World Farmers Organization General Assembly To Be Hosted In Africa For First Time

By Wallace Mawire

The World Farmers Organization (WFO) General Assembly for 2023 will be held at the  Sun City Convention Centre in Rustenburg,South Africa on 21 to 24 May 2023 for the first time in Africa under the theme:Investing in farmers’ solutions for resilient food systems with a positive impact on nature.

According to Arianna Acciarino, Communications Officer, International Secretariat for the WFO, the annual meetings of the organization are organized in collaboration with the WFO members which include the Southern African Agri Initiative (SAAI),African Farmers Association of South Africa (AFASA) and the Wildlife Ranching South Africa (WRSA)

Acciarino said that the WFO 2023 Annual Meeting will focus on the nexus between agriculture and nature, highlighting the critical role farmers and their local solutions on the ground can play to address the global challenges of transitioning to resilient food systems generating a tremendous and positive impact on the nature..

The #WFOGA2023 will bring farmers from all over the world on the stage together with high-level representatives of governments, private sector entities, research centres and academia, international organisations, and financial institutions to look for synergic responses leveraging farmers’ solutions,” Acciarino said.

It is further added that the first day of this year's WFO Annual Meeting opens with two big Global Farmers' Consultations.

The day will begin with a focus on Farmer-centric Principles for Regenerative Food Systems. Organised within the framework of the REGEN10 initiative, the morning consultation will allow farmers to share their experiences on how their practical solutions on the ground are generating a positive impact on nature.

Later in the day, the attention will shift to Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA). Organised within the AgMission initiative, of which WFO is a founding partner, the consultative meeting will focus on farmers' experiences with CSA, including the barriers to adoption they meet and the solutions they have found.

The focus of day two will be on the Internal Affairs Session. This session will provide an opportunity for WFO members to discuss and deliberate on internal organizational matters, such as elections, membership, and other administrative issues. It is an important day for the organization as decisions made during these sessions will shape the direction of the WFO for the coming year.

On the last day of the General Assembly, attendees will have the opportunity to participate in a High-level Session featuring four panels of discussions with international experts on Agriculture and Food Systems. Mr Dimitri Houtart, BBC Rural Affairs Champion, will moderate the panels.

The overarching theme of the discussions will be "Investing in farmers’ solutions for resilient food systems with a positive impact on Nature".

This is expected   to be an engaging and thought-provoking session that will provide attendees with valuable insights on the centrality of farmers' solutions in protecting and restoring biodiversity as a way to mitigate climate change and produce healthy and nutritious food for all, leaving no one behind.

Attendees are expected from all the WFO member organizations including many from Africa and from Europe, Asia, Oceania, North and Latin America.