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About PELUM
PELUM
With the emergence and increasing demand of Climate Change agenda, biodiversity conservation and the sustainable development goals over the past few decades, sustainability directions in agriculture and food production have become increasingly prominent in policies at International, National and Regional levels. Agroecology approaches in particular, are very much associated with planetary boundaries and safe operating space definitions, and subsequent needs for new paradigms for producing, managing and consuming food and other products from farming.
In this regard, Agroecology transition is perceived as a means for the safeguarding of biodiversity and ecosystems services for sustainable, resilient agricultural production systems that contribute to mitigation and adaptation of climate change and environmental conditions, while providing food and nutrition security. Therefore, in order for PELUM Association to deliver on its mandate of ensuring that small-scale farmers in East, Central, and Southern Africa attain food sovereignty through agro-ecology and other farming best practices, as well as aligning itself to the sustainable development goals, there has been a great need to approach its work through relevant thematic groupings which all feed to the mandate of existence for the Association.
PELUM Association recognizes and acknowledges the great work done by each Country Chapter in supporting the implementation of the ELUM practices in the region. It is also recognized that each Country Chapter has its own strength and capacity in certain thematic areas as we roll out our mandate in this region, hence the need for PELUM Association to arrange approach to programmatic work into thematic groups. The role of country chapters in supporting the implementation of ELUM practices through member organizations has enabled the Association to transform the lives of more than 10 million farmers in the targeted region hence the importance of ensuring that each Country Chapter’s Programs Department/Section has the ability and capacity to deliver on their programmatic strengths effectively to attain the overall mandate of the Country Chapter and that of the PELUM Association.
The PELUM Association Regional Secretariat is responsible for the development of rules and procedures which govern the network members. The rules and procedures forms the memorandum of Association /the Constitution that every country chapter align their strategies to while promoting ELUM activities.
The thematic approach was endorsed by heads of programs from the various Country Chapters PELUM Association works with in the region. Five thematic areas were established as follows:
- i) Climate change adaptation
- ii) Thematic area on Agroecology and Biodiversity
- iii) Lobbying & Advocacy
- iv) Organizational functioning and institutional development
- v) Gender mainstreaming
- vi) Networking and partnerships