First-ever FAO global conference on sustainable agricultural mechanization opens in Rome

Rome: The first-ever FAO Global Conference on Sustainable Agricultural Mechanization opened here today with the Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), QU Dongyu calling for sustainable, inclusive mechanization to transform agrifood systems.

The conference is accompanied by a first-of-its-kind unique exhibition – one that showcases examples of the latest technical developments in agricultural machinery across the food value chain, alongside farming equipment that has provided innovative solutions to economic, social, and environmental challenges at all scales. The focus of the exhibition is to demonstrate the role that innovative mechanization advancements play in providing sustainable and efficient farming solutions that are tailored specifically to meet farmer’s needs. The one-of-a-kind exhibit displays more than 40 different types of machinery and equipment from 13 different countries.

“Mechanization can be a powerful force for change, but only if it is environmentally sustainable and leaves no one behind, especially women and smallholder farmers,” QU said in his opening speech to the three-day conference, which was preceded by the FAO conference on sustainable livestock transformation.

With global hunger and food insecurity “unacceptably high”, and more than 3 billion people still unable to afford a healthy diet, transforming agrifood systems to improve their efficiency, inclusiveness, resilience, and sustainability is more urgent than ever, he said and stressed that “Business as usual just simply won’t work. We need to innovate, and to be well equipped,” Qu said.

Cutting-edge technologies such as satellite systems and GPS, robotics, artificial intelligence, and automated equipment are already shaping the future of farming. For instance, autonomous drones are monitoring crop health, robots are identifying and removing weeds and even carrying out delicate tasks such as pruning and picking fruit. Automated equipment is planting, applying fertilizers, and harvesting with remarkable precision; while sensors and satellites have revolutionized agriculture by providing data-driven insights that improve farmers’ decision-making.

Other examples of sustainable agricultural mechanization include direct planters that can place seeds through stubble and cause less soil disturbance by reducing the need for tillage and tractors powered with methane produced from organic matter, such as from plants or manure. 

Sustainability and inclusivity should be the guiding principles of all advanced and emerging technologies – meaning they should benefit everyone, most importantly the farmer. This requires ensuring that these technologies and equipment are adaptable to local contexts, as well as accessible and affordable. Above all, they cannot contribute to widening the digital divide by neglecting women and youth, Qu said.

“Historic” conference

The 27-29 September conference, held in hybrid form at FAO’s headquarters in Rome, along with the first-ever conference on sustainable livestock transformation, is “of critical importance as we bring the Four Betters to the centre of our discussions,” Qu said.

With more than 8,000 registrants from around the world, the conference is designed to provide a neutral forum for FAO Members, farmers, universities, agricultural scientists, mechanization service providers, development agencies, policymakers, extension specialists, civil society, opinion leaders, and the private sector to conduct focused dialogue on the topic of sustainable agricultural mechanization.

It also aims to increase awareness of the contribution of sustainable agricultural mechanization to implementing FAO’s own Strategic Framework and attain the Sustainable Development Goals; share information and knowledge on the strategic direction and technical developments in mechanization around the world; and demonstrate FAO’s technical leadership and convening power to support its Members in leveraging sustainable agricultural mechanization. Discussions are spread over a series of thematic sessions, on topics such as Mechanization for Crop Production and Automation and Artificial Intelligence.

“Mechanization and automation are powerful forces for change, but they must be sustainable and economically viable,” Qu said.

Key takeaways from the first-ever Global Conference on Sustainable Livestock Transformation

Meanwhile, the first-ever Global Conference on Sustainable Livestock Transformation, attended by more than 700 participants including 27 ministers or senior government officials, 100 youth representatives and myriad researchers and representatives of multilateral organizations, wrapped up with FAO Director-General QU Dongyu’s closing remarks urging all parties to translate their words into concrete actions, acknowledging the difficulty of the task while emphasizing it is “essential for the well-being of people and the planet.”

Two overarching messages emerged from the Conference: First, that there was now ample global knowledge of what needed to be done and often of how to do it, while implementation skills were still a work in progress. And second, there was no one-size-fits-all solution for a sector on which more than 1.7 billion depend and that uses more than half the planet’s terrestrial surface, in particular areas that are not suitable for crop farming.

Participants also noted that reducing the carbon footprint was a key requirement for the sector, but achieving effective goals would require collaboration and cooperation across borders, as well as proper accounting for welcome synergies that sustainable livestock management can provide such as fertilizer, weed control and soil health and carbon sequestration capacity.

Numerous projects and programmes aimed at fostering sustainable livestock transformations were outlined in the project, along with technical presentations on greenhouse gas emissions and an important new FAO report on“Methane in Livestock and Rice Systems”.

A senior official from Kenya explained his country’s experiment with index-based livestock insurance, a rollout that includes a mobile game for pastoralists to facilitate the adoption of risk financing tools in a country where moving herds across rangelands is of major importance

In Uruguay, a climate-focused cattle project implemented on pilot farms led to an 18 per cent drop in the emissions intensify of meat production, as well as greater grassland species diversity and more resilient forage production. That project will be scaled out and expanded to include soil organic carbon targets.

The head of India’s National Dairy Development Board highlighted actions taken in his country, where milk production has risen by more than 50 per cent in less than a decade and now accounts for almost a quarter of global output.

In an important move, members of the Global Youth Dialogue on Sustainable Livestock Transformation concurred on a consensual statement outlining recommendations they wish policymakers to consider – related to science, investments, social, economic and environmental sustainability, and a greater role for integration of youth in the policy and innovation process – and asking for an official youth position in the Sub-Committee on Livestock, a new and important part of FAO’s Committee on Agriculture, one of FAO’s central governing bodies.

Many of the issues raised at the Conference will be discussed during the upcoming second session of the COAG Sub-Committee on Livestock, to be held in May 2024. 

– global bihari bureau