Category:
Location/Scale: 
Brazil (National)
Implementing Organisation:
Federal Government of Brazil
Period:
2012 – now
In a nutshell
The Brazilian National Plan for Agroecology and Organic Production (PLANAPO) is the main instrument to implement the Brazilian National Policy for Agroecology and Organic Production (PNAPO). It aims to improve the quality of life of the population by widening and consolidating actions towards a sustainable rural development and by increasing the consumption of healthy food. To work towards this goal, the PLANAPO follows six strategic axes: Production; Use and Conservation of Natural Resources; Dissemination of Knowledge; Commercialization and Consumption, Land and Territory and Socio-Biodiversity. Ten ministries are involved in creating and carrying out policies and programmes to work towards the goals of the National Plan. The Interministerial Chamber for Agroecology and Organic Production (CIAPO) coordinates the actions of the ten ministries and the National Commission for Agroecology and Organic Production (CNAPO), which is composed by Government representatives and civil society actors, is in charge of monitoring the PLANAPO.
Context
The PLANAPO was created in 2012, after the so-called “March of the Daisies” in 2012, where rural women demonstrated for sustainable rural development, gender equality and better life conditions for the rural population. Ever since, civil society has always been strongly involved in the planning, the implementation and the monitoring of the PLANAPO. The “Ecoforte” programme, funded by the Banco Nacional de Desenvolvimento Económico e Social (BNDES) and the Fundação Banco do Brasil (FBB) Foundation is one of the PLANAPO’s pivotal elements: This program aims to strengthen agroecology networks and organic farming networks throughout the country by providing direct financial support. The PLANAPO supports the transition of all dimensions of sustainability.
Objective
The overall goal is to create a better quality of life for the Brazilians through the offer and consumption of healthy food and the sustainable use of natural resources. Fostering agroecological transition by strengthening organic and agroecological based production is seen as a key path to achieve this goal.
Key Interventions
National Level:
- Promoting food safety and nutritional sovereignty and the human’s right to healthy and adequate eating;
- Promoting the sustainable use of natural resources;
- Supporting the conservation and recovery of the modified ecosystems by privileging the use of production systems that reduce pollutant residues and the dependence on external inputs for production;
- Promoting fair and sustainable systems of production, distribution and food consumption
- Adding value to the agrobiodiversity and the sociobiodiversity products as well as stimulating local experiences of usage, conservation and management of vegetal and animal genetic resources;
- Enhancing the participation of rural youth both in the organic and agroecological based production;
- Contributing to mitigate gender inequalities through actions and programmes to foster the women’s economic autonomy.
Lessons Learned/challenges
It has become clear that the participation of the civil society in the elaboration and in the monitoring of the plan is crucial for its success.
The lack of a complete register of all organic farmers in Brazil is a great challenge for the PLANAPO. Furthermore, organic farmers’ access to credit facilities is still very restricted. There is also an urgent need for more technical assistance and extension programmes for agroecological and organic farmers. In order to make the PLANAPO a sustainable and stable instrument to strengthen organic and agroecological agriculture in Brazil, it is furthermore crucial to strengthen the plan at the federal level, thus to make it a public policy of the Brazilian State (instead of a government plan). The Brazilian government changes regularly and each change puts the PLANAPO at risk.