Financing the agro-ecological transition of food systems in the Walloon region
Establishment of a reference framework for assessing the political and economic framework for the agro-ecological transition of agricultural and food systems in the Walloon Region
Presentation
This research is part of an effort to analyse the political and economic framework for the transition of agri-food systems to agroecological models in the Walloon Region.
The results of the study reveal that 10% of the budgets allocated to the agricultural and food sectors between 2019 and 2024 in Wallonia are actually devoted to agroecology, highlighting an existing but too limited interest in this theme.
Analysis of the distribution of this funding leads us to conclude that a considerable proportion of the funding granted by the Walloon Region remains of an adaptive nature, suggesting the need for bolder thinking to direct more public resources towards a profound and inclusive transition. This reflection should focus as much on the agro-ecological principles supported as on the budgets and timescales of the funding mobilised.
However, it should be noted that these results must be interpreted with caution. The methodology used allows us to report on the intentions of projects and funding, but not on their actual impact. In addition, the benchmarks used (HLPE and Gliessman) are evaluation tools and do not capture all the nuances of reality on the ground. These results therefore serve as a starting point for further reflection on the position of the Walloon Region in relation to the agro-ecological transition.
In addition, this study highlights the administrative complexity within the Walloon Region, particularly with regard to the lack of publicly accessible data, which can act as a real brake on effective steering of the transition and identification of priority areas for intervention.
