Costa Rica launched this Monday the National Plan for Family Farming 2020-2030 with the aim of strengthening the capacities of producers, generating income and promoting healthy, culturally appropriate and sustainable food systems.
The Costa Rican Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock indicated in a press release that the initiative seeks to promote actions that guarantee the comprehensive and inclusive development of family farming.
“In this context of a pandemic we know that the economic reactivation will come from the countryside and that family farmers will be a priority sector, not only to feed ourselves, but also to get ahead of the social and economic crisis,” said the Minister of Agriculture and Livestock, Renato Alvarado.
The Minister of Agriculture and Livestock, Renato Alvarado, Head of the Delegation of Costa Rica, expressed that the populations of farmers in our region, despite the fact that they have not ceased in their efforts to produce, today have more challenges …
Family farming is the basis of food security and sustainable food systems, according to the latest data from the Agricultural Census, 55% of farms are dedicated to family farming.
In addition, it generates 36% of sector employment and contributes to 39% of the sector’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Family farming farms represent more than half of the farms surveyed in the country, which shows their relevance for the economy and social development.
The plan encourages the development of legal frameworks that promote differentiated policies for women and men family farmers. On the other hand, it highlights the importance of generating opportunities for rural youth; and seeks to contribute to the reduction of the migration rates of young people to the city in search of jobs and a better quality of life.
The initiative developed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock and the Costa Rican Family Agriculture Network, with the support of the Mesoamerican Hunger Free Program, a joint initiative of the Mexican Agency for International Development Cooperation (AMEXCID) and the United Nations Organization for Food and Agriculture (FAO).
“Family farming produces more than 70% of the food in Central America and has enormous potential to increase productivity and boost the agricultural sector, contributing to a greater stability in the supply of fresh and healthy food.
From FAO we recognize that it is a key sector to advance towards the eradication of hunger and rural poverty “, highlighted the FAO representative in Costa Rica, Adoniram Sanches.
One of the fundamental pillars of the National Plan is to guarantee gender equality, leadership, effective participation and the economic empowerment of rural women as agents of change.
According to FAO, women are essential to ensure the well-being of their families and rural communities. Women are engaged in agricultural and non-agricultural activities and play a fundamental role in the management of natural resources, in the production, processing, preservation and marketing of food.
The project also points out the importance of associatively and the organization of family producers, which will allow them better access to the markets for inputs and products, to technical and financial social services.
In addition, it values the key role that family agriculture plays as a promoter of agrobiodiversity for the development of territories, the eradication of poverty, the achievement of food and nutritional security and in the generation of economic growth based on sustainable initiatives.
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