OECD Global Forum on Agriculture

OECD Global Forum on Agriculture 2021: Policies for a more resilient agro-food sector

Virtual | 8-9 June 2021

Globally, the agro-food sector faces a growing and increasingly complex combination of risks. Climate change and resource scarcities are projected to increase the intensity and frequency of natural hazards – powerful storms, plant and animal diseases, and severe droughts and floods – disrupting agricultural production, and jeopardising farmers’ livelihoods and wellbeing. The sector is also continuing to adjust to the largest global pandemic in more than a century, COVID-19, which has impeded the migration of seasonal labourers, affected the wellbeing of workers in food processing plants, and disrupted supply chains and access to traditional marketing outlets.

The OECD Global Forum on Agriculture 2021 is an opportunity for countries to share their experiences in developing policies that can enhance the resilience of the agro-food sector to current and future risks. Building resilience to adverse events implies planning and preparing for shocks before they occur, coping and adapting to them when they strike, and recovering and transforming in ways that provide greater robustness afterwards. A more integrated approach to building resilient systems can reduce vulnerabilities and hence the need for emergency coping measures. Sessions held virtually over two days will highlight innovative policy approaches to building agro-food sector resilience to natural hazards as well as shocks to both domestic and international markets.

Global Forums on Agriculture

The OECD Global Forums on Agriculture foster an informed dialogue between OECD member and non-member economies on agricultural policies issues. This dialogue is based on regular monitoring and analysis to evaluate and strengthen the process of policy reform and trade liberalisation through forward-looking analysis, and addresses emerging agricultural policy issues.