The founding document of SAGCOT, the Investment Blueprint, was developed by the founding partners encompassing government, donor partners, farmers, and the private sector. The SAGCOT Investment Blueprint details the objectives of SAGCOT and how these will be achieved. This is a long-term initiative, which will take 20 years to fully implement. However, the positive impact of bringing the public and private sector together to develop agriculture is already yielding results. Since its inception, SAGCOT has achieved the following main milestones:

O meio rural tem sido palco de grandes investimentos externos, sobretudo na exploração de recursos naturais (mineração e florestas). Estão acontecendo novas dinâmicas na economia rural e, em particular, nas actividades de pequena escala que se traduzem no aumento de actividades – comércio informal, emprego, migração, recursos provenientes da extracção de pequena escala de recursos naturais (sobretudo da floresta – carvão, lenha, estacas, garimpismo, etc.), pequeno transporte de curta distância, entre outras) que, em princípio, concorrem com a produção agrícola e alimentar em particular.

O meio rural tem sido palco de grandes investimentos externos, sobretudo na exploração de recursos naturais (mineração e florestas). Estão acontecendo novas dinâmicas na economia rural e, em particular, nas actividades de pequena escala que se traduzem no aumento de actividades – comércio informal, emprego, migração, recursos provenientes da extracção de pequena escala de recursos naturais (sobretudo da floresta – carvão, lenha, estacas, garimpismo, etc.), pequeno transporte de curta distância, entre outras) que, em princípio, concorrem com a produção agrícola e alimentar em particular.

... Myanmar is an agricultural based country and the agriculture sector is the backbone of its economy. The agriculture sector contributes 34% of GDP, 23% of total export earnings, and employs 63% of the labour force. About 75% of the total population reside in rural areas and are
principally employed in the agriculture, livestock and fishery sectors for their livelihood.

... Rice productivity in Myanmar has stagnated in comparison with other rice producers in the region. Once the world’s largest rice exporter, Myanmar is now a relatively minor player exporting an average 631,000 MT annually over th past 4 years. However, the nation’s export potential remains high because of abundant land and water resources, recent indications of progressive policy reforms, increased agricultural investment, and constructive international engagement.

Includes land and food security; an overview; a short literature review (food security, governance); the impact of large scale land acquisitions on food security and nutrition (environmental and social impact assessments, national versus international investors, gender and food security, new research).

Agriculture sector growth has made a
powerful contribution to post-war economic recovery in
Tajikistan, accounting for approximately one third of
overall economic growth from 1998 to 2004. Sector output
increased by 65 percent in real terms during this period,
and has now returned to the level extant at independence in
1990. Total Factor Productivity (TFP) has also increased, by
3 percent per year. Despite this progress, there is

The purpose of this study was to assess the bio-energy sector in Tanzania and to critically inquire the threats, benefits and opportunities to smallscale producers and sustainable environment management. Based on the terms of references this study focused on areas where land is earmarked or already in use for production of biofuels in Tanzania for both large and small-scale firms. The development of policy of liquid biofuels and other policies in general were examined.

FAO is working with national partners to set up a sustainable system for monitoring the impact of food and agricultural policies for the first time in Africa. Through MAFAP, FAO has developed common indicators for monitoring key commodities and public expenditure in agriculture. This helps policy makers and donors understand if policies are having a positive impact and compare results across countries and over time.

Contract farming is one of the illustrated examples of the impact of globalization and liberalized economic policy in the agriculture sector. While the farm sector is facing an identity crisis amidst growing dominance of the industrial sector, contract farming helped to create a new hope in this scenario. It established a link between the farm sector and the corporate sector too. This way it created new prospects for the agricultural sector, and added to the dignity of the farmer. However, the actual practice was often not so farmer-friendly.

Through the New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition, in 2013 G8 countries are seeking to mobilise the private sector and multi-national corporations to boost African agriculture. This new Future Agricultures / PLAAS briefing (pdf) looks at how African countries are engaging with the New Alliance. The authors argue that large-scale acquisitions of land for corporate agriculture, which may result from New Alliance projects, pose a serious challenge for local markets and smallholder farmers.

In 2011, the Government of Nepal made its policy on climate change public. The policy envisions a country “spared from the adverse impacts of climate change, by considering climate justice, through the pursuit of environmental conservation, human development, and sustainable development [with] all contributing toward a prosperous society”. This objective of making Nepal and Nepali society more resilient to climate change is laudable, especially as emerging evidence suggests that Nepal and its people are likely to be very vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.