Zambia: Multistakeholder partnerships work on food security and rural development issues

Several coordination mechanisms that exist in Zambia work under similar schemes as those of the National Thematic Groups on Rural Development and Food Security. UN agencies, the government and NGOs come together to face issues that range from crop assessment to advisory to the Zambian Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives.

One of these mechanisms is the Informal Agriculture Donor Group which is chaired by the FAO representation in Zambia. During a recent meeting the participants reviewed the findings of a joint FAO/WFP Crop Assessment and Food Supply Mission and discussed the national agriculture policy of Zambia.

The Agriculture Consultative Forum is another existing group, which has been recently converted into an NGO with the assistance of several donors and FAO. This Forum brings together government, UN agencies, the private sector and NGOs with the objective of tackling issues related to food security and policy strategies.

For more information on these partnerships, please e-mail the FAO representation in Zambia at FAO-ZM@fao.org