Explore Official Dialogue Feedback

N/A

5. Elaboration of effective systems for crisis management (Action Track 5) - Ensure effective crisis management plans are in place; - Approximation of the legal frame and methodology for assessment and compensation of damages and losses after disasters according to international standards in cooperation with insurance market actors; - Strengthen the communication mechanism between institutions to ensure effective crisis and shock management; - Strengthen food supply management systems and other basic needs during and after crises. Establish supply management systems for food and other basic ne... Read moreeds; - Establish an effective communication mechanism between the state and the private sector for a force majeure situation, which ensures effective management of crises and shocks; - Developing the insurance market for agricultural activity through specific national support schemes. Read less

4. Sustainable use of natural resources, environmental protection, preservation of ecosystems, climate change mitigation and adaptation (Action Track 3) - Develop new multisector approaches and multi-stakeholder platforms that help overcome structural barriers to transformational change in food and agriculture systems; - Strengthen collaborative decision making and enable different stakeholders to resolve their diverse and frequently conflicting interests within an agreed common framework; - Awareness-raising for the representatives of municipalities, communities, schoolchildren about climate ... Read morechange and its impacts; environmental issues; - Ensure the sustainable use of water, land and forest resources, as well as the prevention of soil, air and water pollution; - Enforcement of early warning systems; ensure efficient management of the natural disasters; zoonosis and pandemics; - Prevention of erosion through supported by planting trees/vegetation etc.; - Prevent soil degradation and erosion, through sustainable use of forests and pastures, which have a contribution to the development of tourism, protection from erosion, but also contribute to the economic aspect and green economy; - Moving towards a circular economy, which delivers benefits to reduce waste to a minimum, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, to reduce pressure on the environment, to increase competitiveness, stimulate innovation, boost economic growth. Read less

3. Ensure effective systems of food/feed safety, veterinary and plant protection (Action Track 2) - Establishment of a food safety surveillance system associated with the traceability system; - Increase qualification of personnel involved in food safety and food controls; - Strengthen extension services to provide relevant information on food safety issues to farmers and food producers; - Improve the overall laboratory capacity in the country; adopt new methods for laboratory test diagnostics in the area of food safety, veterinary and plant protection; expanding accreditation; capacity buildin... Read moreg for laboratory employees; - Further improve on risk assessment, management and communication capacities in food safety and the effective enforcement of food safety legislation and traceability along the whole food chain “From Stable to Table”; - Enhance and strengthen post-harvest storage and processing systems; - Improve food environments, and raise population awareness on food safety and healthy nutrition, with particular emphasis on children and young population; - Strengthen control on the use of pesticides in accordance with approved procedures to protect consumer health and the environment; - Raising awareness and education of children in schools through food programs “From farm to school”. Read less

2. Develop agritourism and short value chains as mechanisms of rural development (Action Track 3 & 4) - A comprehensive approach to sustainable development must entail coherent, future-oriented national policies, strategies and visions for food and nutrition security that are people-centred, with a focus on poor smallholders and food insecure, vulnerable communities, women and youth; - Supporting small farmers to access finance, national and IPARD subsidy schemes, and applying tools to incentive the formalization of the farmers; - Support to smallholder farmers to increase their agricultur... Read moreal productivity, promoting their access to markets and services, rewarding their efforts to preserve landscape and ecosystem services and strengthening their resilience to external shocks – particularly environmental and climate-related; diseases – through insurance and social protection; - The market demand for traditional products is increasing especially in areas that already have developed tourism. In order to build Short Value Chains some issues need to be considered: • Products in a short value chains should reach market minimum standards; • Good quality packaging and decent labelling are necessary to implement short value chains. • Good practices should be applied for harvesting and post-harvesting processes. • Small-scale equipment should be supported by grant schemes to guarantee the quality and safety of products. • Support innovative food processing technologies to ensure consumer protection and reduce overhead costs. In the case of family farming, this process requires capacity building for farmers and support with investment grants that are more accessible (e.g. with prepayment) than EU Funds. • Support digitalization and ITC as accelerating tools in agriculture and rural development. Read less

1. Ensure competitive value-chains in the food systems (Action Track 1, Action Track 3, Action Track 4) Changes needed for national food systems to meet the defined expectations by 2030 - Increase the competitiveness of the agricultural products in Albania and development of their value-chains; - Ensure the compliance of products with marketing standards at all along value chains; - Reduce food loss and waste from the production level to final consumer; - Capacity building of the extension service on production technologies, markets requirements, prices, uses of agricultural inputs, innovation... Read more and digitalization in agriculture; - Capacity building and support to farmers to apply good agricultural practices and production practices that are nature friendly (e.g., organic production); - Empowering women – economically, socially and politically – must be a central effort to achieve food and nutrition security, shift to sustainable agriculture and food system, and achieve the SDGs; - Transform food systems to be attractive to youth, who will be innovators of the agricultural production systems; - A reliable database on agricultural and related fields is needed, to develop evidence-based policies. Improve monitoring and evaluation of policy interventions in the rural development by generating more data (e.g. FDNA, Market data, price information, socioeconomic, etc.) on the agricultural sector and related fields; - Socio-economic impact of the earthquake and Covid-19 on the agriculture sector and rural development should be used to program and implement long term recovery measures; - Involvement of vulnerable and food insecure people and communities into sustainable development processes to enhance their livelihoods, boost their food security and build resilience to disasters a climate change; - Support the cooperative actions between groups of farmers, processors, traders, and promote horizontal and vertical cooperation; - Improve animal health, welfare, and control of animal diseases, zoonosis, and transboundary diseases; - Improve agriculture irrigation and drainage systems; - Provide support to Blue Economy and sustainable development of fishery and aquaculture. Read less

Agriculture is one of the main economic pillars of the Albanian economy contributing 19% to the country GDP (INSTAT 2019) and around one-third of employed people (nationwide) are in agriculture. Albania ranks as one of the top ten countries in the world with the highest economic risk from multiple hazards: 88.5% of GDP generated and 86% of total territory is exposed to two or more disasters. The impact of disasters is increasing the vulnerability of Albanian citizens affected by them. Floods of 2015 and 2016, the 2019 earthquake, and lastly COVID 19 pandemic, highlight the need for increased r... Read moreesilience of the private sector and strengthened capacities to mitigate, manage, and recover from shocks. Regarding environmental challenges, the main ones for the country are water and air pollution, land degradation, biodiversity loss and waste management. Rapid urbanization and increasing demand for natural resources have led to increasing depletion and degradation. Caring for the most vulnerable, maintaining and ensuring access to equitable service delivery, addressing the digital divide, experimenting with alternative working options, and providing uninterrupted basic services for the most affected population are among key challenges to overcome for increased resilience to shocks. Considering the high rates of out-migration and farmers ageing, high rate of rural population at risk of poverty and risk of climate change impacts, as well as the prevalence of small farms, the raising the productivity and ensuring the sustainability of family farms (SDG 2.3) and resilient agricultural practices and capacity for adaptation to climate change (SDG 2.4) are key to achieve the Agenda 2030. Yet, from a development perspective, in order to contribute to sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth (SDG 8.1, 8.2. 8.4), there is a strong need to develop the food systems. Our priorities for the next decade are as follows: to ensure a competitive value chain in food systems; to develop agritourism and short value chains as mechanisms of rural development, to establish an effective system of food/feed safety, veterinary and plant protection; to guarantee the sustainable use of natural resources, environmental protection, preservation of ecosystems, and enable climate change mitigation and adaptation; and create effective systems of crisis management. A sustainable food system delivers food security and nutrition for all, and in such a way that the economic, social and environmental bases to generate food security and nutrition are firmly established. All the main elements of food systems, such as the food supply chain, food environment, and consumer behaviour are of the utmost importance for Albania. Adequate nutrition is essential for the health and well-being of any nation, but food availability is not the only critical factor; the quality of food is also an issue that needs particular attention and efforts from all actors involved in the production, trade, and consumption of food. The development of the rural territories of Albania is important for addressing issues such as food security, environmental protection, economic development, and the establishment of high quality of life and security. Competitive agricultural & non-agricultural production and helping Albania to better adapt to deal with climate change are also essential factors for the development of food systems in Albania. Read less

Stage 3 of the National Dialogue on Sustainable Food System in Albania was a powerful opportunity to engage meaningfully, explore collectively, and emerge resiliently to build sustainable food systems of the country in the framework of the UN Food Systems Summit. This third step aimed at the introduction of the key findings and outcomes from the previous Dialogues (within 5 Action Tracks) and but even cross-cutting between action tracks: • Ensure access to safe and nutritious food for all; • Shift to sustainable consumption patterns; • Boost nature-positive production; • Advance equita... Read moreble livelihoods; • Build resilience to vulnerabilities, shocks and stress; Also, it aimed to identify the national pathways towards sustainable food systems by 2030 while discussing how to implement these pathways and talking about possible commitments from the different stakeholders. The dialogue has been a continuation of the discussion around the visions presented at the first and second stages of national dialogue. The discussion was framed around the knowledge and innovation system, consumers, food producers and their conditions, financial and support systems/rules and regulations and the resilience of food systems. The National Dialogue has enabled stakeholders to work together by examining the national food systems, exploring options for change, shaping pathways for these systems to be sustainable by 2030, and has given a meaningful opportunity to Albanian stakeholders to further advance the food systems sustainability of the country. They will have an active role to work together by drawing and following national pathways towards sustainable food systems of Albania by 2030. Our priorities for the next decade are: (i) to ensure the existence of a competitive value chain in food systems; (ii) to develop agro-tourism and short value chains as mechanisms of rural development ; (iii) to develop an effective system of food/feed safety, veterinary and plant protection; (iv) to ensure sustainable use of natural resources, environmental protection, preservation of ecosystems, climate change mitigation and adaptation; (v) to elaborate an effective systems for the crisis management. By the end of this stage, participants have a greater understanding and commitment to take action based on 5 national pillars (as above) in a way to improve the food systems in Albania. Read less