The FAFO is organized on a four-year cycle, with global meetings being held every four years and regional consultations organized in between these meetings. The first cycle of regional FAFOs took place between 2017 and 2019 in Africa, Asia and the Pacific, and Latin America. The main outputs of these regional consultations were a set of Action Plans by countries to strengthen collaboration between FOs and IFAD.

IFAD President, Gilbert Houngbo, will open the Forum on Thursday 6 February with members of the FAFO Steering Committee. IFAD will present its analysis of evolving partnerships with farmers’ organizations from the Partnership in Progress Report 2016-2019.

On the second day, five thematic working groups will address the following issues:

• Climate change and the transition to agroecology
• United Nations Decade of Family Farming and the engagement of farmers’ organizations in the preparation of the Food Systems Summit
• Women’s leadership
• Youth in agriculture
• New instruments for IFAD’s twelfth replenishment  

A Synthesis of Deliberations and Recommendations will be presented at the closing session on Monday afternoon and at the plenary of the IFAD Governing Council on 11 February.

Side events will be help on 10 and 11 February. A special session on the Food Systems Summit 2021 will be held on 10 February in the afternoon, including a dialogue between farmers’ leaders and the Special Envoy of the UN Secretary General for the Food Systems Summit, Agnes Kalibata, and a presentation of the report Farmers and food systems, what future for small-scale agriculture?