LVC Calls on the UN Human Rights Council to Renew the Mandate of the Working Group of Experts on UNDROP

This article was originally published by La Via Campesina on 16 September 2026.

(Geneva, 16 September 2026) — La Via Campesina, supported by CETIM and FIAN International, is in Geneva from 12 to 19 September to participate in the 63rd session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UN HRC), which is taking place from 7 September to 7 October 2026.

This 63rd session is particularly important for us, as peasants, because UN Member States will consider the renewal of the mandate of the Working Group of Experts on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas. The Working Group’s three-year mandate, established in 2023, is coming to an end in October.

It is therefore crucial that the Member States of the Human Rights Council support and vote in favour of renewing the mandate.

Why is UNDROP important to us?

UNDROP is very important to us because we fought for its adoption to protect the rights and role of peasants and other people working in rural areas. They are the people who feed populations, preserve biodiversity, protect ecosystems, and sustain local economies and cultures.

UNDROP provides an internationally recognised human rights framework that supports measures such as comprehensive agrarian reform, the protection and strengthening of traditional seed systems, and the promotion of local food production. It strengthens the legitimacy of States in adopting policies that protect peasants and support food sovereignty.

The Declaration is also an important voice for countries and communities whose economies remain largely rural.

As Elizabeth Mpofu, a peasant farmer from Zimbabwe, explains:

“Rural communities and peasants produce more than 80% of the food we consume. Not only that, we, particularly women, are the backbone of local food markets, supplying a diversity of foods that does not come from supermarkets or stores. This frees our governments to focus on other urgent social, physical and economic development needs. Through our peasant seed systems, we have created vibrant rural economies, generated employment for millions of people, and educated our children.

My story is the story of billions of rural women who play an important role in the social reproduction of labour and in fighting hunger, malnutrition, unemployment and poverty around the world.”

Our mission in Geneva

Our mission here is to keep up the advocacy work we began almost thirty years ago when we launched this process of recognizing the rights of peasants at the international level.

The LVC delegation will meet with and engage the missions of UN HRC Member States, advocating for the renewal of the mandate of the Working Group of Experts on UNDROP.

The Working Group is essential to ensuring continuity in international efforts to advance the implementation of UNDROP. It supports dialogue, cooperation and capacity-building among States, independent experts and UNDROP rights holders.

The Working Group also ensures that the realities and struggles of peasants and other people working in rural areas continue to be represented within the UN system. Its work strengthens the struggle for peoples’ food sovereignty.

Defending the Right to Seeds

While in Geneva, LVC delegates will participate in and contribute to a Side Event and a Public Conference on the Right to Seeds. These events will take place following the presentation of the UNDROP Working Group’s report on the Right to Seeds to the UN Human Rights Council today.

The Right to Seed report can be accessed here

The Right to Seeds is central to the struggle for peasant rights, food sovereignty and agroecology. Peasant seed systems, built through generations of knowledge, exchange and collective stewardship, are essential for protecting biodiversity, sustaining local food systems and strengthening the autonomy of rural communities.

For La Via Campesina, renewing the mandate of the Working Group is not simply about maintaining a UN mechanism. It is about ensuring that the voices, rights and struggles of peasants remain visible and recognised within the international human rights system.

Globalise the Struggle! Globalise Hope!