At the World Food Forum 2025 in Rome, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) convened a high-level event to galvanise global efforts to accelerate the implementation and impact of the One Country One Priority Product (OCOP) Initiative. OCOP is a flagship initiative that helps countries strengthen the value chains of crops, forestry, fishery and livestock products.
Launched in 2021 by FAO Director-General QU Dongyu, the OCOP initiative empowers countries to promote Special Agricultural Products (SAPs) with high potential for sustainable development as part of efforts to build resilient and inclusive agrifood systems worldwide. Today, 95 countries are promoting 56 SAPs across all regions.
Ahead of FAO's 80th anniversary and World Food Day on 16 October, the OCOP event showcased ongoing projects while reinforcing political commitment, enhancing technical collaboration, and strengthening partnerships among governments, research institutions, and the private sector.
In his opening remarks, the FAO Director-General underscored OCOP's role in translating FAO's vision of transforming agrifood systems into action and urged countries to continue their efforts to achieve meaningful change.
"Countries are harnessing their agricultural strengths to drive inclusive, sustainable development that connects farmers to markets and consumers to healthier food," the Director-General said.
He emphasised that collective actions are the driving force behind this success.
"The true engine of OCOP is partnerships among the different key players," he said.
"Through OCOP we are delivering real meaningful change especially for small scale farmers and rural communities. Ministers and other key partners are very important. You are champions of OCOP on the ground and you are leading the political commitment and implementation," the Director-General added.
In his keynote address, King Letsie III of Lesotho lauded FAO's vision in developing the initiative, highlighting how it is helping his country strengthen the value chain of its priority crop - the potato - to tackle production challenges and structural constraints such as limited access to quality seeds, weak market linkages, and low levels of mechanization. The King cited Lesotho's efforts, supported by FAO, to build partnerships aimed at establishing a domestic seed system as a key example.
In their statements to participants, Algeria's Minister for Agriculture, Rural Development and Fisheries, Yacine El-Mahdi Oualid and Bangladesh's Md. Jahangir Alam Chowdhury, Advisor, Ministry of Agriculture
highlighted their countries' progress and perspectives on OCOP implementation, underscoring its role in nourishing communities, empowering farmers, and protecting the planet. Albania's Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development, Andis Salla, also addressed participants via a video message.
They all emphasized the need to scale up collaboration, knowledge sharing and resource mobilization.
Global reach and growing impact
Since its launch, OCOP has rapidly expanded, aiming to increase access to healthy diets, improve farmers' livelihoods, enhance access to nutritious food, and reduce environmental impacts.
From Bangladesh's jackfruit and China's low-carbon tea to Malawi's bananas, Uzbekistan's sweet cherries, and Trinidad and Tobago's cocoa, OCOP projects are transforming value chains across all regions.
In Egypt, the initiative is opening new markets for date palms. In Lebanon, it is revitalising chickpea production. And, in Brazil, it is helping expand markets for the native fish Tambaqui. These examples demonstrate how OCOP adapts to diverse ecological and cultural contexts - from tropical to dryland to mountainous regions - offering scalable models for sustainable agrifood transformation.
The implementation of OCOP is supported with over $20 million, advancing sustainable production, technology transfer, and capacity development. China - the largest single contributor - has provided $5 million through the FAO-China South-South Cooperation Programme. OCOP also aims to strengthen synergies with FAO's other flagship initiatives, including the Hand-in-Hand, Digital Villages and Green Cities initiatives.
OCOP is a key tool for accelerating progress in the implementation of the FAO Strategic Framework 2022-31 and the Four Betters, which advocates for better production, better nutrition, a better environment, and a better life, ensuring that no one is left behind.
