New Delhi, 21 November 2023 – The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), as partner UN organizations launched the Joint Programme for Enhancing the Resilience to Climate Change of Migrant and Vulnerable Households in the coastal areas of Odisha State and drought-prone areas of Telangana State on Tuesday, 21 November 2023 at the UN House in New Delhi. The three-year project is supported by the Migration Multi-Partner Trust Fund (MMPTF) and will be implemented in the two states of Odisha and Telangana at the intersection of migration, agriculture, and climate change. MMPTF is the only UN financing mechanism fully dedicated to supporting joint initiatives of Member States, the UN system and other stakeholders in the national implementation of the Global Compact on Migration (GCM).

The launch was chaired by Mr Franklin Khobung, Joint Secretary (NRM), Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Government of India. Present in person were representatives from the office of Mr Shombi Sharp, UN Resident Coordinator; member representatives from the MMPTF donor countries of Mexico, The Netherlands, Portugal and Türkiye; Mr Sanjay Awasthi, Head of Office, IOM; Dr Konda Chavva, Assistant FAOR; and the project staff from both UN agencies The Principal Secretaries of the Departments of Agriculture (DoA) from both project states – Odisha and Telangana – had ensured participation through delegated persons. Dr Satya Sharada, Special Commissioner for Agriculture from Telangana represented the state. Dr Nagendra Mallick, Nodal Officer from DoA, Odisha participated online, while Mr Dinesh Balam from Odisha Millets Mission participated in person. Other relevant stakeholders, including NGOs, attended the event online.

Speaking during the hybrid event, Mr Khobung shared, “In the agricultural sector in India, climate resilience is one of the focus areas. Climate change impacts the lives and livelihoods of many people, especially the rural populations. Migration is also one of the consequences. With India having diverse climatic conditions, the government calls upon the need for adaption measures in the agriculture sector.” Considerable work has been done by ICAR through NICRA, which also needs to be spread. The National Mission on Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA) is one of the missions within the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC). Representatives from the states echoed the vulnerability faced by respective states due to climate change and the need to collaboratively work on the interconnectedness between agriculture, migration and climate change. For instance, under the project, the state of Odisha, which faces regular floods, is keen to explore more salt-tolerant crop varieties.

The spirit of ‘One UN’ was reinforced by the presence and words of the UN Resident Coordinator who declared the launch and highlighted the relevance of the joint programme to the UN’s work in India aligned to both the UNSDCF and the SDGs, weaving the “seemingly technical but inherently connected issues of migration, agriculture and climate change”. He expressed promise on the joint programme “adopting a human rights-based approach with a tight focus on gender equality and women empowerment (GEWE) allocating well over 35 per cent of the programme budget to meeting GEWE goals”.

From the MMPTF donor nations representatives from the Embassies of The Netherlands, Mexico, Türkiye and Portugal participated. The Agriculture Counsellor from The Netherlands and the International Cooperation Affairs officer from Mexico remarked how the lessons from the joint programme would be relevant in many regional and global contexts where the intersection of human mobility and agriculture remains to be properly understood.

Phillippe Grandet from the Fund Management Unit of the MMPTF, in a video message, acknowledged all the 20 donor countries of the Trust Fund, namely Germany, The United States of America, The United Kingdom, Norway, Denmark, France, The Netherlands, Sweden, Spain, Portugal, Mexico, Ireland, The Philippines, Luxembourg, Thailand, Cyprus, Türkiye, Bangladesh, Morocco, and Azerbaijan. He highlighted the collaboration between the Global North and South, and its importance in implementing the first Joint Programme in India that focuses on protecting the human rights, safety, and well-being of migrants through addressing drivers and mitigating situations of vulnerability.

Sanjay Awasthi, Head of Office, IOM, highlighted the “necessity of creating interventions which are inclusive, broad-based, with effective feedback loops, that support international migration governance and management frameworks.” On that, he expressed confidence in how the joint programme “enhances and enlarges the scope of migration management”, greatly enriched by the “One UN approach, which is visible in the room today”.

Acknowledging the opportunity provided by this joint programme to FAO and IOM, Dr Chavva emphasized the meaningful contribution the Joint Programme will make to the lives and livelihoods of smallholder farmers, empower women, youth and marginalized groups and build the climate resilience of migrant and vulnerable households. “FAO acknowledges that migration is part of the evolution of societies and of the process of economic, social and human development and transformation. FAO focuses on rural migration, from, to and between rural areas, regardless of the duration, direction or causes of the movement”, he added. FAO intends to build on its work on climate-resilient agriculture while IOM will dovetail with migration support services.

The Joint Programme is a three-year project that seeks to address the interlinking issues around migration, agriculture, climate change, and the integration of individuals who migrated to or returned to rural communities in India. In summary, the Joint Programmes seeks to support vulnerable households and local communities on their journeys.