CGIAR Initiative: National Policies and Strategies for Food, Land and Water Systems Transformation <p class="ql-align-justify">Despite improved economic growth and agricultural production in many low- and middle-income countries over recent decades, major challenges persist. Many parts of society continue to experience food and nutrition insecurity, income poverty, inequality, and economic marginalization. Countries are operating within a rapidly changing landscape of urbanization, migration, political insecurity, pockets of conflict, climate change, and other demographic and social changes that are likely to exacerbate these inequalities. For example, Africa’s 1.1 billion citizens will double<a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/05/africa-biggest-cities-fragility/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> in number by 2050</a>, and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/05/africa-biggest-cities-fragility/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">more than 80 percent of that increase will occur in cities</a><a href="about:blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">[i]</a>, requiring special attention to the urban and peri-urban poor within national policies and strategies.&nbsp;</p><p class="ql-align-justify">Globally, 3 billion people cannot afford a healthy diet, and more than 2 billion suffer one or more manifestations of poor nutrition.<a href="about:blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">[ii]</a> It is likely that food systems are already operating beyond planetary boundaries, exerting severe pressure on land and water systems. COVID-19 has brought about additional challenges to these already-stretched systems and now requires additional resources to be invested in both current development and future recovery efforts.<a href="about:blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">[iii]</a> S<span style="color: black;">ector-specific governance and policy incoherence diminish the leverage points urgently needed for transformative systems change that can help underpin the sustainability and equity of food systems.</span> In the absence of “Ministries of Food Systems,” government policy toward ensuring food and nutrition security often remains fragmented and uncoordinated, compounding further the risk of failing to achieve key Sustainable Development Goals.</p><p class="ql-align-justify">Making systems more productive, resilient, and responsive to growing demand and more able to withstand future climate and health shocks (e.g., COVID-19) is now pressing. Policies and strategies need novel construction methods that can enable them to achieve multiple developmental and environmental objectives. Governments and other stakeholders need to enhance synergies across different policy areas — especially those with important cross-border dimensions including trade and investment, agriculture and water resources, health and education, the environment, and migration — to create environments that are more conducive to future food, nutrition, and water security.</p><p class="ql-align-justify">Various authors, including King and Matthews 2010, have highlighted <u>the challenges of achieving a joined-up policy agenda</u> (<a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/kv1u0oupp0hxlnx/Figure%201.png?dl=0" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Figure 1: Challenges of a coherent policy agenda</a>). <a href="about:blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">[iv]</a><sup>,</sup><a href="about:blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><sup>[v]</sup></a> Without coherent, evidence-driven policy design and planning, and amid escalating risks and uncertainties, future policies may lead to ineffective or inefficient investments, duplication of efforts across food, land, and water sectors, and even investments cancelling out gains if seriously misaligned. At the same time, change needs to be both substantive <em>and </em>equitable, with new investments and programs effectively targeting the poorest and most vulnerable and taking due account of ingrained gender inequalities.</p><p class="ql-align-justify">NPS will build new understanding and capabilities across and within different policy arenas to identify and respond to windows of opportunity for systemic change across water, land, and food systems. In doing so, NPS will work alongside diverse national partners and coordinate with regional and international partners, such as CAADP, AUC, FAO, the World Bank, Akademiya2063, IICA, AGRA, and others, to co-develop and use these tools; work together on strategies and investments; and establish new capabilities to enable governments and other important policy actors to build more fit-for-purpose policy and investment environments (See <a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/4ca590udt1t0cb1/Figure%202.png?dl=0" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Figure 2: Opportunities of a coherent policy agenda</a>).</p><p class="ql-align-justify"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); color: rgb(73, 80, 87);">NPS will strive to </span><strong style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); color: rgb(73, 80, 87);">Build policy coherence</strong><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); color: rgb(73, 80, 87);"> at the national and subnational level, working with local partners and institutions, as well as across CGIAR initiatives active in the policy arena. NPS will work to </span><strong style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); color: rgb(73, 80, 87);">integrate policy</strong><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); color: rgb(73, 80, 87);"> </span><strong style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); color: rgb(73, 80, 87);">tools</strong><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); color: rgb(73, 80, 87);"> at the local level through innovative approaches such as Training-of-Trainers, and the like, to strengthen analytical performance and equip national and subnational policy analysis partners with evidence-bases for their policy advice. Recognizing the trying times posed globally and nationally for </span><strong style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); color: rgb(73, 80, 87);">responding to</strong><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); color: rgb(73, 80, 87);"> </span><strong style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); color: rgb(73, 80, 87);">crises</strong><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); color: rgb(73, 80, 87);">, NPS will develop rapid-response tools and networks of policy experts to engage in a Community of Policy Practice. (See </span><a href="https://storage.googleapis.com/cgiarorg/2021/07/a620a089-nps-overview-slide-v2.png" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Figure 3: NPS Prioirty Area</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); color: rgb(73, 80, 87);">)</span></p><p class="ql-align-justify"><br></p><p><a href="about:blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">[i]</a> WEF, 2018. African cities will double in population by 2050. Here are 4 ways to make sure they thrive</p><p>https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/06/Africa-urbanization-cities-double-population-2050-4%20ways-thrive/</p><p><a href="about:blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">[ii]</a> FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP and WHO. (2020). <em>The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2020. Transforming food systems for affordable healthy diets</em>. Rome, FAO. <a href="https://doi.org/10.4060/ca9692en" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://doi.org/10.4060/ca9692en</a></p><p><a href="about:blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">[iii]</a> IFPRI, 2021. Transforming Food Systems After COVID-19.<strong> </strong>Global Food Policy Report. International Food Policy Research Institute, Washington DC.</p><p><a href="about:blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">[iv]</a> King, M., &amp; Matthews, A. (2010). Policy coherence for development: indicators for Ireland. <em>Report for the Advisory Board for Irish Aid</em>.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p class="ql-align-justify"><a href="about:blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">[v]</a> Ashley L. 2019. Climate and livestock policy coherence analysis in Kenya, Ethiopia and Uganda. CCAFS Working Paper No. 268. Wageningen, the Netherlands: CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS). Available online at: www.ccafs.cgiar.org</p>