Bringing together a wide range of national and international partners from the environment, agriculture, nutrition, health and education sectors, the project will build on growing evidence showing that agricultural biodiversity has the potential to fulfill many of the nutritional requirements needed for a healthy and balanced diet and thus can help reverse the alarming trends in under- and over-nutrition afflicting many countries worldwide. The evidence will be used to conserve and promote the use of these species in the four countries by:

• Raising awareness of their importance
• Creating markets and value chains for their use
• Making sure that future policies and strategies that tackle malnutrition include the sustainable use of agricultural biodiversity as a cost-effective solution to rising diet-related nutrition and health conditions – such as nutrient deficiencies and obesity

The global multi-country-led project will make possible the exchange of experiences, tools and mechanisms and stimulate the identification of lessons learned and best practices that can be built upon as a global project. For example, in Brazil significant linkages have already been established between the agriculture, health and education sectors, which provide models and examples for the other countries participating in this project. Likewise, in Kenya efforts to enhance linkages between farmers and markets based on the nutritionally-superior African Leafy Vegetables provide excellent lessons and good practices for other participating countries. By bringing these experiences and practices together in a global context, the project will be able to facilitate considerable South-to-South cooperation and sharing, as well as potential for replication and scaling-up of these outputs and results beyond the project countries.

National partners

Brazil

• Ministry of Environment (MMA)
• Ministry of Agrarian Development (MDA)
• Ministry of Social Development and Fight Against Hunger (MDS)
• Ministry of Health (MS)
• National Food Supply Company (CONAB)
• Ministry of Education/National Fund for Education Development (MEC/FNDE)

Kenya

• Kenya Agricultural Research Institute
• Ministry of Medical Services
• National Museums of Kenya

Sri Lanka

• Ministry of Environment
• Department of Agriculture
• Department of Health
• Department of National Botanic Gardens
• Universities of Ruhuna, Peradeniya and Wayamba
• NGOs: Green Movement of Sri Lanka, Community Development Centre and Seva Lanka Foundation

Turkey

• Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA)
• Ministry of Environment and Forestry (MOEF)
• Turkish Association for the Protection of Nature (TTKD)

International partners

Funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the initiative is coordinated by Bioversity International with implementation support from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
Given the cross-sectoral and multi-disciplinary nature of this project, additional support is coming from the World Food Programme (WFP); the Earth Institute, Columbia University; Crops for the Future; the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF) and AVRDC - The World Vegetable Centre in facilitating both implementation and scaling up of activities.

For further information please visit the project website, download the BFN Project Flyer, or subscribe to the BFN Project Newsletter.

Donor: Generation Challenge Program