Resource information
There has been considerable discussion over the past thirty years on how to define “sustainable agriculture.” During most of this period, sustainability was exclusively considered an environmental issue and was therefore measured as such. The 2030 Agenda requires that all sectors, including agriculture, be considered from the point of view of the three dimensions of sustainability: economic, social and environmental. This multidimensional role of agriculture requires it to be seen and analysed in a more holistic and broader context than in the past; that is, to include social, environmental and economic dimensions underpinned by governance and resilience.
SDG indicator 2.4.1, which is under the custodianship of FAO, will capture these multidimensional aspects once developed, validated, endorsed and operationalized. SDG 2.4.1 has been categorized as a Tier III, which means it does not yet have an internationally recognized methodology nor time series of data. As part of this responsibility, FAO has been tasked with leading the work on developing a methodology for this indicator, which is defined as the “percentage of agricultural area under productive and sustainable agriculture”, where agricultural area is defined as arable land, permanent crops and permanent meadows and pastures. The numerator must be adequately aligned with sustainable food and agriculture and therefore capture these three dimensions: environment, economic and social.
The initial concept was endorsed in March 2016 by the Inter-Agency and Expert Group on SDG indicators (IAEG-SDG) and is summarized in a two-page metadata note. The methodology has been further refined through technical consultations and has been included in an expanded methodological note1 . The document presents a comparison of previous attempts to develop a similar indicator and practices to define sustainable agriculture; a proposed framework, with a selection of metrics by dimension and possible thresholds; the steps for calculating the indicator; and data collection strategies.
Objectives
The purpose of this workshop was to bring together technical experts and statisticians to provide guidance and support to the methodological work being conducted for SDG indicator 2.4.1. This included providing input and feedback to the draft concept note. In particular, there was significant attention dedicated to reviewing the sub-indicators by dimension, their calculation and data collection, and how to combine them to compute the indicator.
Expected outputs
The results from the meeting will be used in guiding the final draft of the concept note, which will be tested through desk studies, peer-reviewed, amended and put forward for final approval and endorsement by the IAEG-SDG. Once the methodology has been approved, FAO and other partner organizations will start preparing data collection guidelines and producing training material in order to support countries in their monitoring efforts.
