The Forest, Agriculture, and Commodity Trade (FACT) Dialogue and its accompanying Roadmap of Action was launched in Glasgow during the 26th UN Conference on Climate Change under the Presidency of the United Kingdom.

The FACT Dialogue forms a part of a wider package of announcements made during the UN Climate Conference concerning forests and sustainability, including the Glasgow Leaders Declaration on Forests and Land Use, and is currently Co-Chaired by the Governments of the United Kingdom and Indonesia.

This government-to-government dialogue brings together 30 of the largest producer and consumer countries of internationally traded agricultural commodities (e.g., palm oil, soya, cocoa, beef, and timber) to protect forests and other ecosystems while promoting sustainable trade and development while addressing the climate and biodiversity crisis.

The FACT Roadmap emphasizes 4 key thematic areas, namely: Support for Smallholders, Traceability and Transparency, Research, Development and Innovation, and Trade & Markets.

Work is now underway to implement the Roadmap.

The member countries participating in FACT are working together to:

• Enhance their understanding of the support needed for smallholder farmers and share best practices across a range of national and international platforms as a way of scaling up their support. Background scoping research has been undertaken, and the dialogue is now implementing a series of Seminars to share lessons and support enhanced understanding and capacities with countries and stakeholders. To learn more about the FACT Dialogue work on Smallholders, please click here.
• Explore and identify gaps to support ongoing technological developments and improve systems around the world concerning transparency and traceability. Work is underway to identify the critical areas of emphasis to identify where countries need guidance to enhance and improve traceability and transparency systems, especially related to new incoming regulations concerning sustainability and trade. To learn more about the FACT Dialogue work on Traceability and Transparency, please click here.
• Working with a range of national and international research organizations and initiatives to enhance understanding and learning across each of the FACT thematic areas. The RDI track has developed a theory of change to enhance research across the dialogue and support the dialogue as a world-leading knowledge-sharing platform. To learn more about the FACT Dialogue work on RDI, please click here.
• The thematic working groups concerning Trade & Markets are now exploring best practices and mechanisms associated with sustainable production and enhancing the understanding and needs of producer countries concerning market recognition. Through this track of work, emphasis on implementation and supporting the needs of producer countries related to incoming regulations concerning sustainability and trade is a significant priority. To learn more about the FACT Dialogue work on Trade & Markets, please click here.

The FACT Dialogue plays an essential role in addressing climate change and the transformations of the global food system to support sustainability and protect forests, ecosystems, and people.

Who is involved?

The FACT Dialogue brings together the major producer and consumer countries of global agricultural commodities. So far, 30 countries have participated in FACT, and 28 countries have endorsed the Roadmap for Action. These countries, through their involvement, are making a lasting commitment to work together to protect the world’s forests while promoting sustainable trade.

Stakeholders are also involved in the FACT Dialogue. A lengthy process was undertaken with stakeholders in 2021, and a Stakeholder Engagement Plan to ensure the integration of stakeholders from the local to the global level is underway. A range of consultation processes are taking place to ensure the inclusion and participation of all relevant stakeholders to make a valuable contribution to implementing the FACT Roadmap.