In Honduras, food insecurity remains a pressing challenge, with one in five living in poverty. In rural areas, this issue is further exacerbated by unequal opportunities, limited access to basic services, and a lack of decent employment, all of which hinder people’s ability to secure a nutritious diet. To address this, we focus on building capacities that bridge the gap between theory and practice, empowering communities to exercise their right to food through healthy and affordable diets.
Honduras is particularly vulnerable to climate change, as it lies within the Dry Corridor, a tropical dry forest region on the Pacific Coast of Central America. This geographical area exposes the country to irregular drought patterns, which disrupts local food systems. Food insecurity is deeply intertwined with a range of social factors, limiting opportunities for improving living conditions.
In 2024, the undernourishment rate in Honduras stood at 20.4%, while poverty affected 63% of the rural population, according to FAO. In these rural areas, food insecurity is exacerbated by unequal opportunities, restricted access to basic services, and limited prospects for decent employment. These challenges make it particularly difficult for vulnerable groups, such as farmers, women, youth, people with disabilities, and others, to access nutritious, sustainable, and healthy food.
The Lenca people, an Indigenous group from southwest Honduras and eastern El Salvador, are among those most affected. In Honduras, the Lenca constitutes almost 90% of MAMCEPAZ, an association of eight municipalities located in the La Paz department. As a community affected by poverty, many Lenca men and young people emigrated in search for better opportunities, leaving women behind with household responsibilities, such as taking care of children and elderly.
Beyond the domestic role, Lenca women are also responsible of preparing meals at local schools, highlighting their role as food handlers in the community. Providing them with training in nutrition and sustainable food practices is essential for improving community health, minimising diet-related illnesses, and fostering long-term food security.
As heads of their households, Lenca women decide what their family consumes and purchases. Their choices directly impact the family's nutrition, budget, and overall well-being. Their involvement is essential for the family’s day-to-day functioning, as well as to, to transfer knowledge and replicate food practices in the region.
Local food systems and a healthy diet are interconnected in many ways. They help promote local production and access to fresh, healthy food within a community, and this can have a positive impact on the health of its members and environmental sustainability. In addition, these systems can help preserve cultural traditions and encourage community participation in food decision-making, especially in households and schools.
The People-Centred Food Systems (PCFSy) project aims to integrate human rights frameworks and instruments with public policy to strengthen food systems, taking as a reference the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas (UNDROP). The goal is to transform this right from theory to practice, such as through the promotion of healthy, nutritious, and balanced diets. The project is implemented with vulnerable groups (farmers, women, young people, people with disabilities, and others), government actors, and local civil society organisations in Ethiopia, Honduras, Cambodia and Uganda, through a consortium made up of Columbia University, Alliance of Bioversity International-CIAT, the International Institute for Rural Reconstruction and Rikolto. In Honduras, Rikolto is in the lead.
While the project operates on a national scale, it has a special focus on the Lenca communities within the Mancomunidad de Municipalidades de Centro de La Paz (MAMCEPAZ). This focus stems from a petition made by government authorities at both the national and local levels to address the significant food insecurity and nutritional challenges in the region. The Dry Corridor, where MAMCEPAZ is located, faces high levels of food insecurity and major barriers to accessing nutritious food, leading to considerable difficulties for Lenca communities in ensuring proper nutrition for their families. Addressing their unique social and cultural needs is crucial for empowering them and ensuring their inclusion in development initiatives. By focusing on Lenca women, we aim to promote greater equity and provide them with the tools and opportunities necessary for their personal and community growth.
The project is supported by MAMCEPAZ and the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (SAG) to generate a positive impact in this specific geographic area. The intervention is structured in two key phases:
1. Food Security Assessment: A diagnosis was conducted in six out of the eight municipalities in the region, which have a predominantly Lenca population. The purpose of this assessment was to identify the main food security challenges and the factors impacting access to adequate food in these communities.
2. Capacity Building: This phase is divided into two stages:
a. First stage: Training on human rights and the exercise of the right to food, in collaboration with the National Commissioner for Human Rights (CONADEH). This training aims to raise awareness about the right to adequate food and empower the population to effectively claim it.
b. Second stage: Training on policy advocacy related to food security and the use of local foods. This phase is supported by the Food Security and Nutrition Observatory (OBSAN), aiming to strengthen community capacity in decision-making and the use of local food resources.
We are trying to include a productive component, allowing female heads of households not only to access better-quality food, but also to generate income through the production and sale of local food products. This productive activity would contribute to improving food security while increasing the families' disposable income, enabling them to diversify their diets and improve the quality of the food they consume.
We organise continuous training and workshop sessions to promote knowledge and capacity building on nutrition and sustainable food practices while encouraging cultural preservation and community participation. The objective is that governments effectively integrate and implement human rights and equity into food-related plans, policies, and legislations at sub-national and national levels.
We enhance the capacity of vulnerable groups and government actors to understand, value and use the UNDROP articles and their food system in ways that benefit rural and peri-urban food producers and affected populations in those countries through increased access to information. We take as a reference the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas (UNDROP).
We co-design and integrate human rights and equity indicators and accountability mechanisms specifically adapted to existing or new national monitoring and evaluation (M&E) systems. The Food Systems Countdown to 2030 Initiative could offer a starting source of a comprehensive framework to discuss and consider in countries.
There is a need for strong(er) policy coherence in the four countries between major national policy documents and the objectives of international documents advocating for rights-based instruments and equity principles. Our primary focus has been on the new Human Rights policy in Honduras, which includes a chapter on the Right to Food, aimed at driving policy impact and ensuring accountability.
At the end of the project, we analyse the overall process identifying strengths and incorporating what we have learned to increase replicability and efficiency for future initiatives. The objective aims to document the system-level changes observed around rights- and equity-based laws and implementation in the food systems, as well as changes in international rights- and equity-based norms and guidelines
In 2023, at the start of the project, participants' level of knowledge of the main international treaties, as well as their familiarity with the concept of a human rights-based approach, were assessed. We also undertook a study to understand knowledge and practices regarding nutrition, food safety, and consumption patterns of Lenca women in six municipalities in Central La Paz (MAMCEPAZ). The study involved 125 Lenca leaders and it provided an important opportunity to learn about local food and the way it is incorporated in daily cooking. Results showed:
For our capacity building and transferring knowledge initiatives for relevant stakeholders and government actors, we engaged in partnerships.
In 2023, we formed partnerships with 350 government officials, 242 leaders of NGOs or Alliance, 182 farmer leaders, 139 academy members and researchers, and 184 community members; in 2024, 173 government officials and staff, 309 leaders of NGOS or Alliance, 59 farmer leaders, 136 academy members and researchers, and 159 community members. For example, the National Office of the Commissioner for Human Rights in Honduras (CONADEH), through the Promotion and Education Management, played a key role in training beneficiaries on rights and equity. Additionally, the Ministry of Agriculture, through the Technical Unit for Food Security and Nutrition, has been involved in policy dialogues and discussions, alongside the Observatory for Food Security and Nutrition.
We have formed a small but committed group of allies focused on Food Security and Nutrition (FSN), with us, as a project / Rikolto, coordinating and serving as the central link that unites all stakeholders. We actively support various initiatives to enhance knowledge transfer, build capacity, and drive impactful changes in policy. These capacity building initiatives touched critical topics, such as nutrition, labour rights, children’s rights, women’s rights, and gender equality.
In 2023, these activities reached communities in 9 out of 18 Honduras departments. We collaborated with overall 1097 people, including 593 women and 406 young people. Specifically, we formed partnerships with 350 government officials, 242 leaders of NGOs or Alliance, 182 farmer leaders, 139 academy members and researchers, and 184 community members.
In 2024, our capacity building sessions reached communities in 6 out of 18 Honduras departments, collaborating with overall 836 people, including 583 women and 410 young people.
Our capacity building sessions on the implementation of human rights framework for government actors and vulnerable groups contributed to enhance sustainable aspects of policy initiatives. In addition, we supported the consultative drafting of national legal and policy frameworks that support the implementation of country-specific UNDROP roadmaps based on the participation of all relevant stakeholders.
Overall, the development of Human Rights to Food Policy addresses many of the rights outlined in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas (UNDROP). The focus is not only on the rights of peasants and other rural communities but also extends to all populations across rural, peri-urban, and urban areas. By encompassing a wide range of human rights, it seeks to create an inclusive framework that ensures the protection, recognition, and fulfilment of the rights of all individuals, regardless of their geographic location or socio-economic status. These efforts are critical in promoting equality, social justice, and sustainable development for all people, particularly vulnerable groups in both rural and urban contexts.
Looking ahead, we plan to conduct an endline evaluation to assess the long-term impact of these capacity-building activities. This evaluation will provide valuable insights into the effectiveness of the interventions and help us measure the progress made in empowering beneficiaries to protect and assert their rights.
The new National Human Rights Policy is designed to establish a comprehensive framework that connects and integrates all sectors, creating a cohesive approach to human rights across the entire government. This framework will not only facilitate the monitoring of progress but also ensure that ministries and state agencies are held accountable for their actions. By doing so, the policy will ensure that all government bodies meet their responsibilities and act consistently with human rights standards. The policy’s integrated monitoring system will provide clear oversight on whether ministries and government institutions are fulfilling their commitments and obligations as outlined in the policy. This approach aims to identify and address any gaps, ensuring that human rights are respected and promoted at every level of governance.
Importantly, the Minister of Human Rights, as mandated by law, will play a central role in overseeing the implementation of the policy. This includes monitoring all the indicators approved within the policy framework, which are crucial for tracking progress in various human rights areas. Among these, a key focus is reducing disparities in access to essential rights, such as the progressive realization of the right to food. This encompasses ensuring that all individuals have access to not only sufficient food but also to healthy, nutritious, and culturally appropriate diets that promote overall well-being. The progressive right to food recognizes that while the full realization of this right may take time, governments are obligated to take steps towards its achievement, progressively improving access to adequate food.
In this way, the new Human Rights Policy will provide the structure and accountability needed to ensure that the government fulfills its obligations, addresses existing disparities, and works toward the reduction of rights gaps, particularly in the critical area of food access and nutrition. This progressive approach ensures that as resources and capacities grow, access to healthy and sufficient food will continue to improve for all citizens
Since August 2024, we have strengthened our relationship with the Ministry of Human Rights, working together to bring together different actors to improve key indicators in the new Human Rights Policy, particularly in the area of the Right to Food.
One important element of the new National Human Rights Policy is the incorporation of a policy coherence analysis, which extends beyond just the agri-food sector. This analysis considers all sectors and industries, ensuring that the policy aligns with the various regulations and international declarations that Honduras has signed. By doing so, the policy ensures that there is a holistic approach to human rights that is consistent across all areas of governance, creating a strong foundation for long-term sustainable development. This is supported by our role to share best practices and promote a more structured approach for implementing existing laws and ensuring they are integrated into new public policies.
Additionally, most government institutions in Honduras already have a set of indicators in place, especially those aimed at achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. These indicators provide a framework for measuring progress and aligning public policies with global development objectives. By incorporating these indicators into the new Human Rights Policy, we can ensure that the government’s efforts are not only aligned with human rights but also with broader international development goals, contributing to sustainable and inclusive growth for all Hondurans.
It was also agreed upon during our meeting in Rome last year that the project does not have the capability to make direct recommendations to the Committee on World Food Security (CFS). This decision stems from the fact that the CFS already consists of a wide range of experts, including a panel of high-level specialists who are better equipped to provide the necessary guidance and recommendations. Therefore, the role of the project is to support and provide valuable insights, but not to serve as the primary body for formulating recommendations.
It is important to note that while the impact of policy changes cannot be fully measured within the short lifetime of a project—since such changes usually take more than 10 years—the project is laying the groundwork to improve existing policies or contribute to the new Human Rights Policy. These efforts aim to establish new methods for monitoring both technical and financial progress, contributing to a more effective and sustainable approach to food security and the right to food.
The project collaborates with different actors for the creation of a new Human Rights Policy where 5 rights are prioritised, and the human right to food is included. The cross-cutting effort will allow the incorporation of a food safety index. In addition, it contributes to the updating of the Plan of Action of the Food and Nutrition Security Policy and Strategy of Honduras.
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