Event information

17 June 2019, 15:30-18:00

Downloads

Programme >

How the UN Declaration on the Rights of Peasants may contribute to the UN Decade of Family Farming

Event

Tea plantations in Tanzania Tea plantations in Tanzania

The UN General Assembly adopted, in December 2018, the United Nations (UN) Declaration on the rights of peasants and other people working in rural areas (UNDROP) as the results of more than six years of negotiation within the UN Human Rights Council.

The adoption of the UNDROP came at the perfect time to be a significant contribution to the UN Decade for Family Farming (2019–2028) that was officially launched at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) on 29 May 2019. It is, therefore, particularly relevant for the three Rome-based UN Agencies: the FAO, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the World Food Programme (WFP).

This event, co-organized with the Permanent Representation of Switzerland to the FAO, IFAD and WFP, the Permanent Representation of Costa-Rica to the UN Agencies in Rome and the Department of Political Sciences of University of Roma Tre, will present the UNDROP and discuss its contributions to the implementation of the UN Decade of Family Farming.

Welcome by Facilitator

  • Francois Pythoud, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Switzerland

Keynote Speech: The UNDROP

  • Christophe Golay, Senior Research Fellow and Strategic Adviser on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Geneva Academy

Keynote Speech: The UNDROP and the Right to Food

  • Cristiana Carletti, Professor, Dipartimento di Scienze Politiche, Università degli Studi Roma Tre

The UN Decade of Family Farming

  • Marco Vinicio Vargas, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Costa Rica

The Swiss Perspective on the UNDROP

  • Benjamin Müller, Human Right Policy Unit, Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs

Views of Peasants/Farmers

  • Ramona Duminicioiu, Member, Coordination Committee of the European Coordination Via Campesina

Discussion: How UNDROP may contribute to the UN Decade of Family Farming

  • Stephanie Hochstetter, Director Rome-Based Agencies and CFS, WFP
  • Charlotte Salford, Associate Vice President, IFAD
  • Marcela Villareal, Director Partnerships and South-South Cooperation, FAO

Wrap-up and conclusions

  • Amarilli Villegas, Deputy Permanent Representative of Costa Rica to the UN Agencies in Rome

Social event in the garden

The event will be followed from 18:15 to 20:00 by a reception in the gardens of the Istituto Svizzero di Roma, a unique location in the Centre of Rome.

MORE ON THIS THEMATIC AREA

neurodata graphics News

New Research Brief Evaluates the Effectiveness of GDPR in Mitigating Risks Associated with the Distinctive Nature of Neurodata

21 January 2025

Our recent research brief, Neurodata: Navigating GDPR and AI Act Compliance in the Context of Neurotechnology, examines how effectively GDPR addresses the unique risks posed by neurodata.

Read more

neurotech image News

Human Rights Concerns in Neurotechnology Examined in New Research Brief

15 April 2025

Our research brief 'Neurotechnology - Integrating Human Rights in Regulation' examines the human rights challenges posed by the rapid development of neurotechnology.

Read more

AI for Good Event Event

AI for human rights: Smarter, faster, fairer monitoring

8 July 2025, 14:00-16:00

The event, as part of the AI for Good Summit 2025 will explore how AI tools can support faster data analysis, help uncover patterns in large datasets, and expand the reach of human rights work.

Read more

Local Government Event

Enhancing National Reporting and Implementation of Human Rights through Coordinated Engagement at the Local and Regional Levels: The Role of NMIRFs

23 July 2025, 10:00-17:00

This seminar explores how national mechanisms for implementation, reporting and follow-up can better integrate the capacities, data, and experiences of local and regional governments in advancing human rights implementation and reporting.

Read more

Training

Human Rights and the Environment: Introducing Legal Regimes and Key Issues

1-8 September 2025

Participants in this training course will be introduced to the major international and regional instruments for the promotion of human rights, as well as international environmental law and its implementation and enforcement mechanisms.

Read more

A general view of participants during of the 33nd ordinary session of the Human Rights Council. Training

The Universal Periodic Review and the UN Human Rights System: Raising the Bar on Accountability

10-14 November 2025

This training course will explore the origin and evolution of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) and its functioning in Geneva and will focus on the nature of implementation of the UPR recommendations at the national level.

Read more

Online folders Project

Digital Human Rights Tracking Tools and Databases

Started in March 2023

This initiative wishes to contribute to better and more coordinated implementation, reporting and follow-up of international human rights recommendations through a global study on digital human rights tracking tools and databases.

Read more

View of a session of the UN Human Rights Council Project

Human Rights Conversations

Started in January 2020

A series of events aimed at discussing contemporary issues and challenges related to the promotion and protection of human rights in Geneva and beyond.

Read more

Cover of the publication Publication

Briefing N° 25: Localizing Multilateralism

published on March 2025

Domenico Zipoli, Ludovica Chiussi Curzi, Kamelia Kemileva

Read more

Cover page of the working paper Publication

AI Decoded: Key Concepts and Applications of Artificial Intelligence for Human Rights and SDG Monitoring

published on January 2025

Milica Mirkovic, Jennifer Victoria Scurrell

Read more