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Overhaul of Agriculture Systems Needed

In the midst of the growing world food crisis, International Assessment of Agricultural Science and Technology (IAASTD), an independent and multi-stakeholder international assessment of agriculture has concluded that a radical change is needed in agriculture policy and practice, in order to address hunger and poverty, social inequities and environmental sustainability questions.

The report's message is that the business-as-usual scenario of industrial farming, input and energy intensiveness, and marginalization of small-scale farmers, is no longer tenable. While past emphasis on production and yields had brought some benefits, this was at the expense of the environment and social equity. Moreover, there is a recognition that excessive and rapid trade liberalization can have negative consequences for food security, poverty alleviation and the environment.

The final report of IAASTD, the product of work of over 400 authors, was finalized at a meeting of over 50 governments held in Johannesburg 7-12 April 2008.

To read an analysis of the final report by the lead Author of IAASTD's East and South Asia and the Pacific Report, Lim Li Ching, a Senior Fellow at the Oakland Institute, Click Here (http://www.oaklandinstitute.org/?q=node/view/477 ).

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