The Final Report of the Forum on Communication for Development and Community Media for Family Farming (FCCM) is now available under the title: Rural Communication Services for Family Farming: Contributions, Evidence and Perspectives.
Organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in collaboration with the World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (AMARC), the Forum was convened from 23-24 October 2014 in the FAO Headquarters in Rome, Italy.
The Forum – which brought together farmer and research organizations, rural institutions, specialists, government regulators, communication specialists, investors and academia – addressed opportunities for promoting rural communication services (RCS) as sustained, inclusive and efficient communication processes involving family farmers and the rural population, and considered how to better integrate these services into agricultural policies.The FCCM maintained the focus of the 2014 International Year of Family Farming (IYFF) by featuring extensive dialogues and experience sharing among stakeholders which reinforced the importance of rural communication, community media and Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in supporting the livelihoods of family farmers.
The discussions resulted in a set of recommendations to promote the institutionalization of RCS, including among others aligning national laws and policies on RCS with international standards, investing in establishing an evidence base to promote funding opportunities and partnerships in support of RCS and enhancing the communication capacity of rural actors.
Please visit the FCCM webpage for more highlights including audio recordings, photos and presentations, or read the full report here.