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sophisticated and long-term international cooperation is needed to meet the new challenge of food security.
This is the reverse of a scenario that has prevailed in the last years of the 20
th
century, when food seemed
relatively plentiful. It is certainly not a coincidence that the “Arab Spring” was initially triggered by riots for
bread, a social symbol as well as a staple food.
Food security and food quality are serious emerging problems in the Mediterranean region, particularly in
water scarcity areas, and innovative forms of sustainable agriculture and food processing/distribution are
necessary to meet the challenge of food quality and security. Food in the Mediterranean is both a political
and technical/research concern, being not only a question of national import dependency but also a problem
of equal access to food. In the northern Mediterranean Countries, the local production contributes largely to
supplies, whereas in the southern and eastern Mediterranean countries, with the exception of Turkey,
supplies are provided to a very large extent through trade. This is no longer sustainable and even when
adequate supplies of
food are available, this does not necessarily guarantee that every individual has access
to quality food. The development of a self-sustainable food production-transformation system is needed.
The above conditions must be seen as an opportunity and not only a constraint.
It is urgent that Europe and
Southern Mediterranean Countries pool together their resources of talent, knowledge and cultural heritage
to develop “
smart” arid / water scarcity areas, providing food job opportunities and competitiveness, for
young entrepreneurs and women, while preserving ecosystems.
Specific concerns have been identified in recent Euro-Mediterranean expert groups and research policy
dialogues (Expert group at Euro-Mediterranean Conference Barcelona, 2012; CRIA, 2012; MIRA, 2009-2011;
Euro-Mediterranean Conferences of Ministers of Agriculture – CIHEAM, 2012, 2014; MedSpring / EMEG,
2013-2015, ARIMNet Stakeholders Conference, 2011 and ARIMNet2 Strategic Advisory Board2015):
-
Unsustainable agriculture production, overspecialisation and intensification of agriculture
production in a non-ecological way.
-
Overexploitation of natural resources, natural plant cover, loss of soil fertility, soil erosion and
salinization
-
Limited use of local biodiversity, local breeds and mixed cropping systems.
-
Poor nutritional value of food products and food diets.
-
Decline in food culture and food sovereignty, calling for better reconciliation between modernity and
tradition.
-
Need to boost local food-chain and sustainable and competitive food production and transformation
system.
In light of
the findings above, the
overall aim to be pursued by PRIMA is the following:
To develop innovative solutions and promote their adoption for improving the efficiency and sustainability of
food production and water provision, in order to support inclusive wellbeing and socio-economic development
in the Mediterranean Area, within the framework of a reinforced Euro-Mediterranean co-operation.
Scope of the programme
To achieve such goal, the PRIMA Initiative will be underpinned by two ‘drivers’:
1.
To advance existing knowledge and innovation for water management, food security, and food
quality through long-term cooperation
2.
To ensure the adoption of knowledge and unlock its innovation potential through end user-friendly
and societally-affordable solutions
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In order to achieve not only scientific but also socio-economic impacts, PRIMA
intends to support the whole
innovation chain to ensure that research results are translated into economic development.
Previous initiatives supporting scientific collaboration on themes relevant for PRIMA, such as the FP6 and
FP7 programmes and ERA-Nets, more specifically, have led to three to four years of research projects
dedicated to various but disparate topics through one-shot initiatives.
Discontinuous and short-term project
time-lines didn’t allow continuity of research activities in order to achieve tangible impact and enhance
real innovation.
Furthermore, several topics that are crucial for the Mediterranean require long-term research protocols, i.e.
networks of observation of water dynamics to understand underground water trends, long-term cropping
system trials to design low-input production systems, etc. They require continuous and stable research
networks to be implemented, particularly because open field trials and pilot adoptions have to be conducted
under natural conditions of an extremely variable nature.
Also, PRIMA is designed as an Open Innovation initiative. Key issues of open innovation management have
been addressed in order to identify the correct research, development and implementation strategies among
partners, along the entire value chain, from new science and technology to the definition of new markets
and adoption scenarios. Community of users will also play a significant role into the co-development of
solutions.
As regards to the thematic priorities, and in accordance with the analysis of the main national research
programmes highlighting food and agriculture as well as water and environment as the most shared thematic
challenges, the PRIMA consortium has identified eight operational objectives (identified in the document
submitted in December 2014). They can be summarized along 3 main pillars (Figure 1):
1)
Sustainable management of water for arid and semi-arid areas;
2)
Sustainable farming systems under Mediterranean environmental
constraints; and
3)
Mediterranean food value chain for regional and local development.
All the 3 identified pillars are designed to ensure a long-term, economically sustainable, agro-food sector that
safeguards natural resources.
This is in line with the recently-agreed Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and with the forthcoming
European Sustainable Development Strategy (EU SDS). PRIMA activities will focus on SDG targets falling
under goals:
-
2 - End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable
agriculture,
-
4 - Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote life-long learning opportunities,
-
6 - Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all,
-
9 - Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster
innovation,
-
12 - Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns,
-
13 - Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts and
-
15 - Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage
forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss