• CIHEAM Zaragoza organised an international symposium on the global future of agri-food development cooperation with the support of the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID). The event brought together over one hundred participants from development agencies, multilateral organisations, governments of donor and beneficiary countries, universities, research centres, Development NGOs, and civil society from 28 countries.

Introducción

On 11 and 12 November 2025, the International Centre for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies (CIHEAM Zaragoza), organised the international symposium 'New Models of Agri-Food Development Cooperation in a Changing Geopolitical Context' with the support of the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID).

The event gathered more than one hundred experts from development agencies, multilateral organisations, governments of donor and beneficiary countries, universities, research centres, Development NGOs, and civil society from 28 countries, participating either in person or online. This broad representation of stakeholders provided a comprehensive overview of the current challenges and opportunities for agri-food development cooperation in an increasingly complex geopolitical environment.

The symposium also marked the Day of the Mediterranean (28 November), declared by the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) to foster a shared Mediterranean identity, culture, and cooperation.

Rethinking international development cooperation in the new geopolitics

Representatives of multilateral bodies and European cooperation institutions (OECD, DG MENA, FAO and FIAP) debated three pressing issues: how to respond to a weakening cooperation environment, how to renew cooperation strategies, and how to ensure that agri-food systems become drivers of transformation.

The speakers agreed that the current model is at a critical juncture. According to OECD data, Official Development Aid (ODA) declined by 9 % in 2024. Combined with budget cuts affecting agencies such as USAID, SIDA and AFD, this trend is affecting cooperation capacities.

In the light of increased fragmentation and resource withdrawal, the panel advocated understanding cooperation as long-term social investment capable of strengthening institutional systems and rebuilding citizens’ trust. They also underlined the need to shift from discretionary cooperation mechanisms towards a human rights-based approach, acknowledging the right to food as a universal right in line with international agreements and FAOs Voluntary Guidelines.

The Euro-Mediterranean region was discussed as a strategic laboratory for a new generation of cooperative pacts based on reciprocity, knowledge mobility, and sustainable resource management, as reflected in DG MENA’s Pact for the Mediterranean.

Adapting for impact: the role of European development agencies in a changing world. Reshaping multilateral and bilateral agri-food cooperation

The second session convened the Global Donor Platform for Rural Development (GDPRD), Spanish cooperation (AECID), Italian cooperation (AICS), the French agricultural research centre for international development (CIRAD), and an expert with longstanding professional experience at USAID. Together they provided a global perspective on how agri-food cooperation is evolving: from isolated projects towards systemic and catalytic approaches embedded in ecological, social, and economic transitions.

The central block of the session addressed the financing of agri-food transformation. The widening gap between required resources and current funding flows was highlighted, with a strong call for public finance to play a catalytic role —reducing fragmentation, enhancing coordination, de-risking investments, attracting private capital, and driving systemic change rather than supporting isolated interventions.

Speakers shared concrete examples of impact investing in agrifood SMEs, including the N3F fund (USAID and Swiss Cooperation, SDC), which finances enterprises producing nutrition-dense foods for local markets and models such as Aceli or FASA, which combine incentives for financial institutions, technical assistance and data generation to increase credit for high-risk agricultural SMEs.

The session also underlined the importance of coordination between public and private stakeholders and civil society, and the role of research as a driver of innovation.

AECID’s regional programme for the Arab world, Masar Al’an, was presented as a tool to strengthen the socioeconomic resilience of farmers —particularly women and youth—, demonstrating how institutional reform, training, entrepreneurship support and innovative financing can be integrated within a single cooperation architecture.

Development cooperation from the perspective of southern and eastern Mediterranean countries’ needs

The third session focused on the priorities of Africa, the eastern Mediterranean and northern Africa. Panel members included representatives of the African Development Bank, the Agricultural Research Centre of Egypt, the National Institute for Agricultural Research of Morocco, and a consultant specialising in humanitarian and development projects who presented Lebanon’s cooperation needs.

Speakers highlighted the key vulnerabilities of African food systems; low agricultural productivity, unsustainable land expansion, and rapid urban population growth, all contributing to a growing dependence on imports.

Egypt outlined a similar reality in the Nile Valley: high import dependency, mounting pressure on extremely scarce water resources and the need both to reclaim new land and increase crop yields.

Morocco’s Green Generation 2020-2030 strategy and INRA’s research agenda position climatic adaptation, soil and water management, biodiversity, and reduced import dependency at the core of agri-food transformation.

Lebanon was described as having a highly heterogeneous economic structure, marked by a concentration of capital at both ends of value chains, a mosaic of small farms and a fragmented agrifood industry.

Overall, the session reinforced a fundamental principle: without listening to and empowering institutions, communities, and scientific actors of the southern and eastern Mediterranean, we will be unable to transform agrifood systems and build the trust needed to confront the present and future crises.

Thematic proposals for a new paradigm of development cooperation

The workshop examined how new cooperation models influence five key areas: gender, environment, youth, water, and food security. The panel included representatives from CARE, FAO, IWMI, UN Women and IUCN.

The speakers agreed on a robust diagnosis: gender inequality in agrifood systems is not incidental but rooted in structural barriers embedded in economic, social, and political systems.

Women make up approximately 26 % of the agricultural workforce yet they are consistently relegated to low-paid informal employment, limited access to land, inputs, credits, technology, and training and carry a triple burden of productive work, unpaid domestic and care responsibilities, and community roles.

The workshop emphasised that water, climate, and biodiversity agendas cannot be addressed without social justice. IUCN demonstrated how biodiversity conservation and social equity are closely interconnected: ecosystem degradation increases rural women’s vulnerability, while conservation efforts are only sustainable when they incorporate women’s knowledge, rights, and priorities.

The youth perspective was linked to innovation and decent working conditions. IWMI underlined that women and youth are key factors in water management and innovation in the agri-food sector, but continue to face barriers such as access to land, finance, support networks, and decision-making spaces.

The workshop explored the relationship between food security and the social organisation of care. UN Women Spain emphasised the importance of valuing rural women’s time and unpaid care work and promoting their participation in decision-making and public policy spaces. Speakers also called for investment in both social infrastructure (care services, transport, health services) as well as productive infrastructure.

The role of NGOs in the new development cooperation architecture

The role of the Development NGOs in the new development cooperation architecture

The round table on the role of Development NGOs highlighted that cooperation is suffering a prolonged crisis, but at the same time is undergoing a profound reinvention. Panellists emphasised the need to defend rights in an increasingly hostile environment.

In a context of political questioning of development cooperation and rising attacks on aid workers, the session examined how civil society organisations are responding and what role they play in the new cooperation architecture. Organisations with international and Mediterranean scope such as Oxfam, Fundación Promoción Social, Coordination SUD and CERAI provided complementary perspectives covering global advocacy, work in conflict settings and agroecological cooperation.

A strong message emerged: the need to advance towards localised, decolonised cooperation models, which rebalance relationships between organisations from the Global North and the Global South, placing local organisations at the centre of decision-making. In such models, NGOs from the Global North function as facilitators rather than central actors.

Speakers also underlined that NGOs must diversify funding sources, strengthen internal professionalisation, foster social innovation and build stronger links with citizens to ensure sectoral sustainability.

The challenge of generational renewal was also discussed. At a time of frustration and precariousness, development cooperation must remain an attractive professional field for well trained, committed young people.

Civil society in developing countries: perspectives on current and future development cooperation

The fifth session gave the floor to organisations from Burkina Faso, Peru, Colombia, and Palestine. They stressed that cooperation only makes sense when it is territorially anchored, recognises local identities and is oriented towards food sovereignty and social justice. Their interventions delivered a clear message: effective cooperation is not measured solely in funded projects, but in community-owned processes that generate sovereignty, resilience, and dignity. They spoke of the need to shift from ‘doing projects’ to ‘building community processes’.

Discussions revealed a common thread: the future of international cooperation must be local and community-based, emerging from the practical realities of territories and the capacities of civil society. Gender equality and youth empowerment were repeatedly highlighted as essential drivers of resilience, innovation, and social cohesion in rural and conflict-affected areas.

Cooperation must be understood as a process rather than merely funding. Sustainable change occurs when international support strengthens capacities, fosters ownership, and aligns with territorial priorities.

Organisations also pointed to the need for renewed investment in agriculture and food systems, education reform, and digital innovation to address underdevelopment, food insecurity, and climate vulnerability.

Spain’s decentralised cooperation landscape: current status and emerging trends

This session examined decentralised cooperation in Spain, a distinctive ecosystem in Europe in which autonomous communities, municipal funds and territorial networks have become central actors in cooperation policy. The session was divided into two parts: In the first part, the Coordinator of Development NGOs in Spain, Euskal Fondoa, the Confederation of Cooperation and Solidarity Funds (CONFOCOS) and the Andalusian Fund of Municipalities for International Solidarity (FAMSI) discussed regional approaches, and the in the second, Cooperation Economists (ECOPER), representatives from Zaragoza Provincial Council, and the University of Zaragoza addressed local dimensions.

Speakers noted that decentralised cooperation is a hallmark of the Spanish system, yet currently faces budgetary stagnation, increasing political scrutiny and an urgent need to innovate instruments, governance, and narratives.

They highlighted that Spain’s decentralised cooperation is unique in the European context, given the extensive network of autonomous communities, and provincial, city and town councils that develop their own international cooperation policies. Since the 70s and 80s, town-twinning and early solidarity initiatives have evolved into today’s structured municipalist funds and networks.

The session also explored the distinct value of decentralised cooperation in agriculture and food. Speakers stressed that its scale and proximity enable strong connections between Agenda 2030 and daily life, linking agrifood systems in the Global South with shifts in consumption and production patterns in the Global North.

Beyond data, the session closed with a presentation highlighting the human and political dimension of this cooperation model, illustrated by the experience of hosting refugees in Aragon, an example of how decentralised cooperation is expressed through hospitality and coexistence.

Conclusions

The symposium clearly demonstrated that international development cooperation, particularly in the agri-food sector, has reached a turning point marked by a financial and political structural crisis, exacerbated by declining Official Development Aid (ODA) and the fragmentation of multilateralism. In this context, it is essential to redesign cooperation mechanisms to make them more flexible, prospective, and aligned with human rights, especially the right to food.

Agri-food systems in the southern and eastern Mediterranean and in Africa, face acute vulnerabilities stemming from import dependence, climatic challenges, rapid urbanisation, and social inequalities. The symposium highlighted the need to move from assistentialist and fragmented approaches towards systemic, catalytic strategies capable of mobilising structural investments, including innovative financing modalities.

Cooperation must strengthen public institutions and scientific communities in the southern and eastern Mediterranean, support knowledge exchange, and technological innovation, and ensure inclusive spaces for women and youth. It must also foster integration across public, private, and civil society actors and promote donor coordination to reduce fragmentation and maximise impact.

Speakers also expressed the urgent need to mainstream gender equality and give a more prominent role to youth in all development agendas to build fairer, more sustainable, and resilient systems. They also pointed to decentralised cooperation with a strong presence of local communities and governments as a key mechanism to connect international action with territorial reality.

Finally, the symposium reaffirmed cooperation as a long-term social investment capable of restoring the citizens’ trust and contributing to a more equitable and environmentally respectful society.