Latin America and the Caribbean

Abstract and Main Features

The Latin American and Caribbean Parliament (PARLATINO) unanimously approved the  Model Law for the Promotion of Agroecology (Proyecto de Ley Modelo de Promoción de la Agroecología, in Spanish)  during its General Assembly on 5 December 2024, at its headquarters in Panama. This milestone legislation aims to advance resilient and sustainable agricultural practices across the region, offering a robust framework to enhance food security and sustainable development. Agroecology is presented as a transformative approach to agri-food systems, integrating ecological and social principles to optimize the relationships between plants, animals, humans, and the environment. The Law aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) outlined in the 2030 Agenda, particularly in the areas of eradicating poverty and hunger (SDG 1 & 2), improving health and well-being (SDG 3), ensuring gender equality (SDG 5), fostering decent work and economic growth (SDG 8), and combating climate change (SDG 13). 

The main features of this Model Law are that: 

• It is built upon previous Model Laws developed by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), including those on the Right to Food, School Feeding, Family Farming, and Climate Change and Food Security.  
• It is aligned with the Global Parliamentary Pact Against Hunger and Malnutrition, adopted in Valparaíso in 2023 during the Second Global Parliamentary Summit Against Hunger and Malnutrition.  
• It contains 10 chapters covering the legal implications, the institutionalization of the promotion of agroecology, the creation of national policies for agroecology, the monitoring of the implementation and transition, the innovation, education and food culture, participation of the civil society, the international cooperation, the finance and promotion. 

Objectives 

The purpose of this Model Law is to establish a legal framework for the protection and promotion of agroecology. The provisions contained in this law apply throughout the national territory, with regional and local reach. This legislation is compulsory for all individuals or legal entities, public or private, who are subject to the jurisdiction of the State.

Its primary objectives are: 

• Integrating fragmented regulations to create a cohesive legal framework by incentivizing countries to develop the national policy for the agroecological promotion. 
• Encouraging agroecological education and innovation to build awareness and capacity among farmers and stakeholders. 
• Strengthening institutional frameworks for monitoring of the agroecology transition and promoting agroecology at the national level. 
• Enhancing civil society participation in shaping agricultural policies. 
• Facilitating government financing through subsidies and incentives to support agroecological practices. 
• Promoting international cooperation to reinforce agroecology as a sustainable approach to food production.

Key Target Groups  

The Model Law focuses on smallholder and family farmers, women and youth in agriculture, Indigenous peoples, Afro-descendant communities, rural communities and local food producers, and agricultural stakeholders involved in agroecological transition. 

Expected Results 

The Model Law is expected to deliver the following results: 

• Support the use of agroecological practices in rural, urban, and peri-urban areas for sustainable agricultural, fishing, agroforestry, agropastoral, environmental, food, and territorial development. 
• Promote the agroecological transition and support people who undertake these processes. 
• Promote instruments that guarantee food and nutritional security, as well as the realization of the human right to adequate food. 
• Regulate the adoption, implementation, and evaluation of a National Policy for the Promotion of Agroecology. 
• Coordinate the actions and responsibilities of government bodies on agroecological issues, including multi-sectoral and intergovernmental approaches at the different operational and organizational levels. 
• Discourage policies and practices that limit and hinder agroecological transition processes. 
• Ensure the inclusive nature of agroecology, involving the actors of peasant family farming, women, young people, Indigenous Peoples, Afro-descendant communities, and local communities. 
• Establish participatory governance in decision-making regarding the structure and functioning of agri-food systems. 

Model Law Development Process 

The Model Law was developed with technical support from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), drawing from its 2021 publication, Legislate to Promote Agroecology in the Latin America and Caribbean Region. The Bill was prepared with the assistance of the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID). To ensure inclusivity, FAO, in collaboration with the Brazilian association Agricultura Familiar e Agroecología (AS-PTA), facilitated three public consultations in 2023 across the Caribbean, Mesoamerica, and South America. These consultations engaged parliamentarians, civil society representatives, academics, and international organizations, ensuring that the legislation addresses the diverse realities and needs of each member country. 

Ministries and Stakeholders Involved in the Process 

• In the preparation of this proposal, different units of the FAO have contributed: the Unit for Collaboration on Family Farming and Parliamentary Networks (PSUF), the Plant Production and Protection Division (NSP), the Legal Service for Development of the Legal Office (LEGN), and the Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean. 
• Parliamentary Front Against Hunger of the Latin American and Caribbean Parliament (PARLATINO) commission on Agriculture, Livestock, and Fisheries 
• Agricultura Familiar e Agroecología (AS-PTA) 

Implementation 

To ensure the implementation of agroecological measures stipulated by the Model Law, the following action areas have been identified: 

• The State shall regulate this law within a period of six months counted from its publication. Failure to meet the deadline established in this article entitles any interested person to resort to the judicial route to request the mandatory enforcement of this provision. 
• An Executive Branch will establish the name or specific designation that the Collegiate Body for the Promotion of Agroecology created in this law will receive. 
• Within the peremptory period of one month from the publication of this law, the Executive Power shall appoint the public authority that will act as the Governing Body for the Promotion of Agroecology established in this law 
• The law will come into effect on the date of its publication. The absence of regulation will not affect its applicability. 

Budget and Funding 

The application of the provisions of this law will be financed with charges to public and institutional budgets, in accordance with the current legal provisions. The State must allocate sufficient budgetary and financial resources for measures to promote agroecology, particularly for the following areas:

• Guarantee the adoption, implementation, and evaluation of the National Policy for the Promotion of Agroecology and its derived instruments, as well as the functioning of the institutional operational structure of the management bodies in charge of said policy. 
• Adopt economic and fiscal measures to promote agroecology and discourage production, processing, marketing, and consumption practices that are neither sustainable nor healthy. 
• Develop and strengthen national, local, and regional markets to support the marketing of agroecological products and promote people’s access to agroecological foods. 
• Provide agricultural insurance mechanisms for the protection of necessary inputs for agroecology, which will include the safeguarding of heirloom seeds. 
• Promote policies for access to water and land and for the demarcation of indigenous and local community lands, to improve the quality of life of farmers. 

N.B. This summary did not receive an official review from the PARLATINO. 

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Image Credit: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)