FTA 2019 highlights (Annual Report 2019)
This annual report 2019 (PDF) of the CGIAR Research Program on Forests, Trees and Agroforestry (FTA) gives an overview of the 2019 highlights. In 2019, FTA’s research continued informing global discussions shaping the future of food security, biodiversity and climate change. Notably, the UN Committee on World Food Security High-Level Panel of Experts (HLPE) report on agroecology and the Global Commission on Adaptation (GCA) paper on building resilient agriculture. In 2019, the program’s effort to help translate scientific evidence into better policies bore yet more fruit. With FTA’s support, for example, Nepal became the second country in the world to have a national agroforestry policy, while Uganda succeeded in adopting a 10-year national bamboo strategy and action plan, and Ethiopia established a National Tree Seed Network. Sustainable value chains and investments are a key pillar of FTA’s work. FTA developed inclusive finance and business models with companies across Tanzania, Ghana and Peru, and strengthened its engagement with rubber stakeholders to make the supply of this commodity more sustainable. FTA’s efforts in partnerships and capacity-building were compounded by the launch of products that enhance decision-making on issues at the crossroads of food, climate and biodiversity. For example, the Ecosystem-based adaptation monitoring tool in Gambia, the Priority food tree and crop food composition database for sub-Saharan Africa, the Agroforestry species switchboard as well as several publications to support the design of national policies on REDD+. FTA further advanced gender equity along value chains for commodities such as charcoal, coffee and tea. It also brought a gender perspective to global processes such as the Rio Conventions on biodiversity, climate change and desertification.
FTA’s work and results of 2019 includes research funded through the CGIAR Trust Fund (W2), to which the Netherlands is a critical funding partner.