Evaluation of FAO’s contributions to Sustainable Development Goal 2

Studies and reports on the farmer field school (FFS) approach show that it develops the skills and knowledge of farmers, allowing them to create more efficient and sustainable production systems and, thus, contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). As far as SDG 2 is concerned, while there is an indirect link to targets 2.1 and 2.2, the largest FFS contributions are to be found in relation to targets 2.3 and 2.4, which focus on increasing agricultural productivity and income, and sustainable production systems and agricultural practices, respectively. The main objective of this review was to inform the SDG 2 Evaluation on the relevance and contribution of the FFS approach to the SDG 2 targets and the principles of the 2030 Agenda. It found that in addition to developing the methodology at the heart of the approach and exporting it to countries and regions to support small-scale farmers, FAO achieved significant results and brought about substantial change on various levels. The review concluded that FFS went beyond the mere sharing of information and focused more on knowledge discovery through direct experience and community co-creation. The review recommends that FAO continue its work to support national governments in scaling-up the approach while ensuring the quality of the methods. FAO should also ensure that the benefits to farmers’ empowerment continue and contribute to greater coordination and monitoring of results and progress made.