Civil society organizations from Africa and Europe urge a fundamental reset in AU-EU agricultural cooperation. They call for an end to corporate-led industrial models and demand public investment in agroecology, food sovereignty, and environmentally just food systems. The EU’s Global Gateway strategy and support for GMOs, synthetic inputs, and IP regimes are seen as threats to African autonomy and biodiversity.
Key Themes & Recommendations
- Make Food and Agriculture Central
- Elevate agriculture in the AU-EU agenda.
- Align climate, trade, and development policies with inclusive food systems.
- Support Democratic, Coherent, Rights-Based Policies
- Ensure policies are led by producers and uphold human rights.
- Align with international instruments like UNDROP, UNDRIP, CEDAW.
- Require human rights and environmental impact assessments.
- Redirect Finance to Agroecology
- End public support for fossil-fuelled industrial agriculture.
- Allocate at least 30% of agricultural funding to agroecology.
- Cancel unsustainable debt; direct climate finance to communities.
- Protect Farmer-Managed Seed Systems
- Legally recognize these systems, reject GMOs and UPOV-style IP regimes.
- Support seed sovereignty through local investment.
- Ensure Fair, Inclusive Trade
- Reduce food import dependency; protect local markets.
- Reevaluate trade deals and the Global Gateway to benefit communities.
- Eliminate Toxic Inputs, Protect Workers
- Ban EU export of banned pesticides.
- Phase out chemical fertilizers; promote agroecological soil practices.
- Ensure safe, fair working conditions.
- Stop Land and Ocean Grabs
- Ban large-scale land deals; enforce free, prior, informed consent (FPIC).
- Protect customary tenure; provide restitution for displaced communities.
- Reject false solutions like carbon offsetting.
- Strengthen Family Farming & Territorial Food Systems
- Invest in local markets and agroecological procurement.
- Shield from harmful imports and supermarket dominance.
- Deliver on the UN Decade of Family Farming.
- Promote Gender Equality & Youth Inclusion
- Require gender-equity analysis of investments.
- Guarantee access to land, finance, leadership for women and youth.
- Address Root Causes of Displacement
- Stop using development funds for migration control.
- Invest in rural livelihoods and community-based food systems.
- Focus peacebuilding on food and land rights, not extraction.
Conclusion:
Civil society calls for a partnership rooted in justice, ecology, and dignity, rejecting extractivist models in favour of locally rooted, sovereign food systems.
Click to view the full recommendations here
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The statement remains open for organisational endorsements until September 2025 – we invite you to sign on.
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