Stocktaking and situation analysis of FAO's work with cooperatives and other forms of collective action in the Near East and North Africa region

by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

2025 · Food & Agriculture Org.

Agricultural cooperatives, Producer and Professional Organizations (PPOs), and Water Users Associations (WUAs) in the North Africa and Near East (NENA) region play a crucial role in supporting small-scale family farming, which is vital for the regional economy. Recognized as a strategic sector, agriculture benefits significantly from the contributions of cooperatives and other forms of collective action. They can help address common challenges faced by NENA countries, such as limited access to arable land, water scarcity, soil salinization, high production costs, market access issues, technical knowledge gaps, and climate change.The FAO has a longstanding commitment to supporting cooperatives, PPOs, WUAs, and other forms of collective action (CA) in the NENA region. This work is primarily carried out at the country level and within subregions. The FAO's approach includes consultative work, capacity development, advocacy and networking, knowledge generation and sharing, and support for the enabling environment. Most specifically, creating an enabling environment is a critical area of FAO's work, assisting governments in revising and developing policies and legislation that support cooperative development. This also involves facilitating policy dialogues and capacity development to help organizations engage in negotiations and understand regulatory impacts.This paper aims at providing a situation analysis of these forms of CA in the region and of FAO’s work towards promotion of CA, with the final aim to inform a regional programme in support of FAO’s work with these organizations.

Real-time evaluation of FAO's response to the desert locust upsurge 2020–2021 – Phase III

by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

2022 · Food & Agriculture Org.

Over the course of 2020–2021, the most devastating desert locust upsurge of the past 25 years has spread across parts of the Near East, the Greater Horn of Africa and Southwest Asia. The upsurge poses an unprecedented risk to livelihoods and food security in some of the most food insecure countries in the world. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and its partners have mobilized more than USD 243 million since January 2020. The response includes three key pillars: i) curbing the spread of desert locusts (including surveillance); ii) safeguarding livelihoods and promoting recovery; and iii) coordination and preparedness of the rapid surge support. In this context, the FAO Office of Evaluation (OED) has been requested by the Director-General to conduct a real time evaluation (RTE), conducted across three phases spread over one year. Each phase will cover specific aspects of the response. Phase III focuses on developing recommendations to improve preparedness for and response to future upsurges, collected through a consultative process with critical stakeholders involved in the desert locust response 2020–2021. Eight priority areas for recommendations emerged from this process, with distinct recommendations being made across each one: i) procurement and positioning; ii) training of local locust response teams; iii) embedding sustainable national locust control capacity; iv) optimizing the regional architecture for locust response; v) pesticide selection and stock management; vi) data collection, analysis and dissemination; vii) livelihoods support; and viii) innovation and learning. For each priority area, the evaluation has made a range of recommendations targeting either FAO headquarters, donors and partners, or FAO country offices.

Evaluation of FAO’s role and work on antimicrobial resistance (AMR)

by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

2021 · Food & Agriculture Org.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is the ability of microorganisms to fight antimicrobial compounds, reducing the efficacy of treating diseases in humans, animals, and plants. AMR risk is outpacing human population growth, owing to misuse of antimicrobials in large quantities in food systems, and is a serious threat to food security and sustainable development. FAO, with the World Health Organization (WHO), the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), is supporting countries in developing and implementing their One Health National Action Plans on AMR. The eventual aim is to ensure sustainable use of antimicrobials to minimize AMR risks, in alignment with the Global Action Plan on AMR. The scope of the evaluation covers FAO’s entire work on AMR up to early 2020 and its role in the global AMR architecture. It examines FAO’s organizational and institutional set-up for AMR work. FAO has a strong mandate to work on AMR, implementing activities in 45 countries and providing far-reaching support on AMR National Action Plans (NAPs). FAO’s technical expertise is a key comparative advantage in its work on AMR. It is underpinned by the strong scientific grounding of FAO’s work, engendered in its AMR working groups and supported by its collaboration with research centers, universities, and the Tripartite organizations. Nevertheless, the work is relatively recent and, given the long impact pathways, it has had limited results. A comprehensive strategic and programmatic approach would increase the likelihood of achieving results in combating AMR. FAO should prioritize its work in a long-term strategy on AMR that recognizes the seriousness of the threat and is fully integrated into the Organization’s Strategic Framework. The strategy should set out FAO’s long-term role in combating AMR and that of its divisions and offices, as well as its approach at the country and regional level. FAO should consolidate its work on AMR through a strong programmatic approach with a central coordination and management structure that links with the Regional Offices and is supported by dedicated core funding.

Evaluation of FAO’s contribution to the Republic of Indonesia 2016–2020

by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

2021 · Food & Agriculture Org.

There are numerous risks to the sustainability and stability of Indonesia’s farming system, food production system, supply chains, and ecosystems. The evaluation aims to answer two essential questions: whether FAO is doing what is needed and whether it is making a difference. This evaluation recommends that FAO support the green and blue (land and sea) preparedness and adaptation plans, as well as early warning systems. The evaluation further recommends that FAO ramp up its support for a national decision support system that adopts a food systems approach to provide policymakers with the best analytical evidence and data available to guide new public policies and regulations. Many of the conclusions and recommendations call for policy and regulatory reform. The evaluation recommends that FAO work with Indonesia to establish innovative data management systems, new analysis methods, and analytical tools on agriculture including fisheries and forestry.

Evaluation of FAO's contribution to Nigeria 2016–2022

by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

2023 · Food & Agriculture Org.

The evaluation assessed FAO's contribution to Nigeria from 2016 to 2022, focusing on national priorities for the agriculture sector and food systems, with a special lens on gender equality, leave no one behind principles, the humanitarian–development–peace nexus and climate change mainstreaming. FAO has supported the government in enhancing food and nutrition security, disaster risk reduction, resilience building and evidence-based policymaking. However, support for conflict-affected populations, climate change mainstreaming and sustainability remains uncertain. The evaluation recommends prioritizing flagship initiatives, engaging ministries, national actors and implementing a gender stocktaking exercise to identify those at risk of being left behind.

Real-time evaluation of FAO's response to the desert locust upsurge 2020–2021: Phase II

by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

2021 · Food & Agriculture Org.

A devastating desert locust upsurge has spread across parts of the Near East, the Greater Horn of Africa and South West Asia in 2020–2021, posing risks to livelihoods and food security in the region. FAO's intervention has been to curb the spread of desert locust, safeguarding livelihoods and providing recovery, and coordinating and preparing the rapid surge support. This report showcases the second phase of the real-time evaluation, in which the following issues have been investigated: i) country level results from case studies; ii) management and operational processes; and iii) extent to which lessons from countries and regions are transferred to other contexts. Six priority areas emerged from this process: i) country level training and capacity development; ii) national locust control and architecture; iii) procurement; iv) pesticide management; v) livelihoods support; and vi) innovation and learning.

Harmonization of Approaches to Nutrient Reference Values

by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, Health and Medicine Division, Food and Nutrition Board, Committee on the Application of Global Harmonization of Methodological Approaches to Nutrient Intake Recommendations for Young Children and Women of Reproductive Age

2018 · National Academies Press

Recommended intake levels for nutrients and other dietary components were designed initially to prevent nutrient deficiency diseases in a given population, and the original methodological approach used to derive intake values did not include consideration for other applications. However, with the increasing globalization of information and the identification of a variety of factors specific to different population subgroups (e.g., young children and women of reproductive age) that influence their nutritional needs, there has been increasing recognition of the need to consider methodological approaches to deriving nutrient reference values (NRVs) that are applicable across countries and that take into account the varying needs of different population subgroups. There is a need for guidance and recommendations about methodological approaches, as well as their potential for application to an international process for the development of NRVs, and particularly for young children and women of reproductive age. Harmonization of Approaches to Nutrient Reference Values: Applications to Young Children and Women of Reproductive Age examines these issues and makes recommendations for a unified approach to developing NRVs that would be acceptable globally.

Dietary Reference Intakes

by Institute of Medicine, Food and Nutrition Board, Standing Committee on the Scientific Evaluation of Dietary Reference Intakes, Subcommittee on Interpretation and Uses of Dietary Reference Intakes

2001 · National Academies Press

Since 1994 the Institute of Medicine's Food and Nutrition Board has been involved in developing an expanded approach to developing dietary reference standards. This approach, the Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs), provides a set of four nutrient-based reference values designed to replace the Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDAs) in the United States and the Recommended Nutrient Intakes (RNIs) in Canada. These reference values include Estimated Average Requirement (EAR), Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA), Adequate Intake (AI), and Tolerable Upper Intake Level (UL). To date, several volumes in this series have been published. This new book, Applications in Dietary Assessment, provides guidance to nutrition and health research professionals on the application of the new DRIs. It represents both a "how to" manual and a "why" manual. Specific examples of both appropriate and inappropriate uses of the DRIs in assessing nutrient adequacy of groups and of individuals are provided, along with detailed statistical approaches for the methods described. In addition, a clear distinction is made between assessing individuals and assessing groups as the approaches used are quite different. Applications in Dietary Assessment will be an essential companion to any-or all-of the DRI volumes.