Launching the Innovate2030 Challenge at COP26, the Make IT-Alliance unites innovators from around the world for a global innovation program. The alliance includes the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and its partners from the United Nations Climate Convention (UNFCCC), the European Commission, Bosch, and Atos.
GIZ is a globally active provider of international cooperation for sustainable development. It has more than 50 years of experience in a wide range of fields.
In 2023, the world's population will cross the threshold of eight billion people. By mid-century, nine billion people will populate the earth. Already today, the majority of them live in cities, a trend that will only continue in the future. Cities and metropolitan areas are indeed economic powerhouses.Yet they are also responsible for about 70 percent of global carbon emissions and over 60 percent of resource consumption. Rapid urbanization is leading to congested infrastructure, air pollution and unplanned urban sprawl. Developing countries in particular are becoming a hotspot for these negative trends.
These changes also have significant implications for ongoing urbanization, which is a key driver of economic and social growth. Indeed, for a sustainable development, important interactions between urban and rural areas must be taken into account.
Nearly all food, water, raw materials, and similar primary necessities of urban life are imported from rural areas. Therefore, rural development needs to be at the forefront of national development planning in general and urban development in particular. Productive rural agriculture also helps minimize rural depopulation and rapid urbanization causing various social issues in urban areas.
With food shortages already severe and climate change on the rise, agriculture in African countries must increase its economic, environmental and social performance - and the time to act is now.
Thus, this year's Innovate2030 program, initiated with BMZ digilab and in collaboration with the Make-IT Alliance, the European Commission, and the UNFCCC, focuses on SDG11: 'Sustainable Cities and Communities'.
Click here to learn more about the Innovate2030 Challenge and how to participate!
In Eastern El Salvador, campesinos are cultivating a self-image to encourage rural youth to remain in rural areas. With help from Caritas, they have adjusted the cultivation methods to their soils and traditions - Marvin Antonio Garcia Otero,the deputy director of Caritas of the Diocese of San Miguel believes this is the best way to prevent rural exodus and criminality.
Insurance companies could provide protection during droughts in Africa. How exactly this could be done is what the industry is currently trying to figure out. First experiences are available. An interview with the Managing Director of the Munich Re Foundation, Thomas Loster
The Global Hunger Index (GHI) 2020 shows that the world is not on track to meet the international goal of “zero hunger by 2030”. If we continue at our current speed, around 37 countries will not even have reached a low hunger level by 2030.
The first Climate Adaptation Summit put climate adaptation at the center of politics for the first time. The virtual meeting united global players with one goal: building resilience is just as important as climate protection itself. Around 15,000 participants discussed direct proposals.
110 speakers from 120 countries met virtually at the Global Forum for Food and Agriculture (GFFA) to discuss the challenges to global food supply. They asked the question: How can food systems support the health of people and the planet?
Environmental change is having a particularly strong impact on the African continent. Its landscapes see both negative and positive processes. What is science's view of this? A conversation with Cyrus Samimi about mobility for livelihoods, urban gardening and dealing with nature.
In August, Germany’s development ministry set up a division concentrating on One Health topics. Parliamentary State Secretary Maria Flachsbarth on knowledge gaps at the human-animal-environmental interface, the link between One Health and food security, and lessons learnt from previous pandemics.
From the lab to the masses: Maria Andrade bred varieties of biofortified sweet potatoes which are now widely used all over the continent. She sets her hope on the transformation of African agriculture.
Financial innovations can prevent a crisis turning into a catastrophe. The livelihoods of people in affected areas may well depend on intervention before a crisis – and on risk funds.
Freshwater deficits are affecting more and more people throughout the world. In order to counter this, our global food system will have to change, our author maintains. A case for more research on alternative crops and smart water solutions.
A contribution by Kerstin Weber and Brit Reichelt-Zolho (WWF)
Biodiversity and sustainable agriculture ensure the nutrition of whole societies. But there is more: These two factors also provide better protection against the outbreak of dangerous pandemics. Hence, the question of preserving ecosystems is becoming a global survival issue.
Double interview with Tony Rinaudo and Volker Schlöndorff
Tony Rinaudo uses conventional reforestation methods to plant millions and millions of trees – and Volker Schlöndorff is filming a cinema documentary about the Australian. The outcome so far: An educational film on behalf of the BMZ (Federal Ministry for Economic Co-operation and Development).
If there is a lack of fertile soil and rain, hunger breaks out quickly. Maria Smentek from the World Food Programme (WFP) explains how farmers and pastoralists can counter climate change with hydroponic-systems.
The majority of producers in developing countries are women. Although they contribute significantly to the food security of their families, they remain chronically disadvantaged in male-dominated agriculture in terms of access to land, credit, technology and education.
Interview with Bernadette Arakwiye und Salima Mahamoudou (World Resources Institute)
Deforestation is leading to a shortage of ressources. What are the options for counteracting? A conversation with Bernadette Arakwiye and Salima Mahamoudou about renaturation and the possibilities of artificial intelligence.
It began with clicks at a trade fair and ends with concrete reforestation: a campaign at the Green Week in Berlin is now enriching the forests of the Yen Bai Province in Vietnam. A chronicle of an education about climatic relevance to concrete action - and about the short distances on our planet.
A contribution by Dr. Kathleen Mar and Dr. Nicole de Paula
Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, health is receiving unprecedented public and political attention. Yet the fact that climate change is also affecting the environmental and social determinants of health in a profound and far-reaching way deserves further recognition.
A report by Bettina Rudloff and Annette Weber (SWP)
The Corona-Virus exacerbates existing crises through conflict, climate, hunger and locusts in East Africa and the Horn of Africa. What needs to be done in these regions? To face these challenges for many countries, all of these crises need to be captured in their regional context.
A report by Alexander Müller and Jes Weigelt (TMG)
As the climate changes, the population of Africa is growing and fertile land and jobs are becoming scarcer. New ways are currently leading to urbanisation of agriculture and a new mid-sized sector in the countryside
A contribution by Michael Brüntrup (DIE) und Daniel Tsegai (UNCCD)
Droughts are the natural disasters with far-reaching negative consequences. While rich countries are still vulnerable to drought, famines are no longer found.
Climate change is destroying development progress in many places. The clever interaction of digitalisation and the insurance industry protects affected small farmers.
A study by the World Bank predicts that millions of people in sub-Saharan Africa will have to leave their homelands because of climate change. We have spoken with one of the authors
Adaptation to climate change can be achieved by making agriculture more environmentally sustainable – if the rich countries also reduce their emissions
The WWF has published a sensational study on food waste. The focus: farm-stage food waste. Peter McFeely, Global head of communications and strategic planning at WWF, explains what needs to be done.
Genetically modified bacteria become edible proteins, cows graze on pasture, and no waste is produced in an industrial circular economy. Journalist Jan Grossarth sees a silver lining for the future of world nutrition
"One World no Hunger" (SEWOH) becomes one of the five core themes of the BMZ. Dirk Schattschneider, SEWOH Commissioner about previous approaches, future areas of action, and the political will to end hunger.
Every one degree Celsius rise in temperature increases the risk of conflict by two to ten percent. The climate crisis is a humanitarian crisis, as the photos by Christoph Püschner and Frank Schultze illustrate.
At the climate conference in Glasgow, activists from various groups protested again – Leonie Bremer from ‘Fridays for Future’ was there too. How can climate protection and development cooperation work hand in hand?
The climate crisis fuels world hunger. What needs to change in the global fight against hunger, and which role plays humanitarian aid in international development cooperation?
Climate change already affects the daily lives of people in the Global South. What are the challenges they face and what do these imply for negotiations at the climate conference in Glasgow?
How investing in healthy soils provides incentives for more sustainable agriculture even as it demonstrates the need for far reaching changes in the agrisector.
Indian farmers restore precious soil material combining traditional with innovative approaches. A case example how governance, agriculture and development cooperation can work together to combat climate change.
This year's United Nations World Drug Report highlights for the first time the nexus between illicit drugs and the environment. In view of climate change, it is time to feed the debate with facts and make drug policy greener
Agroecological methods target diversity and resilience and can thus promote the protection of forests, water and soil. Julia Tomalka and Christoph Gornott, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), on the potential of agroecology to safeguard against climate change and build resilient agri-food system.
Martin Frick has been director of the WFP office in Berlin for a year – since then one hunger crisis has followed another. What are the diplomat's answers? A conversation about opportunities in agriculture, the interplay of multiple crises, the importance of resilience and tighter budgets.
Nations adopted four goals and 23 targets for 2030 to foster biodiversity conservation and counter acceleration in the global rate of species extinction at the UN Biodiversity Conference (COP15).
Development cooperation needs to place good governance and a sustainable agri-food systems transformation at its center: After the first 100 days in office have passed, Dirk Meyer from the German Development Ministry (BMZ) spells out the goals, guidelines and priorities of the Ministry’s new lead.
A Contribution of the 'Initiative for Sustainable Agricultural Supply Chains' (INA)
Fair Trade organisations and the Initiative for Sustainable Agricultural Supply Chains (INA) have launched the #ichwillfair campaign during COP26 to highlight the link between global supply chains and climate change.
Stephanie Heiland, Project Manager at Sector Project Agriculture and part of this year’s Observer Delegation of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) at COP27, shares her insights on the role of agriculture and food systems at the climate conference. Among other things, she reports from GIZ’s COP27 side event ‘Climate resilient agriculture and food systems in times of multiple crises and fragility’.
Future generations need more sustainable and stable agri-food systems. But how can this comprehensive transformation succeed and what responsibility does the private sector bear? These questions were the focus of the G7 Sustainable Supply Chains Initiative (G7 SSCI) side event as part of the ‘Champion Youth Action’ day at the 27th UN Climate Change Conference (COP27).
The Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development sees sustainable agri-food systems as an opportunity to protect the climate, preserve biodiversity and ensure food security in the future. Dirk Meyer, Head of Directorate-General 1 at the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, looks ahead to the upcoming COP27.
The world is facing major challenges that need to be solved. We need to feed an ever-growing population, bring climate change under control and stop the loss of biodiversity. Martina Fleckenstein, Director of Global Policy at WWF, on what is expected from the climate conference in terms of biodiversity and biodiversity conservation.
Women can play a vital role in the change process both when it comes to climate protection and adapting to climate change. But the reality is often still not quite like this: women and girls are particularly badly affected by the climate crisis. Is the topic of gender getting enough attention at the upcoming climate conference? Questions for Bettina Jahn from UN Women Germany.
At LCOY Germany, the local youth climate conference, views on climate protection from all political spectrums are discussed. The Fairactivists, a programme of Fairtrade Germany, participated with a panel discussion on the link between social justice and climate justice.
The CompensACTION Initiative for food security and a healthy planet, launched by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) in 2022, is gaining momentum. It aims to financially compensate smallholder farmers for their contribution to preserving ecosystems. Initial successes have been achieved in Ethiopia, Lesotho and Brazil.
Iraq suffered many years of war, sanctions and economic crises. However, Ally-Raza Qureshi from the World Food Programme in Iraq sees progress. But now the effects of climate change are becoming apparent in the country. What is to be done?
Journalists Angeline Ochieng and Victor Raballa visited Ms Bilha Munyole, a Kenyan farmer in Kimilili, Bungoma County, on her maize plantation. About the important role of mechanisation in climate-smart agriculture and in building resilience to the impacts of climate change.
Given the urgency of transforming agricultural and food systems, GIZ India's Food Systems and Agroecology Working Group is exploring the potential of agroecology in collaboration with Think20 partners. A policy brief has now been published.
In the West Bank, political tensions and increasingly poor weather conditions are making farming more difficult. What needs to be done? Questions for Abbas Milhem, Executive Director of the Palestinian Farmers Union (PFU).
With the annual topic "Earth’s well, all’s well!", Fairtrade Germany is focusing on the concept of agroecology at all levels - and is thus taking the next step towards achieving greater global sustainability. At the Green Week trade fair, Fairtrade Germany will show how this can be achieved taking the cocoa supply chain as an example.
Roughly 800 million people suffer from hunger worldwide. Change is needed - for people and for the environment. Brot für die Welt reports on the starting points offered by everyone's ecological footprint and handprint.
Every second, worldwide, we lose valuable and healthy soil with the size of four football fields. This was only one of the many facts being presented to a wide audience in Bonn and worldwide via livestream at the World Desertification and Drought Day on 17th June 2024. This was the 30th anniversary of the United Nations Convention on Combatting Desertification (UNCCD), which was celebrated at the Bundeskunsthalle in Bonn.
From January 9 to 11, 2025, heads of state and government of the African Union met in Kampala, Uganda. With a clear vision and concrete measures, the Kampala Agenda aims to make the continent's agricultural and food systems climate-resilient, fair and future-proof by 2035.
The bioeconomy movement is fundamentally changing agriculture and food production: through innovative ideas, environmentally friendly approaches and the realization that we need to work together globally to ensure that change truly benefits everyone. At this years’ German Forum for Food and Agriculture (GFFA), the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) focused on this topic.
Small holders around the world are often forced to sell their harvests below market value due to a lack of market and pricing information. A new app by the UN World Food Programme (WFP) is going to change this.
The project “Scaling digital agriculture innovations through start-ups” (SAIS) supports Africans going into business in the agricultural and food sector in scaling their digital innovations and thus reaching out to a larger number of users.
From a circular food system in Rwanda to functioning cooled transports in Kenya: The lab of tomorrow addresses development challenges such as preventing food loss and waste
Vertically growing plants, magnetic cotton. Hairy leftovers fertilizing fields, tractors running on algae? These six innovations could lead agriculture’s next Green Revolution!
In March 2022, the virtual conference ICTforAg summons leading actors in the agrartechnology and food sector from low- and middle-income countries to exchange ideas advancing resilience, nutrition and agriculture-led growth.
At the ICTforAg conference in March 2022, the digital agriculture community exchanged on the challenges and opportunities associated with the next green revolution.
The finals of the Innovation Challenge “Advisory for Agroecology” took place on 17 May - 2022 featuring six innovations in advisory that provided the basis for a discussion on how to bridge the gap between science and practice.
Data security, financing, the automation of loans and the use of alternative data - the digitalisation of financial services in the agricultural sector has many facets, which an international conference with representatives of the agricultural finance sector in Zambia addressed. But how does the digitalisation of financial services contribute to rural development and the inclusion of women?
A new study on the digitalisation of agriculture puts farmers back at the centre of their own sector, identifies market gaps and gives recommendations on how to support relevant actors.
Four interviews kick off the relaunch under the new name „Food4Transformation“, asking the same questions from different perspectives. Mareike Haase and Stig Tanzmann from Brot für die Welt explain why the right to food, inclusivity, agroecology and food sovereignty are the central levers for a successful transformation.
Four interviews kick off the relaunch under the new name „Food4Transformation“, asking the same questions from different perspectives. Dr Julia Köhn, Chair of the German AgriFood Society, points out in the interview: Only if innovation and transformation are profitable in the medium term can they close the food gap in the long term.
Small farmers often have a hard time getting financing. An app in Nigeria wants to change that: Founder Blessing Mene about what his app offers - and about the opportunities and limitations of agricultural financing.
A Campaign of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development
In light of World Food Day, the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development launched a campaign: Three women from Kenya, Benin and Ecuador share how their ideas and local solutions are fighting hunger and poverty.
In Sub-Saharan Africa, not all financial institutions (FIs) have access to knowledge about how to implement processes to enhance rural financial inclusion. The pan-African Community of Practice (CoP) plays a pivotal role in supporting these institutions along this transformative journey.
How can agriculture engage more young people in rural areas? Advocacy and education campaigns can play an important role here. Simeon Kambalame, Timveni Child and Youth Media Organisation, has launched such a campaign in Malawi.
A Contribution by Initiative für nachhaltige Agrarlieferketten (INA)
The demand for sustainable products and supply chains is constantly increasing. DIASCA is an alliance that works on interoperability of digital solutions in agricultural supply chains through the development of open standards for forest monitoring, farm income and traceability.
Recycling organic waste into soil amendments and animal feed through a transdisciplinary approach – this is what the RUNRES project, launched in four sub-Saharan African countries four years ago, seeks to achieve. Three of the project's scientists report.
VR glasses are hardly a conventional tool in agriculture: for the past three years, they have been used in rural areas of Burkina Faso and Cameroon as a training tool for sustainable cotton cultivation.
As a passionate social scientist and entrepreneur from Malawi, Ngabaghila Chatata knows that she can overcome any challenge. Her story stands out in a country faced with high unemployment, particularly in its rural areas. As the managing director of Thanthwe Farms, she has set out to inspire the next generation of young agripreneurs – proving that successful business starts with the right mindset, not only capital.
Maura Oerding has a mission: With the specialty coffee Angelique's Finest, she not only wants to enter new markets but also revolutionize the coffee industry. Her recipe for success? Empowering women from Rwanda and Uganda from cultivation to marketing. Oerding’s goal: quality, fairness, and self-determination in every bean.
In 2025, GIZ and the Import Promotion Desk (IPD) celebrate ten years of successful cooperation. With their joint stand at BIOFACH trade fair in Nuremberg, they were able to introduce over 300 organic companies of partner countries to the European market. And the journey continues – despite challenges on the global market.
How can agriculture modernise Africa? And does the road to the cities really lead out of poverty? Dr. Reiner Klingholz from the Berlin Institute for Population and Development in conversation with Jan Rübel .
Cities play an important role in the transformation of food systems. But what exactly are the potentials and challenges? A three-way discussion between Ruth Okowa (Gain), Delphine Larrousse (World Vegetable Center) and Conrad Graf von Hoyos (GIZ).
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