ARC2020 will coordinate a policy analysis about the preparation of National CAP Strategic Plans in the coming months. Will you join us?
Each Member State is, at present, going through a process of writing its National CAP Strategic Plan (CAP SPs). But will these CAP SPs pave the way for sustainable agriculture, forestry, and rural development – in the EU and beyond?
The Commission will have to answer this question when the CAP SPs are submitted. But how about the process itself? Let’s track what’s happening in CAP now and make it more transparent.
Appraising the CAP SPs is a process that needs time, data, knowledge, methods and people. However, it cannot wait until the final adoption stage, whenever that will be. Two years after the proposal for the CAP reform post-2020, there is still almost no ground for expecting a serious and transparent negotiation process between the Commission and the Member States. NGOs, scientists, and civil society organizations (CSOs) must stay vigilant – we expect more than just cosmetic changes to the current CAP.
ARC2020 will animate a network of national coalitions, scientists, NGOs, and CSOs to analyse how the Member States are preparing the CAP Strategic Plans.
Here’s how we’ll do it:
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Starting from the basics: transparency and inclusivity throughout the design process
It is easy to lose track of what is going on in the Member States in these times of Covid-19. Nevertheless, challenging times demand innovative responses, and there are creative options out there. We expect authorities and officials to still engage on the next steps, ensure the inclusion and active participation of all relevant stakeholders, to build clear communication channels, to make meetings and consultation procedures more transparent. Neither Covid-19, nor any other uncertainties due to the reform process at EU level, can be used to background these important democratic principles.
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Looking at the substance: environmental, economic, and social dimensions
Because our ecosystems are under such stress, higher flexibility for the Member States demands greater scrutiny. The strong return of narratives around ‘food security’ and ‘agricultural modernization’ are legitimizing productivist policies (e.g. private milk storage) while backgrounding the protection of our shared natural resources (water, soil, air), climate actions, animal welfare, farmers’ position in the value chain, or the social fabrics of rural areas. In this project, ARC2020 will facilitate NGOs and active stakeholders to exchange good practices and discuss their concerns about crucial matters, like conditionalities, green architecture, coherence with EU laws, etc. with a view to give targeted recommendations and take actions.
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The big picture: territorial approach of the CAP SPs and implications for third countries
CAP does not play out in a vacuum. There is a governance dimension that deserves attention at different levels: international, territorial, local. How will the CAP SPs strengthen and decentralize the regional/local governance capacity or improve the links between rural and other regional policies? What are the major implications of CAP SPs at international level, for instance in terms of food & feed trade, environment, worker rights, farming systems, rural development, cooperation and gender? There is certainly broad scope for looking at the balance and coherence among the different elements of the CAP SPs.
If you are interested to join the team: welcome on board!
