Mountain Partnership
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Mountain Partnership
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AIMS
The FAO Mountain Products Programme aims to improve and sustain the livelihoods of mountain communities. It is achieving this through promoting environmentally and socially responsible enterprise development in mountain regions that is based on local high-quality, high-value products.
Find out more about Programme outputs and releted activities below.
Development of a solid information and knowledge base on high-quality, high-value mountain products
Development of a solid information and knowledge base on high-quality, high-value mountain products
Develop regional web-based resource and knowledge centres on high-quality, high-value mountain products, containing information on products, organizations, related policies and laws, development projects, case studies, training materials, publications, etc.
The Centres will include documentation on good practice methods for engaging in higher value markets. Areas for research in this area include:
- What are the best methods for analysing the assets and skills of both communities and service providers to match high-quality, high-value product market options with risk exposure of selected groups?
- What are the best methods for identifying market options for poor communities?
- How can poor rural communities analyze their risk exposure and devise risk mitigation strategies based on types of high-value products and their position in the market chain?
- How can information on aspects such as market and climate be integrated through geographic information systems (GIS)-linked processes (e.g. homologue type), to assist in both identifying best production zones and also in protecting market identity?
- How can poor rural communities develop and legalize simple “appellation” systems that enable poor farmers to tap into market opportunities?
- What are the best practices for linking smallholder farmers with large companies and ensuring equity of chain governance over time?
Improvement of the capacity for regional, national and local institutions to support production, processing and marketing of high-quality, high-value mountain products
Formulate and implement field projects in pilot countries for technical assistance and training in improved production, processing and marketing of promising high-quality, high-value mountain products.
Field projects will focus on the following areas:
- Strengthening the organization of farmer groups (cooperatives/associations), in order that they may gain from economies of scale and be in a better position to negotiate in specific markets
- Identifying market opportunities
- Ensuring access to business services in support of farmers and entrepreneurs involved in the production and marketing of high-quality, high-value products
- Developing certification schemes (organic, fair trade, appellations of origin, etc.).
Creation of an enabling policy and institutional environment for promotion of high-quality, high-value products
Organize local and national stakeholder workshops with the participation of government entities (national and local) to raise awareness about the results of field projects and identify implications for policy and legislation.
An enabling policy environment describes a situation in which the private sector takes the lead role in organizing production and marketing of these products, but the government plays an important role in guiding and facilitating this development. Policy, in this sense, includes public investment, policies, a regulatory environment and enforcement mechanisms.
The elements of an enabling policy environment, that are of particular importance for high-value products targeted to the poor in mountain regions, include:
public investment in infrastructure such as roads, communication, irrigation and electrification are critical for these products, especially those that are perishable and bulky.
public investment in research and extension, going beyond traditional supply side technology development, adaptation, technical assistance and training to include research on potential new crops, the monitoring of trends in consumer demand, the identification and characterization of emerging opportunities, and their evaluation with farmers, and how to meet specific quality and safety standards.
a regulatory framework that covers aspects such as pesticide use, seed trade and varietal approval, bio-safety, grades and standards, certification of quality, safety, origin etc., and the monitoring of private efforts to establish traceability systems.
secure property rights, which are especially important for high-value product activities that require long-term investments in land and inputs such as water.
promotion of high-quality, high-value products, either those that are indigenous or new, and can contribute to the economic, social wellbeing and health of the urban and rural population.
policies to mitigate the impact of risk associated with many of these products, such as coherent and consistent macro-economic and trade policies and support for the establishment of market information systems, local and international commodity exchanges, insurance schemes etc.
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Establishment of public-private partnerships for the promotion of high-quality, high-value mountain products
Identify private companies who consider ethical, environmental and humanitarian issues in their business decisions.
Establish links between these private companies and development projects in mountain regions (e.g. private companies provide training to mountain producers, in order to increase quality of products that companies will then purchase).
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