UNCTAD’s recent Trade & Environment Review agrees with Andre that clean growth is possible in developing countries with existing technologies – especially Organic Agriculture - if the right strategies and incentives are in place (2). There are plenty of examples of the dramatic outcomes that Organic Agriculture can achieve when funds are provided. In Ethiopia organic practices are now at the heart of national development policies after a major project regenerated degraded land, established climate resilience, diversified crops and provided enhanced nutrition and income opportunities (3). In Uganda and Tanzania 110,000 smallholders are now able to gain access to high-value markets, improve subsistence crop production and establish self-sustaining supply chains through an overseas development initiative (4). In Latin America and India, Participatory Guarantee Systems (PGS) provide a mechanism for farmers to organize themselves into local production and marketing groups, and to facilitate farmer-to-farmer knowledge exchange. As a result thousands of farmers are helping each other to improve the resilience and profitability of their farms and the food security of their families and communities (5). 

Andre and UNCTAD are not alone; FAO (6), UNEP (7), IAASTD (8), USDA (9) and IFAD (10) all acknowledge the effectiveness of Organic Agriculture in alleviating poverty and hunger. IFOAM therefore calls for the International Fund for Agricultural Development to partner with IFOAM and turn recognition into action.

Contact

At the Forum: Andre Leu, INOFO and IFOAM Vice President + 61 428 45 98 70
At the IFOAM head office: Robert Jordan, Advocacy Manager + 49 176 525 134 25

(1) INOFO (Intercontinental Network of Organic Farmers Organizations) is an internal body of IFOAM
(2) UN Conference on Trade and Development Press Release 2010/003
(3) 165 districts now utilize organic practices. For more info see: www.ifoam.org/about_ifoam/around.../pdf/Ecological_in_Ethiopia.pdf
(4) The Export Promotion of Organic Products from East Africa initiative was funded by the Swedish International Development Co-Operation Agency. For more information see www.grolink.se/epopa/index.htm
(5) PGS are locally focused quality assurance systems. They certify producers based on active participation of stakeholders and are built on a foundation of trust, social networks and knowledge exchange.  For more information see www.ifoam.org/about_ifoam/standards/pgs.html
(6) FAO 2007. “International Conference on Organic Agriculture and Food Security,” Rome, May 3–5, 2007.
(7) The UN Environment Program and UNCTAD concluded in their 2008 joint study that “Organic Agriculture can be more conducive to food security than most conventional systems, and it is more likely to be sustainable in the long-term. UNEP has also specifically recommended Organic Agriculture as one of five critical areas for investment under their Global Green New Deal. For more information see: www.unep.org/greeneconomy/docs/GGND-Report-April2009.pdf
(8) The 2008 International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development (IAASTD) report strongly recommended adopting agro-ecological and organic principles. For more information see www.agassessment.org
(9) At the World Summit on Food Security in 2009, the USDA called for the importance of Organic Agriculture and its role in agro-ecology to be elevated within the FAO scope of work.
(10) IFAD President Kanayo Nwanze when visiting poor rural farmers in Brazil in July 2009 stated his support for the adoption of Organic Agriculture in poor communities as a mechanism to feed themselves and generate wealth.