At the 13th UNDFF Steering Committee, WFO calls for a decisive shift to national implementation, highlighting the role of family farmers, women and youth, and urging direct climate finance to empower family farmers to lead sustainable food systems solutions.

Addressing the 13th meeting of the International Steering Committee of the UN Decade of Family Farming (UNDFF), the World Farmers’ Organisation (WFO) called for a clear shift away from broad global policy ‘mainstreaming’ toward specific, concrete national implementation actions.

As WFO concludes its mandate as Vice-Chair, Secretary General Dr Andrea Porro thanked the Chair Amb Ada Francisca de Asís Hernández Rivera, FAO, IFAD, and fellow farmers’ organisations—including the World Rural Forum and La Via Campesina—for their coordination and support throughout the decade.

Reflecting on nearly ten years of the Decade, WFO noted that implementation at the country level remains the missing link. “We need countries to establish National Plans to engage family farmers, through their organisations, for implementing policies and programmes in support of the agricultural sector,” the Secretary General stated. The WFO remains hopeful that more countries will embrace the role of family farmers in addressing challenges like food insecurity, biodiversity loss, and climate change.

This call for implementation is particularly urgent as the global community enters the International Year of the Woman Farmer. The WFO emphasised that when agriculture is rooted in the family, its value extends beyond business to the “transition of agricultural values“ to new generations. The Secretary General was firm in stating that amplifying the voices of women and youth is not merely a matter of equity, but a “prerequisite for the sustainable transformation of our food systems.” Through the WFO Women’s Committee, the organisation is committed to ensuring this International Year moves beyond symbolism to achieve “concrete visibility, recognition, and action” for women as leaders and innovators.

This vision of empowerment ties directly to the climate agenda. Bringing the momentum from last November’s COP30 Farmers’ Summit in Brasília, the WFO reminded the Committee that climate solutions must be “farmer-driven,” since family farmers are the “natural link” in discussions on climate, biodiversity, and resource management. However, for these farmers to lead, they require a radical shift in finance, moving away from complex bureaucracy toward financial instruments specifically tailored to the family-based sector. “Ensuring that funds reach families of farmers directly is essential for enabling real and timely transformation,” the Secretary General concluded.

While the formal Vice-Chair role may be transitioning, the WFO reaffirmed its dedication to the UNDFF Global Action Plan to remain a steadfast advocate, pushing the family farmers’ agenda forward until 2030 and beyond.

Cover photo: Screenshot from the Thirteenth meeting of the International Steering Committee (ISC) of the UN Decade of Family Farming 2019-2028 (UNDFF).