Global Policy Type: International Coordinating Bodies

The African Union (AU) is an intergovernmental organization whose membership includes the 54 states of the African continent. The AU grew out of the Organization of African Unity and was established in 2001. With a broad agenda, the AU addresses issues related to food security, agriculture, peace and security and political issues. It engages on land issues through its support for the Land Policy Initiative, which is a joint initiative with the UN’s Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA). Through the LPI, the AU co-sponsored the 2010 Framework and Guidelines on African Land Policy. USAID and the U.S. Government, through the Feed the Future initiative, supports the AU’s Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Program (CAADP) as well as other important work undertaken by the Union.

The AU’s vision for Africa is the establishment of an integrated, prosperous and peaceful continent, that is driven by citizens and serves as a dynamic force in global affairs. It is composed of an Assembly, Executive Council, Commission, Permanent Representatives’ Committee, Peace and Security Council, and Pan-African Parliament. The Commission provides day-to-day management of the AU and through the LPI, engages on land issues. The LPI works to identify key land issues and challenges across the continent. It supports consultations and consensus building among stakeholders over this contentious issue. Promoting regional convergence around what constitutes sustainable management of cross-border resources and good governance in land, the LPI develops and shares best practices related to land governance in the African context.

The Committee on World Food Security (CFS) was the negotiating platform for both the VGGT and the RAI. It is also the negotiating platform for the Framework for Action for Food Security and Nutrition in Protracted Crisis (2015). In addition, the CFS develop policy recommendations on a broad array of issues related to food security and nutrition including: water for food security and nutrition; food loss and waste in the context of sustainable food systems; and sustainable fisheries and aquaculture for food security and nutrition (among others).

Based in Rome, the CFS was created in 1974. It is a multi-stakeholder platform composed of member state representatives, representatives of civil society and representatives of the private sector, all of whom have an interest in issues related to food security and nutrition. These groups then serve as Members (States), Participants and Observers. The Committee reports its work to the UN through the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) as well as to the Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) Conference.

The CFS is designed to provide voice and opportunities to participate in important debates and negotiations to a broad set of stakeholders. It encourages a robust exchange of ideas and experiences that build on empirical evidence and scientific analysis. Working in a collaborative manner, the CFS develops and endorses policy recommendations and guidelines based on input from a High Level Panel of Experts and through technical work supported by the FAO, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the World Food Programme, and the CFS Advisory Group. The CFS meets in a Plenary session each October in Rome, where its Secretariat is located.

Visit the Committee on World Food Security’s website.

From 2015 to 2016, USAID has chaired the Global Donor Working Group on Land, which is comprised of donors and development agencies committed to improving coordination around development programs that focus on land governance. The group, established to coordinate activities among donors and development agencies, strives to improve access to secure land tenure and property rights for people all over the world, with an emphasis on vulnerable groups, including women and indigenous people. USAID led one of the group’s first initiatives, developing a comprehensive database of 14 member organizations’ 230+ active land governance programs, being implemented in more than 100 countries, with a total value of over $2 billion.

The Global Donor Working Group on Land is hosted by the Global Donor Platform for Rural Development. It was launched in April, 2013 to support efforts of bilateral and multilateral donor agencies focused on implementing the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security (VGGT) and, more broadly, efforts to strengthen land governance and property rights in the developing world.

Key focus areas for the Global Donor Working Group on Land include: improving information sharing, coordination and collaboration on land-related programming and interventions among the member organizations; working closely with country partners to improve land governance and transparency; engaging with and supporting the private sector to improve land governance by strengthening core business procedures (such as due diligence related to land-based investing); and, providing a hub for information related to land governance.

Visit the Global Donor Working Group on Land’s website.

The New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition was created in 2012. It seeks to lift 50 million people out of poverty by 2022 through partnerships between G7 members, African nations, and the private sector. The New Alliance’s goal is to increase food production, accelerate responsible investment in African agriculture and commit to good governance and coordinated policy reforms.

In order to achieve these goals, each of the nine New Alliance countries (Benin, Malawi, Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, Mozambique and Tanzania) have developed country-specific Cooperation Frameworks with G7 and private sector partners that outline their shared commitments and responsibilities. Development partners commit to fund efforts to promote inclusive and transformative agricultural investments. Partners work together to identify Enabling Actions that will help to improve the business environment for responsible investing and inclusive, agriculture-led growth. Private sector partners commit, via Letters of Intent, to pursue agricultural investments in the New Alliance Countries. Countries, in turn, commit to policy reform efforts and report on their progress towards implementing commitments made in Cooperation Frameworks. The 2014-2015 Annual Progress Report states that as of June 2015, 33 percent of policy commitments were completed and 59 percent showed good progress. 4 percent of commitments showed no progress.

Recognizing that clear, secure and negotiable rights to land and resources are essential for agricultural growth, New Alliance partners commit to operate in a manner consistent with the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security (VGGT) and with the Principles for Responsible Investment in Agriculture and Food Systems (RAI).