Explore Official Dialogue Feedback

As a way of building resilience to the economic crisis, Investment in the farming system particularly in the local environment which will improve the farming system and production was stated. Also mentioned is that Government needs to provide policy and justice for farmers. Likewise working hand in hand at the community level i.e. government, private organizations, NGOs, CSOs need to work together for developing a farming system at the local level. Speakers that work with youth and civic society asked for more cooperation with the government and greater participation in government and decision... Read more-making. Read less

Agroecology (a way of building environmental resilience) principles discussed were; Adapting to the local environment – its constraints and opportunities, creating favorable soil conditions for plant growth and recycling nutrients, diversifying species, crop varieties, and livestock breeds in the agroecosystem over time and space – including integrating crops, trees, and livestock from the field to landscape levels. As a conclusion on how agroecology can contribute to addressing major climate and food challenges in Nigeria, what emerged was building the knowledge of farmers, indigenous peo... Read moreples, and pastoralists, this could be done by government through extension workers or other food organization. Increasing research and innovations and delivering it in the indigenous languages. There's also an urgent need to rethink and transform production models. Read less

A central theme and finding from the Dialogue was “that farmers are left to their own devices”. Many farmers and food producers are unsure how to incorporate sustainable and biodynamic farming practices. Farmers spoke about the need for clear communication and materials that can be disseminated in local dialects. Producers asked for clear examples and a recognition that most families are subsistence farmers. There exists a gap between producers for a family’s needs on the one hand and growing enough to sell at market for a profit. Famers and food producers asked for targeted action plans... Read more to assist land reclamation and cultivation. Producers also asked for clearer roles between local and federal level governments. Greater inclusivity in agricultural modernization programs as well as dissemination of knowledge and practices that can increase yields for crops. Both the expert presenters and food producers in the Dialogue highlighted how small farms are in Nigeria compared to other countries. Most farms are run as family-based operations, with whatever knowledge had been passed down through the generations. The cultural context of Nigeria adds an extra burden for women. Women who own land are not perceived as professional farmers, male farmers do not share insights and relevant information with women. Also emerging from the dialogue were the following key points which were proposed; - The right of people to define their own food and agricultural policies. - Rights and control of land, water, seeds, livestock breeds, territories. - Right to protect and regulate domestic agricultural production and trade (e.g. restrict the dumping of products in local markets). Read less

The focus of the Dialogue was to introduce Nigerian farmers to concepts and examples around Agroecology. The Dialogue featured researchers based in Nigeria explaining what Agroecology is and how sustainable practices can produce food and reinforce resilience in the face of climate change. In particular, the Dialogue delved into how farmers can be adaptive to challenges, create favorable soil conditions, integrate species of crops with trees, and in general, enhance positive biological integrations, improved research and innovation. Researchers explained in practice what this means and used Cas... Read moresava as an example. Cassava being a staple in Nigerian diets, yet farmers struggle to produce enough. Most speakers who followed also emphasized the need to adapt to change and argued for strategic policy actions from the government both at a state and federal level. Read less

Further exploration could be taken into what platforms are most effective to reach farmers with - or whether the variety of platforms is the most useful. Also, different platforms came out as different ways of reaching farmers. The gender gap is a key consideration when it comes to designing programs and not enough projects and programs are adequately addressing this. The difference between designing something for farmers, rather than with farmers. There was plenty of discussion on how to involve farmers/reach farmers, but more work needs to be done into including them to begin with, from desi... Read moregn and identification of challenges, throughout interventions to place them and value their own knowledge. Additionally: What is a key outcome when it comes to communications? Is it a farmer taking up a new and/or improved practice, or is it a farmer making an informed choice to do, or not do, this same thing? What should the goal of communications be when it comes to this? The issue of young peoples’ involvement in the food system noting that most of the communication platforms target generally adult audiences hence there is need to ensure the balance in targeting between the youth and the adult farmers who are becoming fewer in sub saharan than the burgeoning youth population. Read less

In terms of survey responses, the responses were as follows: Do you think development organizations are doing enough when it comes to communicating with farmers? 5% yes 25% no 70% they are doing some but not enough What do you think is the biggest barrier to communicating with local farmers: Limited resources 23% Access to technology: 18% Literacy: 13% Infrastructure: 10% Language: 8% Cultural barriers: 8% Gender divide: 8% Distance: 7% Affordability: 3% If your organization communicates with farmers, how does it do it (multiple choice) Radio: 59% Mobile phone: 57% Extension officers: 48% In p... Read moreerson: 43% Social media: 28% Internet or apps: 22% In print: 17% Television: 11% I don’t know how best to: 4% Other: 2% How do you involve farmers in your projects (multiple choice) We conduct baseline research with farmers 72% We give them opportunities to give feedback throughout the project 59% They are involved in regular monitoring and evaluation: 51% We involve them in the design and proposal of our project 44% We hire them as trainers for other farmers 36% They are only involved as recipients: 8% Additionally, as part of the dialogue, we featured the voices of regular farmers from Mali and Burkina Faso, who we asked questions about their experiences. Of note were these opinions: “On the subject of aid, you should know that the government often forgets to address the real questions that interest us. They provide aid that does not help us. For example, the government has just bought agricultural machinery that is so expensive farmers cannot buy it.” “For aid, certain partners like the government, and other NGOs come without consulting us, they don’t know our problems, they just come and impose their program. And it never works. We must exchange before any action in order to orient our actions. This is how we will all be satisfied with the collaboration.” “The agricultural officials over here are few and because they are not here a lot it is difficult for them to come one by one to educate us. These are what prevents us from accessing that information.” Read less

Overwhelming consensus during the Dialogue was that communications should be a key component of any agriculture project or intervention aimed at small-scale or small-holder farmers in rural areas. For interventions to be truly successful, they need to consider how best to reach farmers in accessible and persuasive ways, but also how to fit feedback into all parts of an intervention, from design to conclusion. Key outcomes: - Use of vernacular and local languages encourages participation and respect within programs - Communications should be first, rather than an afterthought, when it comes to ... Read morethe design of programs and interventions - they are strategic openings for possibilities - Rural communities need to be considered as equal players in the agriculture field - they carry solutions, and tremendous knowledge that should be amplified - Without communication, meaningful change to food systems cannot happen - farmers will not be empowered to make transformative changes based on their own circumstances. In this sense, people-based solutions are important. - There is so much relevant information out there to benefit farmers, but there is often a disconnect between that information existing and it reaching farmers. - Convergence of different communication platforms is critical to meet all farmers informational needs (ie phone in lines, in person training, radio programs, and comic books) - Entertainment is as important as information - to drum up interest, as well as provide education, entertainment alongside relevancy should be considered (a lesson from the Shamba Shape-Up TV programs) - A paradigm shift is essential - we consider how to invite farmers to the table at dialogues and during interventions like this - instead we should be doing the work to be invited to the tables of farmers, so to speak. Relationships are key to this. - Gender gaps must be considered when designing communication systems that are effective (ie during radio programs designate time to address needs of women, or on IVR systems include call-in lines for women) - Interactive radio allows conversations between different members of society - brings farmers’ voices up to the same level as authorities in the region. - Solutions such as Farmerline, Shamba Shape-Up, and Farm Radio International's interactive radio programs are examples of interventions that consider communication from the beginning. - For effective food systems we need to ensure that we are responsive to the needs of farmers, and this can happen through effective communications Read less

We explored the link between communications and the open, active, and inclusive participation of farmers in food systems. Our participants explored what it means to have dialogue with farmers and the role of communication in ensuring that the systems we design are designed with farmers to meet their specific needs. We took deep dives into principles of engaging rural communities and farmers, and the different types of tools that are necessary to do each one: whether through radio and music, through active participation, through IVR phone in lines, through systems designed to entertain as well ... Read moreas educate, and through other methods of open communication. Too often farmers and rural folks are left out of the conversations that directly involve and are made to benefit them, so the focus of this Dialogue was to discuss how communications brings farmers and rural folk into the conversation, and what is necessary to do that in a meaningful way. On the program explored the various tools and projects different organizations use to include farmers in the discussion and communicate with them; polling participants to explore the different ways they use communications; and amplifying the voices of some few every-day farmers who explained key communication needs. This Independent Dialogue was a precursor to our on-air dialogues which are using radio programs combined with live polling to identify the opinions of farmers on various FSS action tracks in Burkina Faso, Ghana, Tanzania and Uganda. Read less

Overall the discussion went smoothly, all participants expressed concerns and ideas and complemented each other. Slight differences of opinion occurred in the form of granting rights to food producers, some participants considered that land rights were fully granted to food producers, while other participants wanted the land to remain state property and food producers were given access to cultivating state land. -the land owned, despite differences of opinion, basically the participants agreed that food producers should have the right to cultivate productive land. From the discussion process, ... Read morethe arguments and statements of the participants complement and strengthen the presentations of other participants. The ideas presented also complement and enrich the inputs submitted by fellow participants. This shows that the food situation faced has the same pattern with location-specific case variations. Read less

3. Consumption of healthy and quality food After identifying the food situation in their respective locations, participants then exchanged ideas and suggestions to answer the challenges faced in obtaining healthy and quality food. The results of the discussion room for healthy and quality food consumption are: • Change of mindset or mindset about local food. That local food has many advantages and benefits are also healthy. • Efforts are made to change awareness with a public campaign approach, especially by the government, which is oriented to young people. Young people can become drivers... Read more of future changes in food patterns to “call for” food issues • Mainstreaming of local food wisdom to the public, especially children through education by developing local content of formal and informal education curricula • Prepare a database of biodiversity, especially those related to local food and its nutritional content to the community. Thus, positive perceptions and knowledge regarding local food will be built. • Strengthening literacy and nutrition education for families, especially parents. Knowledge of local food, consumption of healthy, nutritious, and quality food is an important key in realizing sustainable food consumption patterns. • Popularize the food ingredients produced by our farmers in a contemporary way and disseminated by public figures/influencers to go viral, so that the local food market niche grows well. Gastrodiplomacy efforts by the state to other countries to introduce local food can be a solution. Read less

2. Fair distribution and trade The thought and ideas of changing the food system at the level of distribution and fair trade generated in the discussion are: • An accountable food import policy so as not to interfere with the production and supply as well as the welfare of local farmers. Fulfillment of food must be from domestic production. The fulfillment of food must also be met in a variety of ways. • Collaboration and partnership also with the private sector to trigger a diverse food distribution and prioritize domestic products. The government must play a stronger role in regulating m... Read moreutually beneficial collaboration among food value chain actors. Thus, a fair partnership occurs. • Capacity building at the farm level to produce quality, hygienic and healthy products. So that this product can be accepted by consumers and compete in the urban market. • Development of non-centralized food production, such as the food estate model. However, by supporting smallholders to consolidate to produce more efficient, healthy, and diverse food. Non-centralized production also accommodates existing local food resources. • Food institutions as regional logistics warehouses need to be accelerated. The function of the logistics warehouse is not only to accommodate food from outside the region but also to accommodate local food products. This logistics warehouse can also be used as a retailer that provides local food for the government's social assistance program. This can trigger changes in local food consumption behavior. • Optimization of institutions closest to rural food producers, in this case in Indonesia, are Village-Owned Enterprises (BUMDESA) and Regional-Owned Enterprises (BUMD) to facilitate the distribution and processing of food in villages. The involvement of higher education and research institutions to produce innovations in optimizing regional institutions is very important. • Control of harvest prices and production inputs; the government must maximize and strengthen the role of BULOG/National Food Agency to disburse funds and absorb farmers' harvests in larger quantities, in addition to controlling production inputs, strict and firm supervision must be carried out so that the provision of agricultural production facilities can be targeted and effective. Read less

1. Sustainable production and agriculture In this independent dialogue, participants were also asked what ideas, ideas, and solutions could be done to get out of the situation above and update the national food system. The results of space production and sustainable agriculture are: • Abolition of the job creation law (UU Cipta Kerja) because this law has the potential to hinder small food producers' access and control over land. • Capacity building for food producers and the younger generation; in the form of intensive training provided to food producers to be able to optimize their produ... Read morection, be able to adapt using technology, and implement sustainable agriculture. • Recognition of land rights for small-scale producers; By providing access to productive land that has not been managed so far, this form can be used as an example of customary rights for indigenous peoples, but in this case for small-scale food producers. • Recognition of indigenous peoples' lands; starting from collecting data on indigenous peoples and their living spaces, then recognizing the existence of indigenous peoples by providing clear and firm legality for their existence and living space areas to minimize cases of expropriation of customary law communities' territories by companies and the state. • Revitalization of a more inclusive education system for agriculture; build an education system that is contextual with the region and existing resources to answer the problems of farmer regeneration. • The village government encourages the protection of agricultural production food; the village government must have a strong commitment to maintaining agricultural production areas so that there is no conversion of productive land functions. • Community based agriculture; in increasing the capacity of food producers, organizing is an absolute thing that must be trained, the existing community is no longer trapped in the interest of getting assistance from the government, more broadly with the existing community, food producers can share various kinds ranging from capital, knowledge, to looking for markets their harvest. • Financial access to food producers; access to capital must be simpler and less complicated, state-owned banks must prioritize loans for food producers with various conveniences and low-interest rates. • Sustainable agricultural practices; Sustainable agricultural practice training should be given intensively to food producers through field schools. • Food development adapted to the characteristics of local resources; To maintain abundant food diversity and optimize the use of existing resources, food development must consider various aspects and be based on multi-disciplinary scientific studies. • The government strengthens SOEs to provide inputs, both fertilizers, and other agricultural inputs so that the agricultural input market can be controlled, so that price fluctuations can be overcome. Or it can hand overproduction to the domestic private sector and be supported by regulations that strengthen the position of local entrepreneurs and farmers as consumers. Read less

1. Sustainable production and agriculture • The main findings in this room broadly state that most food producers are unable to access productive sources for food production, especially land. Land problems are a serious problem in the production sector because data shows that most food producers who depend on land only have a minimum of 0.5 ha of land to produce food. • Land issues do not only occur to food producers who sell their products but also to indigenous peoples whose food production is only used to fulfill their daily lives, various cases were also found, such as the non-recognit... Read moreion of their customary territory, the unilateral takeover of land by the company, to the seizure of living space they. • The ability or capacity of food producers is also a requirement that according to participants is something that must be met to achieve efficient and sustainable food production with environmentally friendly agricultural principles. The development of the food sector also needs to consider various things such as the characteristics of local resources, culture, and regional typology. • Farmers are increasingly dependent on external agricultural inputs. This dependence is certainly very dangerous if there is an increase in the price of agricultural inputs, it will also increase the production costs of farmers. Current agricultural inputs Mostly large companies that tend to give rise to injustice. • Food producers' access to finance for production capital is also a serious problem faced by food producers because the requirements to apply for loans are not following the business character of food producers. In addition, the absence of control over harvest prices and production inputs also makes food producers often lose money. 2. Fair distribution and trade. • Prices are not good enough for farmers and are more often played by the market to the detriment of farmers. Farmers get the least profit compared to other chain actors. The bargaining position of farmers is still low due to various obstacles such as weak institutional capacity, inadequate product quality, and contribution, and others. • The food import policy that continues to occur has implications for the suppression of farmers' products. Besides being unable to compete in terms of quality, farmers' products also cannot compete with the prices of imported products that have experienced dumping. As a result, product prices at the farm level fall to a very low level and are detrimental to farmers. • Farmers' products are disrupted and unable to compete when entering modern markets and in urban areas. A long value chain not only causes low profits for farmers but also reduces product quality, especially when handling processes are not good. As a result, agricultural products cannot compete with large-scale agricultural products/companies. Whereas there is a trend of increasing food consumption in urban areas of around 30%. • Large food traders or large retailers are mostly filled with processed or imported food products. Local farmers' products are still unable to compete and fill the food market very little in modern markets. • The food logistics system is not yet adaptive or following the typology of our country, namely archipelagic islands. In addition, our food production is still concentrated in certain areas and is not evenly distributed all the time. Thus there is a food gap in food production centers and consumer centers. The food estate policy promoted by the government has even made the centralization of food production concentrated in certain areas. This centralization will eventually increase distribution costs to other regions. The existing logistical institutions are not yet optimal in managing domestic food logistics. 3. Consumption of healthy and quality food, • The main findings of this room show that the definition of healthy and quality food consumption is still a luxury for most members of society. The lack of literacy about healthy and quality food, both in terms of source and meaning, has caused many sources of healthy and quality food, especially local food, to be neglected. • Market policies that are not transparent and do not favor the use of local food sources as healthy and quality food have created some derivative problems, such as competition for local food as a source of healthy and quality food, low technology, and opportunities for access to local food. Food as a source of healthy and quality food is available in large quantities and is affordable both in terms of area and access. • In some indigenous communities, the imposition of uniformity in planting materials, planting methods to production technology, and land grabbing undermine local food production as an affordable source of healthy and quality food. In the end, it weakens the food security of the community and even causes new diseases for the community, especially indigenous peoples. • There is a change in culture and people's preferences, especially in urban areas, towards food consumption. Urban people prefer to buy food and food that has a good appearance and has health insurance (low contamination, hygienic, healthy products, etc.). Read less

The Independent Dialogue Youth For Future of Indonesia Food System was carried out not using an action track approach but using an Indonesian local food system approach and the concept of food sovereignty. Food is a basic need as well as a human right for everyone. Everyone needs adequate food in terms of quantity, nutrition, and safety. Thus everyone can live a healthy and productive life. In addition, food is also a symbol of cultural development and human relations with nature. The current pandemic situation is causing the threat of food insecurity and hunger. Disrupted supply chains and de... Read moreclining purchasing power make food difficult to access, especially for vulnerable groups. The food system, as an integral part of the activities of production, processing, distribution, and consumption as well as food waste management. The food system includes the actors and institutions involved in it, with various interests and benefits derived from it. The challenges of the current and future food system are meeting food needs with the challenges of population growth, climate change, and ecological vulnerability, as well as socio-economic inequality, especially small-scale farmers, poor consumers, and other marginal groups. This requires a more just, sovereign, and resilient food system transformation. Strengthening the food system is seen as a means to significantly reduce hunger, malnutrition, and poverty, as well as strengthening global efforts to deal with the pandemic. As a scope, it is divided into three discussion rooms as follows: 1. Sustainable production which includes access to production sources and sustainable agricultural models and revitalization of educational curricula. We now realize that national and global food systems are not working well. The Covid-19 pandemic shows the fragility of our food system that runs from time to time. The food system, which consists of a long series of processes from production, distribution, to consumption, shows its fragility on all fronts. Food production is a process or activity of procuring food by food producers which are then distributed to the consumer level for consumption. To maintain the sustainability of food production while at the same time maintaining the survival of food producers, talking about food production cannot be separated from sustainable production methods. 2. Encompassing fair distribution and trade, fair market, market access for everyone, gastro diplomacy, distribution. Equality and access to added value in the value chain. The main focus in this section is Fair Food Distribution and Trade. The food distribution in question is how food from the land reaches the plate on our dining table. This includes what the value chain is like and the phenomenon of loss does not go unnoticed. Meanwhile, fair food trade is a trading concept based on open partnership, upholding justice, dialogue, and transparency. From these two things, we see many phenomena and situations that occur in Indonesia. Of course, from the eyes of young Indonesians. 3. Consumption of healthy and quality food, including the wealth of local food sources, development of local food systems, access to healthy and quality food literacy. The main focus of consuming healthy and quality food is to identify the situation of food consumption in the communities where the participants live and explore ideas for improving the food system, especially at the level of consumption. Read less