourcesandpoliticalwill
managementofchemicals.Para legislationandprovisionsforimplementation hamperprogress
19.58 andenforcement,shouldbeinplaceinall
countriestotheextentpossible.
Agenda21Chapter21 EnvironmentallySoundManagementof
SolidWastes&SewageRelatedIssues
A.Minimizingwastes (c)Apply,inallcountries,inparticularin 2000 Notachieved
Para21.9 industrializedcountries,programmesto
reducetheproductionofagrochemical
wastes,containersandpackagingmaterials,
whichdonotmeethazardouscharacteristics.
JohannesburgPlanofImplementation(includingthosereiteratedfromMDGsandabove)
ChapterII.Poverty (a)Halvetheproportionoftheworlds 2015 Ontracktoreachpovertybut
Eradication peoplewhoseincomeislessthan1dollara nothungertarget.
Para7 dayandtheproportionofpeoplewhosuffer
fromhunger
ChapterIII.Changing (c)Encouragecountriestoimplementthe 2008 Limitedcapacitytoimplement
unsustainablepatternsof newgloballyharmonizedsystemforthe hampersprogressindeveloping
consumptionandproduction classificationandlabellingofchemicalsas countries
Para23 soonaspossiblewithaviewtohavingthe
systemfullyoperationalby2008
ChapterIV.Protectingand (a)AchievetheMillenniumDeclarationtarget 2015 Ontracktoreachpovertybut
managingthenaturalresource tohalvetheproportionoftheworldspeople nothungertarget.Foodcrisisin
baseofeconomicandsocial whosufferfromhungerandrealizetheright hornofAfrica
development toastandardoflivingadequateforthe
Para40 healthandwellbeingofthemselvesandtheir
families,includingfood,includingby
promotingfoodsecurityandfightinghunger
incombinationwithmeasureswhichaddress
poverty.
Para26 Developintegratedwaterresources 2005 Notachieved
[onlythosecloselyrelatedto managementandwaterefficiencyplans,with
agricultureincluded] supporttodevelopingcountries,through
actionsatalllevelsto:
(a)Developandimplementnational/regional 26CAADPnationalplansof
strategies,plansandprogrammeswith action+16peerreviewed
regardtointegratedriverbasin,watershed nationalinvestmentplans
andgroundwatermanagementandintroduce throughtheLAquilaFood
measurestoimprovetheefficiencyofwater SecurityInitiative
infrastructuretoreducelossesandincrease
recyclingofwater;
(c)Improvetheefficientuseofwater Notachievedseveralareas
resourcesandpromotetheirallocation arerunningoutofwater
amongcompetingusesinawaythatgives
prioritytothesatisfactionofbasichuman
needsandbalancestherequirementof
preservingorrestoringecosystemsandtheir
functions.
3

The Rome Declaration on World Food Security had seven more
detailed commitments (without targets or time limits). These
included commitments (1) to provide enabling political, social,
and economic environment, as well as (2) and (4) policies,
including trade policies to improve food security, (3) pursue
participatoryandsustainablefood,agriculture,fisheries,forestry
andruraldevelopmentpoliciesandpracticeseverywhereandat
all levels, (5) prevent and be prepared for natural disasters and
manmadeemergencies,(6)promote optimal allocation and use
of public and private investments to foster human resources,
sustainablefood,agriculture,fisheriesandforestrysystems,and
rural development, and (7) implement, monitor, and followup
this Plan of Action at all levels in cooperation with the
internationalcommunity.
3. Deliveryoncommitments
3.1 Generalassessment
Global delivery of the food security and sustainable agriculture
related commitments has been disappointing. Since the 1996
World Food Summit, the 8th session of the Commission on the
Sustainable Development in 2000 and the Johannesburg Plan of
Implementation adopted by the World Summit on Sustainable
Developmentin2002,aswellastheMillenniumDeclarationgoals
allreaffirmedtheobjectiveof,andcalledfortheimplementation
of, the World Food Summit. CSD17 reiterated several of the
quantitativeAgenda21objectives.ThesummaryoftheSecretary
General Report on Agriculture for CSD17 called for renewed
commitment and a new vision for global cooperation to
implement policies that simultaneously aim at increasing
agricultural productivity, creating fair trade regimes, conserving
natural resources and promoting investment in agricultural
4
related infrastructure. Several of the proposed options and
measures focused on natural resources management and
reiterated previous commitments. The difference with previous
reviews is the focus on social issues, on small holder, especially
womenfarmers,whomustbeatthecenterofanyintervention.
Reducing the gender gap in access to agricultural inputs alone
would increase womens yields by 2030%. 5 The close
interdependencies, or nexus, of water, energy and land
management have been accentuated by climate change.
Numerous examples of successful actions worldwide to effect
integratedresourcesmanagementareavailableforreplicationor
scalingup. 6
3.2 Agriculturalpolicies
By June 2008, before the food crisis, a dozen African countries
were actively developing or implementing compacts or national
plans of action under the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture
DevelopmentProgram(CAADP)aimedateliminatinghungerand
reducingpovertybyincreasingpublicinvestmentinagricultureto
10 per cent of their national budgets and raising agricultural
productivity by at least 6 per cent by 2015. Only four countries
havemettheirspendingtarget,andinvestmentinnationalplans
and the public sector contribution to agriculture and rural
developmenthavebeenveryvariable,withasignificantnumber
ofcountriesshowinglowordecliningcontributions.
Someprogresshasbeenmadeinmountainregions(throughthe
FAOSARDM(mountain) partnership), in globally important
agricultural heritage systems and through the TerrAfricaprocess
(forstocktakingreviewanddevelopmentofstrategicinvestment
frameworks) for sustainable land management in subSaharan
7
Africa .
Decades of disinvestment in agriculture were reversed following
the 2008 food crisis that highlighted the need for sound
agricultural development plans to achieve food and nutrition
security,economicgrowthandprogressontheMDGs.Renewed
government commitment led to a rise in public agricultural
researchanddevelopmentinBrazil,ChinaandIndia.Inaddition,
theG8ledlAquilaFoodSecurityInitiativecommittedtomobilise
$22 billion over three years to support countryled plans for
agriculture and food and nutrition security. In Africa, the fund
specificallysupportscountriesCAADPprocesses.Sofar,onlythe
equivalent of USD925million has been pledged but the process
hasspedupthecompletionofnationalplans.
TheFiveRomePrinciplesforSustainableGlobalFoodSecurityand
the High Level Task Force on Global Food Security have set up
principles and a framework for increased investment in
agriculture and food security and improved coordination of
international interventions through the updated Comprehensive
Framework for Action (CFA). The Committee on Food Security
wasalsoreformedandtheGlobalStrategicFrameworkforFood
Security and Nutrition (GSF) now provides strategies to foster
coordinated and coherent global and national action, while the
recent International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge,
Science and Technology for Development has stressed the close
linkagesbetweenfoodsecurityandsustainableagriculture.
3.3 Land,plant,water,pestmanagement
The SARD initiative was created in 2002 to help implement
Chapter 14 of Agenda 21. The initiative has developed various
policy briefs, tools, databases of good practices and guides that
were published on the FAOSARD web site 8 and a summary of
achievementswas submitted to the 16th CSD session. Like many
oftheCSDpartnerships,theSARDinitiativeceasedoperationsin
2008 but not before leading to the creation of several new
multistakeholder partnerships and policies. A number of
investments and innovative approaches have also come out of
nongovernmental partnerships such as Sustainable Rice
Intensification.
4
3.4 Irrigation
Irrigation investments increased in the 1960s and 70s, slowed
down in the 80s, and started increasing again thereafter.
However, irrigation is challenged by aging infrastructures,
increasing water scarcity, and the need for more flexible water
management strategies to account for ecosystem water
requirements. Some regions such as SubSaharan Africa still lag
behindintermsofirrigationinfrastructure.
3.5 Droughtanddesertification
Progressincludes(i)conservationtillagesystemsspreading
worldwide,(2)groundwatermanagementandrechargeto
addresslandandwatercontaminationbysaltsandchemicalsin
regionssuchasAndhraPradesh,India,(3)watershedandriver
basinmanagementincludingcapacitybuildingoflocalinstitutions
andbenefitsharingarrangementsinpartsofLatinAmericaand
Africa,iv)holisticlivestockmanagement,aswellasv)
agroforestryandintegratedcroplivestocksystemsfor
diversificationandotherbenefits.
TheTerrAfricapartnershipalsopromotedthepreparationand
theimplementationofnationalsoilandlandmanagement(SLM)
investmentframeworksinmorethan25Africancountriesto
supporttheCAADPprocess.Severalpolicyguidelines,databases
onSLMbestpractices(WOCAT),andasetofmethodsandtools
forconductingnationalandlocallevellanddegradation
assessmentsemerged(FAOLADA)andwerepilotedin6
countries,thenfurtherusedin20countriesforsupporting
UNCCDimplementation.
3.6 Soundmanagementofagriculturalchemicals
andpackaging
Progressismorenotableinthisareawithmostcountrieshaving
some regulatory system in place since 2000. Closer linkage with
wider chemicals management has been achieved since the
creationofIOMCandthecreationofSAICMin2007.Yet,limited
capacity for implementation in developing countries hampers
progress. Progress has also been slow in implementing effective
methods to register pesticides and address illegal trade, poor
quality products and poor health and safety practices among
pesticideusers.
3.7 Halvinghunger
The2011MDGsReportestimatesthatcountriesareontrackto
meetthepovertytargetofMDG1but,withthe2008foodcrisis
andsubsequentriseinfoodpricesandpricevolatility,notthe
hungertarget.Inaddition,theseresultshidegeographical
differences.ThehornofAfricaiscurrentlyfacingafoodcrisisand
thougheconomicgrowthinEastAsia,especiallyChina,has
reducedtheincidenceofundernourishmentinthisregion,South
Asiacontainsthelargestnumberofhungrypeople,36percentof
allundernourishedpeopleinthedevelopingworld.Asmanyas20
percentmorepeoplecouldbeatriskofhungerowingtoclimate
8
relatedlossesinproductivity,themajorityinsubSaharanAfrica.
Braziloffersanexampleofaholisticapproachtofightinghunger
andpovertythroughitsZeroHungerprogram.TheBolsaFamilia
programtransferscashtopoorhouseholdsonconditionthatthe
childrenattendschoolandkeepuptodateonvaccinationsand
healthcheckups.Theschoolmealsprogramfeeds47million
childrenadaywhilesupportingfamilyagriculture,procuringup
to30percentofthefoodfromlocalfamilyfarmers,while
involvingsupermarketchains.Theprogramhasliftedaround49
millionBraziliansoutofpovertyandaimstolifttheremaining16
millionpooroutofpovertyby2014.Brazilhasnowlaunchedthe
CentreofExcellenceAgainstHungertosharethisexperienceand
developtechnicalcooperationinAfrican,LatinAmericanand
Asiancountries.
4. Recentproposaltoaddressthegapbetween
commitmentsanddelivery
SeveralsubmissionstotheCompilationText 9 putfoodsecurity
andsustainableagricultureatthetopoftheirprioritiesforRio+20
andevenatthecenterofthegreeneconomy.Several
submissionsalsohighlightthatCSD17servesasagoodbasisfor
theRio+20outcomeonthetopic..
4.1 Sustainabledevelopmentgoals
Thefarmersmajorgroupshasproposedthefollowinggoals:
Increasetheproportionofoverseasdevelopment
assistancefocusedonagricultureandruraldevelopment
to20%;
countriesmeetingtheirlAquilaandCAADP
commitments;
Increaseyieldsonwomensfarmsby2.5%to4%.
The Bonn DPI/NGO conference declaration from 1400 Civil
SocietyOrganizationshasproposed:
By2030,globalagriculturalproductionistransformed
fromindustrialtosustainable.Chemicalinputs,
herbicides,andpesticidesarelargelyreplacedwith
organicandbiologicalalternatives.Interspersednatural
areasareprotectedandrestoredassourcesof
pollination,pestcontrolandsoilfertility.Foodforexport
issecondarytofoodforlocalconsumption.Cultivated
cropstrainsarediversified,asareproductiontechniques
andthemixofagriculturalproducers.
Bestmanagementpracticesreduceerosionby90%and
nitrogenrunoffby50%ormore.
5
UNSGAB proposed 70% of irrigated land using technology that
increasescropperdropby20xx
5. HowSDGscouldbestructuredinthisarea
An overarching goal in this area could be universal access to
nutritious foods, produced in a sustainable and resilient way,
creating decent jobs, using less water, energy, land, and
pesticides while preserving biodiversity. Several specific targets
have been proposed in various submissions to the compilation
text. These include: (1) zero net land degradation; (2) 20%
increase in total food supplychain efficiency reducing losses
andwastefromfieldtofork;(3)20%increaseinwaterefficiency
in agriculturemore nutrition and crop per drop; (4) 70% of
irrigated land using technology that increases crop per drop.
Meansofimplementationtargetscouldinclude:(1)increasethe
proportion of overseas development assistance focused on
agriculture, food security and rural development to 20%; (2)
targetan increasing share of thesefundsand extension services
tosmallholdersandwomenfarmerstosupportlocalproduction;
and (3) support integrated food and nutrition security and
sustainable agriculture and rural development action plans and
policies, including through enhanced technical cooperation
amongcountriesandregions.
ThepurposeoftheRio2012IssuesBriefsistoprovideachannel
forpolicymakersandotherinterestedstakeholderstodiscussand
review issues relevant to the objective and themes of the
conference, including a green economy in the context of
sustainabledevelopmentandpovertyeradication,aswellasthe
institutionalframeworkforsustainabledevelopment.
For further information on this Brief, contact Chantal Line
Carpentier(carpentier@un.org).
1
WorldFoodSummit,DeclarationonWorldFoodSecurity.HeldinRome,Italy13
17November1996.http://www.fao.org/docrep/003/w3613e/w3613e00.htm
2
SustainableDevelopmentInnovationBriefIssue7.May2009.Thecontributionof
sustainableagricultureandlandmanagementtosustainabledevelopment.New
York:UNDESADSD.
3
WorldFoodSummit2006
4
DESA2009.AgricultureReportoftheSecretaryGeneralonpolicyoptionsand
actionsforexpeditingprogressinimplementation.E/CN.17/2009/.
5
FAOsStateofFoodandAgricultureReport201011
6
FAOsStateoftheWorldsLandandWaterResourcesforFoodandAgriculture.
Forthcomingathttp://www.earthscan.co.uk/?tabid=102754.
7
8
availableat:http://www.fao.org/sard/en/sardm/Communi/index.html
http://www.fao.org/sard/en/init/2536/966/index.html
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