Building capacity of public institutions and civil society for food systems transformation

There is a key need for capacity building at scale to support public institutions and civil society in this process, ensuring a steady increase in capacities over time to reinforce and sustain these investments and to realize the transformation fully. This includes but also goes beyond individual capacity development (including horizon scanning and course correction), and encompasses the capacity of a system (culture, behaviour, legislation, organizational structure, etc.) to drive and sustain the transformation at the national level. Skilled individuals, robust institutions and a common commitment to systemic change are essential for implementing innovative solutions, ensuring effective governance, and fostering collaboration across different sectors. Strengthening capacities at all levels enhances the ability to adapt to challenges and seize opportunities for comprehensive food systems transformation. This includes leveraging the unique expertise and mandates of various UN agencies and regional intergovernmental bodies such as the African Union (AU), the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and the European Union (EU) to access technical assistance and platforms promoting collaboration and dialogue. Additionally, the UN Food Systems Coordination Hub, Issue-based Coalition on Sustainable Food Systems for Europe and Central Asia (IBC-ECA), Latin America and the Caribbean UN Food Systems Task Force, and the UN Food Systems Task Force are accessible points of contact for you and your teams.

Critically, for any transition, the UN system will continue to build national capacities for the Rule of Law, in line with the Secretary-General’s New Vision for the Rule of Law. This includes increasing people’s engagement, enhancing equal access to justice for all, placing gender equality at the centre, protecting our planet, investing in future generations, properly managing data and digital technology, improving resilience, and turning the tide on the spread of mis- and disinformation.

During the emergence phase, your focus should be to build the capacity of national and subnational ministries as well as civil society actors to use foresight methodologies that develop long-term food systems transformation. In addition, actors should be engaged to take ownership over shared goals, the science–policy interface should be strengthened, as should processes for producing, validating and disseminating robust and inclusive (and disaggregated) data and knowledge for food systems. In addition, the UN system should support government to better understand and respond to new opportunities; define strategies; and steer action in line with shared goals. This entails improving cost–benefit analyses (particularly where the case for investment still needs to be made) to better account for the value added of changes that are harder to quantify, such as empowerment, reduced drivers of conflict, and political participation. You and your country teams should further focus on building the capacity of communities and civil society to meaningfully engage in policy dialogues and transition-related processes. In addition, you should also focus capacity-building efforts on innovation, generating options for sustainable alternatives; and on scaling and replicating these solutions over time.

When the food systems transition is gaining momentum, your capacity-building focus should be orchestration, engagement and negotiation. That entails building the capacity of government to work across silos and with all stakeholders to coordinate action across various actors, sectors and scales; take a systems approach to synergies and trade-offs; foster political willingness and public awareness for change, including disruption of unsustainable trajectories; and recognize and manage conflicts, creating safe spaces for effective engagement with all citizen and marginalized groups. You should support governments to gain the capacities to identify and overcome impediments – shifting away from business-as-usual approaches demands the capacity to recognize unsustainable trajectories, diagnose system lock-ins and undesired effects, and foster political willingness and public awareness for change. This thinking guide provides a good reference to support such efforts.

In countries shifting to the stabilization phase of the transition, the UN system should support capacities of government to learn and remain resilient. In particular, supporting the generation of knowledge about system dynamics and feedback will help governments and other stakeholders build more effective and resilient strategies. This involves strengthening institutions and networks through decentralization, increasing diversity and redundancy, and monitoring and continuous learning.

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UN Food Systems Task Force. 2025. Food Systems Thinking Guide for UN Resident Coordinators and UN Country Teams – Working collectively towards food systems transformation.. Rome, FAO. https://doi.org/10.4060/cd0497en

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