Together for farmers: FAO & COP29 Presidency launch the ‘Baku Harmoniya Climate Initiative for Farmers’ | FAO News

Baku – To help farmers navigate their way through dozens of initiatives & programs working to support climate-resilient agrifood systems transformation, the Food & Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in partnership with the Azerbaijan COP29 Presidency, today launched a new platform, the Baku Harmoniya Climate Initiative for Farmers.

The Harmoniya Initiative will serve as an aggregator, bringing together disparate initiatives, coalitions, networks, & partnerships to empower farmers, villages & rural communities. There are currently more than 90 global or regional initiatives, networks & partnerships, creating a clear need for coherence, alignment & sharing of lessons learned to deliver greater impact.

Unparalleled opportunity

Kaveh Zahedi, Director of FAO’s Office of Climate Change, Biodiversity & Environment, described the initiative as “one of the most exciting being launched at COP29, representing an unparalleled opportunity to collectively drive climate solutions through agrifood systems.” He said: “FAO looks forward to working with the COP29 Azerbaijan Presidency, future Presidencies, as well as stakeholders & partners, to accelerate the transformation towards sustainable & resilient agrifood systems.”

The President of COP29, Mukhtar Babayev, opened the launch event. Other panelists included Majnoun Mammadov, Minister of Agriculture, Republic of Azerbaijan; Prosper Dodiko, Minister of Environment, Agriculture & Livestock, Burundi; Fernando Mattos Costa, Minister of Agriculture & Livestock, Uruguay; Yoichi Watanabe, Vice-Minister for International Affairs, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry & Fisheries of Japan; Claudia Müller, Parliamentary State Secretary to the Federal Ministry of Food & Agriculture, Germany; Paul Gulleik Larsen, Ambassador & Special Envoy, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Norway.

Representatives from the Azerbaijan Rural Women’s Association, the Private Sector Mechanism, the Standing Committee on Finance, UN Women, the World Bank & the World Farmers’ Organisation (WFO) also participated.

The initiative, launched at the opening of COP29’s Food, Agriculture & Water Day, will be hosted by FAO as part of the Food & Agriculture for Sustainable Transformation (FAST) Partnership, a multi-stakeholder platform established at COP27 in 2022 that works to strengthen the quantity & quality of climate finance in agrifood systems for the most vulnerable.

Over successive COPs there has been an increasing emphasis on agriculture, with COP27 holding the first ever day dedicated to agriculture & COP28 witnessing a historic milestone with a declaration on agriculture & food Systems endorsed by 160 countries.

The Harmoniya Initiative will be closely connected to the work of the FAST Partnership that counts Azerbaijan, Brazil & Egypt as co-chairs, further strengthening COP-to-COP collaboration on agrifood systems. The Initiative will work towards showcasing progress at COP30 under the Presidency of Brazil. Under the initiative there will be a portal to clarify the landscape of programs, share experiences, identify synergies & gaps, & foster collaborative efforts concentrated on the agriculture, food & water nexus.

It will also catalyze investments in agrifood system transformation from both private & public sectors, building on strong collaborations with Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) & Agricultural Public Development Banks (PDBs). The initiative will empower farmers, in particular women & youth & support the development of climate-resilient villages & rural communities for adaptation action in the food, agriculture & water sectors.

Evidence-based approach

The focus will be on evidence-based knowledge & align with scientific best-practices, with a particular emphasis on technologies contributing to resilient & sustainable agriculture. A key aim is to enhance climate policies, creating an enabling environment for implementation, considering the diversity & complexity of agricultural systems.

The Harmoniya Initiative will look for opportunities to realize diverse co-benefits from climate actions in agriculture & food systems. These include increasing farmers’ resilience & reducing the risk of loss & damage, reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions & increasing GHG sinks when possible, reducing food losses & waste, conserving biodiversity & soil health & applying innovative approaches while considering national circumstances & knowledge.

The initiative will also contribute with activities to build evidence & success stories for the 2026 International Year of the Woman Farmer.

The impacts of climate change on agriculture are threatening food & water security for people around the globe. Climate action in agriculture has the potential to address multiple challenges across adaptation, mitigation, ensuring food security, combating land degradation & water scarcity, as well as supporting the Sustainable Development Goals. Global biodiversity, climate & land degradation neutrality goals are unattainable without agrifood systems solutions.