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REPORT + WEBINAR: Responsible Investments in Agriculture and Food Systems

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7 December 2020. Responsible Investments in Agriculture and Food Systems.

Parliamentarians hold a strategic position to promote the enhancement of public responsible investments into the agricultural sector, and to put in place the conditions to increase private responsible investments, while ensuring well-defined safeguards are in place to prevent damages to the environment and communities. They can put in place actions that facilitate complementarity between different kinds of investments, and thus contribute to sustainable development.

In collaboration with parliamentarians from different regions, FAO and the International Institute for Sustainable Development have developed a Practical Handbook on Responsible Investments in Agriculture and Food Systems for Parliamentarians and Advisors, which was launched at this event.

Check out a related story written by Francine Picard, Emma Jessie McGhie and Carin Smaller: More and Better Investments Are Needed in Agriculture and Food Systems - What can parliamentarians do about it?

  • Moderator Carin Smaller IISD
  • Soraya Rodríguez Ramos, Member of the European Parliament
  • Paolo de Castro, Member of the European Parliament
  • Mr Sebastian Lesch, Head of Division, International Agricultural Policy, Agriculture and Innovation, German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development, Presidency of the Council of the EU

Panel:

  • Mr. John Clarke, Director for International Affairs, Directorate-General for Agriculture and Agriculture and Rural Development, European Commission
  • Leonard Mizzi, DevCo
  • Marcela Villarreal, Director, Partnerships, Advocacy and Capacity Development Division, responsible for the implementation of FAO’s innovative strategies on partnerships with the private sector, civil society, academia and research institutions, as well as promoting global multi-stakeholder partnerships.
  • Beth Bechdol FAO Deputy Director-General
  • Rodrigo de Lapuerta Montoya, Director of the FAO Liaison office with the European Union and Belgium
 

The handbook provides a catalogue of prescriptions, through guidance notes, examples of good practices, and very practical indications that members of parliament and parliamentary advisors can use to create a reliable, coherent, and transparent “enabling environment” in several areas related to investment in agriculture and food systems. 

 
It sets out key stages of processes and mechanisms for MPs and advisors to consider while promoting responsible investment in agriculture and food systems.
  1. Part 1 of the Handbook presents the Principles for Responsible Investment in Agriculture and Food Systems 
  2. In Part 2, through specific Guidance Notes, Parliamentarians and advisors are guided through concrete actions they can implement in their countries to improve and increase investments, actions such as: executing a national policy, legislative, and institutional frameworks assessment; ensuring consistency in the legal and policy framework; advocating to reform existing laws and/or adopt new laws; ensuring adequate financing for the implementation of laws related to responsible investments in agriculture and food systems and ensuring effective parliamentary oversight are detailed throughout.
Related:

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), International Institute For Sustainable Development (IISD), the Pan-African Parliament, East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament will jointly organize an event on the role of parliamentarians in enhancing responsible investments in agriculture for the transition toward more sustainable food systems in Africa.

 

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FS
Francois Stepman
7 December 2020

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