From June 17-19, 2009, the Southern African Confederation of Agricultural Unions (SACAU) will host a workshop to discuss a European Commission and IFAD program, “Support to Farmers’ Organizations in Africa Programme” (SFOAP) in Johannesburg, South Africa.

The SFOAP program aims to strengthen the institutional capacity of Farmers’ Organizations (FOs) in Africa, and support their engagement in policy dialogue. It will be implemented by the four Sub-Saharan African regional networks of FOs, namely Eastern Africa Farmers' Federation (EAFF) in East Africa, Plateforme sous-Régionale des Organisations Paysannes d'Afrique Centrale (PROPAC) in Central Africa, Réseau des Organisations Paysannes et de Producteurs de l’Afrique de l’Ouest (ROPPA) in West Africa, and Southern African Confederation of Agricultural Unions (SACAU) in southern Africa. The overall goal of the program is to improve the livelihoods of African rural poor farmers by enabling their organizations to influence policies and programs affecting agriculture, rural development and food security.

The workshop will be attended by the leadership of Sub-Saharan Regional Farmers’ Organizations, the representatives of the donor partners (EC and IFAD), as well as representatives of other agencies and donors involved in agriculture in Africa, such FAO, and CTA (Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation). It will focus on the importance of FOs in agricultural development, IFAD’s rationale for supporting FOs in Africa, the SFOAP program activities and budget, and complementarities and linkages with other agriculture related initiatives.

For more information, visit the SACAU website.