ASEAN

Abstract and Main Features

The ASEAN Policy Guidelines on Agroecology Transitions elaboration process was coordinated by the Lao Facilitated Initiative on Agroecology (LICA), established to support ASEAN countries (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam) in their transition to agroecology. The Guidelines aim at guiding transition “to an agriculture that is highly productive, economically viable, environmentally sound and which is based on the principles of equity and social justice” and point to agroecology as a “viable transformative approach in the context of a paradigm shift. They were adopted in August and October 2024, respectively at the 45th Special Senior Officials Meeting of the ASEAN Ministers on Agriculture and Forestry (SOM-AMAF), and the 46th Meeting of the ASEAN Ministers on Agriculture and Forestry (AMAF). 

The Guidelines have been elaborated to accelerate and deepen the realization of shared visions and plans for the Association of Southeast Eastern Asian Nations (ASEAN) member countries, including the Vision and Strategic Plan of ASEAN Cooperation in Food, Agriculture and Forestry 2016–2025, the ASEAN Economic Community Blueprint 2025, the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community Blueprint 2025, and the ASEAN Master Plan on Rural Development 2022 to 2026, among others. Agroecology transitions are seen as solutions to reach the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, the Rio Conventions on Climate, Biodiversity and Combat Desertification, the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework among other international commitments. 

Five principles to guide agroecology transitions were identified: 

• Improving efficiency in the use of our resource; 
• Conserving, protecting, enhancing natural ecosystems, promoting and enhancing nature resources and communities;  
• Protecting and improving rural livelihoods and social well-being;  
• Enhancing the resilience of people, communities and ecosystems; and  
• Promoting good governance of both natural and human systems. 

Key Leverage Points

The Policy Guidelines on Agroecology Transitions have seven key leverage points and suggested interventions that countries may want to adopt depending on their national context, to ensure the scaling out of agroecology transitions: 

• Guidelines on Planning for agroecology transitions  
  • 1.1 Formulate coherent policy and better targets for agricultural planning through agroecology 
  • 1.2 Engage stakeholders in planning processes 
  • 1.3 Apply a landscape or territorial approach 
  • 1.4 Engage private sector and strengthen planning rules for agribusiness 
• Guidelines on Working with farmers  
  • 2.1 Strengthen farmer’s, women’s and youth organizations and their active engagement in agroecology policy processes 
  • 2.2 Create enabling conditions to support farmers in transition 
  • 2.3 Promote a safe legal and institutional environment 
  • 2.4 Harness the potential of digital technologies and data/knowledge management systems 
• Guidelines on Promoting transitions across the agrifood value chains  
  • 3.1 Support domestic market development and short value chains for agroecological products 
  • 3.2 Create an enabling environment for domestic inclusive value-chain transformations 
  • 3.3 Adapt public regulations on food safety, quality standards and certification to support agroecology product differentiation and consumer conscious choices 
  • 3.4 Consumer oriented policies: health, nutrition sensitive measures 
  • 3.5 Support local value chain development for inputs, equipment and machinery 
  • 3.6 Reform trade-related instruments, price support and sourcing policies 
• Guidelines on capacity building and knowledge sharing 
  • 4.1. Build farmers and rural communities’ capacities, and facilitating farmers-to-farmers learning and exchange for agroecology transitions 
  • 4.2 Reshape extension and advisory services 
  • 4.3 Mainstream agroecology in vocational training, higher education and academic curricula 
  • 4.4 Enhance public awareness on Agroecology 
• Guidelines on multistakeholder engagement 
  • 5.1 Identify and co-develop clear objectives for engaging stakeholders 
  • 5.2 Conduct stakeholder mapping, and develop understanding of their perspectives and interests 
  • 5.3 Institutionalize engagement 
  • 5.4 Aim for transformative engagement beyond consultation 
• Developing a research agenda for agroecological transitions 
  • 6.1 Reshape research orientations to support agroecology transitions 
  • 6.2 Foster innovative approaches of doing research and coproducing knowledge with a variety of actors 
  • 6.3 Address farm scale agroecology research agenda 
  • 6.4 Address landscape-scale agroecology research agenda 
  • 6.5 Address food system-scale agroecology research agenda at various levels 
• Financing agroecology transitions 
  • 7.1 Create an enabling framework to repurpose public and private fundings towards the transition 
  • 7.2 Build a coherent national agroecology strategy and accountable framework to direct international funding into the transition 
  • 7.3 Develop innovative financial models that address smallholder needs for transitioning, while leveraging global sustainability finance 

Key Target Groups  

The Policy Guidelines on Agroecology Transitions have several key target groups, including public sector, policy makers and development stakeholders, producers, technical advisers, farmers’, women’s and youth organizations, Investors, entrepreneurs and companies. 

Expected Results 

The Policy Guidelines on Agroecology Transition aim to achieve the following impacts on socio-economic systems: 

• Improved farmers’ incomes and livelihoods 
• Enhanced economic prosperity and resilience  
• Improved social equity 
• Higher food security 
• Enhanced adaptive capacity 
• Minimization of social negative externalities both inside and outside the agroecological systems  

And the following ones on ecological systems: 

• Improved plant health  
• Enhanced soil fertility 
• Higher total productivity 
• Enhanced agroecosystem resilience 
• Minimization of environmental negative externalities both inside and outside the agroecological systems 

Guidelines Development Process 

The Policy Guidelines on Agroecology Transitions were elaborated during a consultative process which consisted of a series of multistakeholder consultations and workshops, and interviews with policy actors, using the participatory theory of change and human-centered design thinking approaches.  

Ministries and Stakeholders Involved in the Process 

The Policy Guidelines on Agroecology Transitions’ elaboration process involved actors from the Agroecology and Safe Food System Transitions in Southeast Asia (ASSET) project, as well as other key stakeholders including LICA, the Agroecology Learning alliance in South East Asia (ALiSEA), the Conservation Agriculture and Sustainable Intensification Consortium (CASIC) and the Asian Partnership for the Development of Human Resources in Rural Areas (AsiaDHRRA).  

The Guidelines have also identified a list of relevant actors promoting agroecology in the region (page 34). 

Implementation 

The ASEAN Sectoral Working Group on Crops (ASWGC) and the Lao facilitated Initiative on Agroecology (LICA) as a reference group for ASEAN will take the lead to promote the uptake and implementation of the Policy Guidelines. The following action areas have been defined:  

• National focal points for ASWGC, other sectoral bodies under ASEAN Ministers for Agriculture and Forestry (AMAF), LICA, and others have important roles in agroecology transitions at both regional and national levels. 
• The implementation actions and timeframes outlined below aim to strengthen regional policy processes and national follow-up on a voluntary basis.  
• Stronger engagement across sectors and policy processes is an important approach to implementation.  
• Periodic review and revision of the guidelines will be led by LICA with the support of the ASEAN Secretariat. This review and revision will help socialize the guidelines and ensure their continuing relevance and effectiveness. 

The Guidelines also propose suggestions for the elaborate Monitoring and Evaluation Framework at national level, including relevant agroecology assessment tools and data to monitor. 

Budget and Funding 

The Guidelines did not assess the budget that would be needed to support the implementation, but under the key leverage 7, they stress out the need to create an enabling framework to repurpose public and private fundings, to build a coherent national agroecology strategy and accountable framework to direct international funding into the transitions, and to develop innovative financial models that address the needs of smallholder farmers for transitioning (in various contexts), while leveraging global sustainability finance. These suggestions are also based on the existing ASEAN Guidelines on Promoting Responsible Investment in Food, Agriculture and Forestry (RAI). Possible funding streams were identified: domestic finance, development finance institutions, local banking sector and private investors. 

N.B. This summary did not receive an official review by ASEAN

 Do you want to send any suggestion or feedback about the information in this page? 

Image Credit: ASSET Project / CIRAD