Sikkim shortlisted for FAO’s Future Policy Award

Sikkim’s State Policy on Organic Farming and Sikkim Organic Mission have been shortlisted for an award conferred by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations for the world’s best policies promoting agroecological approaches.

The 2018 Future Policy Award (FPA) will commend proven policies that effectively scale up agroecological approaches at local, national and international levels. It will celebrate outstanding examples for accelerating the transformative change in the way food is produced and consumed.

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In total, 51 policies from 25 countries were nominated and among those shortlisted as the world’s best policies in the support to scale up agroecological approaches include Brazil’s National Policy for Agroecology and Organic Production, Organic Action Plan for Denmark: Working together for more organics, Sikkim’s State Policy on Organic Farming (2004) and Sikkim Organic Mission (2010), the From Arms to Farms Programme in Philippines and Los Angeles’ Good Food Purchasing Policy (2012).

According to information about the Sikkim Organic Mission online, Sikkim became the first state in India to officially announce adoption of Organic Farming in the year 2003 to ensure long term sustenance of soil fertility, protection of environment and ecology, healthy living and decreasing the risk of health ailments.

In 2003, Sikkim stopped imports of chemical fertilizers in the State and since then the cultivatable land there is practically organic and farmers of Sikkim are traditional users of organic manure.

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Winners of this year’s Future Policy Award will be announced on October 12 and celebrated during World Food Week in a ceremony this week at FAO headquarters in Rome.

The Future Policy Award 2018 is co-organised by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the World Future Council and IFOAM Organics International, with the support of Green Cross International, DO-IT Dutch Organic International Trade and Sekem Group, Egypt.

The organisations said with their holistic approach and impressive impact, these eight legal frameworks and policies create enabling environments for the implementation of agroecology, help achieve the ambitions of the 2030 Agenda and contribute directly to multiple Sustainable Development Goals.

“Agroecology is a key pathway to support the transition towards healthier and more sustainable food systems. The selected policies are outstanding examples featuring important agroecological elements that support such transitions. Leadership and political will are key to achieve them. FAO encourages such leadership and is committed to join hands to accelerate the needed transformation,” FAO Deputy Director-General Maria Helena Semedo said.

The potential of agroecology to achieve healthy nutrition for all and to address social injustice, climate change and biodiversity loss has been internationally recognised, World Board President of IFOAM Organics International Peggy Miars said.