The Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA) issues this statement following the conclusion of the 30th Conference of the Parties (COP30) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) that was held from 10th to 21st November 2025, in Belem, Brazil. While AFSA acknowledges the efforts of parties and negotiators in Belem, the final outcome referred to as the Mutirao falls short of the ambition required to confront the climate crisis, particularly as it relates to food systems and agriculture.
As a continental network representing over 200 million small-scale food producers, Indigenous Peoples, pastoralists, women, and youth, AFSA entered COP30 with clear expectations that parties would take decisive steps to integrate food systems transformation into the climate agenda. These expectations were grounded in AFSA’s pre-COP30 policy positions covering priority areas including the Global Goal on Adaptation (GGA), the Sharm el-Sheikh Joint Work on Agriculture (SJWA), National Adaptation Plans (NAPs), Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC 3.0) submissions, the Just Transition Work Programme, and climate finance.
No Recognition of Food Systems in the Mutirao Decision
The Mutirao is the final negotiated outcome of COP30 and draws its name from a Brazilian Portuguese concept referring to collective work, shared labour, or community effort, typically mobilised to advance a common good. In the spirit of cooperation, the Mutirao decision was expected to represent a unified, ambitious global effort to accelerate climate action.
However, despite the symbolism, the final Mutirao text contains no references to food systems or agriculture, omitting sectors that are both highly vulnerable to climate impacts and central to global emission trajectories. This absence weakens the alignment between global climate ambition and the realities facing communities on the ground.
Despite growing scientific consensus that food systems account for nearly one-third of global greenhouse gas emissions, and despite agriculture being among the most climate vulnerable sectors globally, the final decision does not mention agriculture, food systems, food security, or food production. This omission represents a major setback, particularly for the global south, where agriculture employs the majority of the population and remains the backbone of livelihoods.
Unmet COP30 expectations
Ahead of COP30, AFSA had set out to follow on key priority areas, calling for meaningful progress across critical climate and food systems priorities. These included the Global Goal on Adaptation (GGA), the Sharm el-Sheikh Joint Work on Agriculture (SJWA), National Adaptation Plans (NAPs), Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC 3.0) submissions, the Just Transition Work Programme, and climate finance. However, AFSA recognises that;
Parties did not reach consensus on integrating agroecology into the GGA indicators. The lack of clear indicators limits the ability to track adaptation outcomes linked to food systems, soil health, biodiversity, and other agroecological metrics.
The Sharm el-Sheikh Joint Work on Agriculture remains without a defined institutional future beyond 2026. AFSA had hoped COP30 would secure stronger governance, technical collaboration, and long-term continuity but these were not achieved.
While many African countries have developed or submitted NAPs, financing gaps, institutional challenges, and limited support for locally led approaches remain unresolved. COP30 did not secure the grant-based financing mechanisms required to translate NAP commitments into action.
As countries prepare their next cycle of NDCs, COP30 did not send a clear signal encouraging inclusion of food systems transformation or agroecology within national commitments.
While Parties advanced discussions on the Just Transition Work Programme, agriculture which is Africa’s largest employing sector and most climate sensitive remains insufficiently addressed within the framework.
Parties did not provide clarity on the scale, structure, or accessibility of pledged climate finance and without clear financial commitments, it remains challenging for African communities to scale agroecology and community-driven climate solutions.
Concerns Over Stakeholder Imbalances
AFSA observed a higher presence of industrial agricultural interests throughout COP30, particularly within the Agrizone. This space showcased technologies and narratives rooted in industrial monocultures, genetically engineered seeds, and fossil fuel dependent production models, approaches that have long intensified climate vulnerability, undermined small-scale producers, and degraded soils across the global South.
The overwhelming visibility and resources of agribusiness stood in contrast to the limited visibility and constrained participation of smallholder farmers, who are responsible for feeding over 60% of the world’s population, yet consistently marginalized in global climate decision-making.
While multistakeholder dialogue is essential, the dominance of high-input, industrial agriculture narratives overshadowed the needs and knowledge of smallholder farmers and Indigenous communities. These imbalances risk skewing global discourse towards technological fixes and export-oriented models that do not address the structural vulnerabilities of African food systems.
AFSA’s Way Forward
AFSA reaffirms its commitment to working with governments, regional bodies, civil society organisations, and global partners to advance:
- Integration of agroecology into global and national climate frameworks as a scientifically grounded, socially just pathway for resilience, adaptation, and mitigation.
- Accessible, grant-based climate finance that reaches communities at the frontline of climate impacts.
- Strengthened participation of small-scale producers, Indigenous Peoples, women, and youth in UNFCCC processes.
- Evidence-based advocacy to ensure that future climate negotiations recognise food systems transformation as central to achieving the Paris Agreement goals.
- Constructive engagement in the lead-up to COP31, with specific attention to GGA indicators, SJWA decisions, NAP implementation, NDC 3.0 submissions, and just transition architecture.
Call to Action
The Mutirao decision provided an opportunity for collective global action. However, without explicit recognition of food systems and agriculture, it represents an incomplete response to the climate crisis. AFSA therefore urges parties to use the months ahead to rectify these gaps, strengthen ambition, and ensure that the next climate talks deliver outcomes that reflect the centrality of food systems to climate resilience.
AFSA also reaffirms its commitment to mobilizing African movements, amplifying frontline voices, and advocating relentlessly for food sovereignty, agroecology, and climate justice across the continent and the world.
