FAO promotes regional solutions for land and territory at the International Conference on Agrarian Reform and Rural Development

Within the framework of the International Conference on Agrarian Reform and Rural Development (ICARRD+20), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean presented an agenda aimed at promoting dialogue on issues such as equitable access to land and water, strengthening agrarian justice, and fostering sustainable and inclusive rural development.

ICARRD+20 is a global gathering with participants from more than 100 countries, seeking to address current territorial challenges and strengthen land governance. From 24 to 28 February, it brought together governments, international organizations, academia, Indigenous Peoples, peasant communities, Afro-descendant populations, rural women, youth, and civil society in Cartagena de Indias.

Colombia exercised leadership as the host country, with the support of FAO, the Government of Brazil, and other institutions.

Through various spaces for dialogue and exchange, the FAO regional office shared analyses, experiences, and tools that will contribute to advancing toward more just territories with greater opportunities for rural communities.

“These topics reflect FAO’s commitment to advancing toward more inclusive, resilient, and sustainable territories, providing technical evidence, regional coordination, and support to countries in their efforts to continue promoting rural development,” said Amparo Cerrato, FAO Land Tenure and Natural Resources Officer.

The 2006 International Conference on Agrarian Reform, organized by the Government of Colombia—with technical support from FAO—consolidated equitable access to land as a pillar for fighting hunger and rural poverty. Its agreements helped promote key instruments such as the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security (2012), and the recognition of land access in the 2030 Agenda, thereby strengthening the rights of historically excluded rural populations.

The Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean participated in a session organized together with Brazil’s Institute for Colonization and Agrarian Reform (INCRA) and the Brazilian Cooperation Agency (ABC), within the framework of the FAO–Government of Brazil Cooperation Program. The session highlighted the role of South-South Cooperation in driving solutions designed within the region through intersectoral partnerships and exchanges of experiences.

There was also a dedicated space on land access and decent livelihoods for Andean-Amazonian rural women, organized by the ILC Regional Platform Women, Land and Territory, emphasizing the importance of recognizing their land rights, their productive role, and their leadership in territorial management. In the same spirit of strengthening rights, a specialized dialogue on agrarian and rural jurisdiction in Colombia addressed mechanisms to improve agrarian justice and contribute to territorial equity.

The agenda also included the session “Geography for Agrarian Reform: Data, Land and Peace,” organized by Colombia’s Agustín Codazzi Geographic Institute, highlighting how geospatial and cadastral information has become a strategic public policy tool to secure rights, design more precise public policies, and advance toward evidence-based territorial peace processes.

A regional exchange on water, food, and well-being was later held, underscoring the interdependence between natural resources, food security, and community quality of life. This dialogue offered space to reflect on sustainable management models and more equitable access to water and land that strengthen food systems, resilience, and peace in territories.

The participation of the FAO regional office concluded with a session dedicated to legal innovation and solidarity, where new mechanisms and collaborative frameworks were presented to democratize land access in Latin America and the Caribbean.