Parliamentarians play an important role in guiding public investments, particularly in the agricultural sector, as they are responsible for passing laws, approving government budgets, and overseeing government action. Investing in agriculture is one of the most effective strategies for ending poverty and hunger. However, experience shows that not all investments are equally beneficial, and some carry risks for people and the environment.
The Principles for Responsible Investment in Agriculture and Food Systems (CFS-RAI Principles) is the world's leading policy instrument for defining how to achieve investments that generate long-term sustainable benefits. The instrument also outlines how agricultural investments should respond to development challenges such as food insecurity, climate change, and gender inequality.
The training program will provide Gabonese parliamentarians with the knowledge they need to optimize potential investments in the agricultural sector. Promoting transformative change at the national level to ensure responsible investment requires the right legal, institutional, and policy frameworks, which parliamentarians can help facilitate. The training is based on the handbook "Responsible Investments in Agriculture and Food Systems: A Practical Handbook for Parliamentarians and Parliamentary Advisors,, which was developed by FAO and IISD with inputs from parliamentarians and parliamentary advisors from different countries. The guide, which is also available in an interactive format, gives practical tools and concrete examples for parliamentarians to improve the legal and policy environment promoting responsible investment in agriculture.
Following the launch of the handbook in Africa in December 2020, parliamentarians from different countries requested technical support to become more familiar with the tool and begin using it to improve and strengthen national legal and policy frameworks. Gabon has been chosen, along with the Republic of Congo, to benefit from such trainings, considering the priorities identified by the two national parliamentary alliances for food and nutrition security. The Gabonese Parliamentary Alliance for Food and Nutritional Security (APGSAN) was created in October 2019 with the support of the FAO sub-regional office for Central Africa, and its office was opened on October 25.
