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Turkey's COP31 Presidency (2026) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) have launched the Turquoise Nexus Initiative (TNI) to integrate food security, water management, and climate adaptation into national climate action plans and strengthen climate resilience in the agriculture sector.

What is the Turquoise Nexus Initiative (TNI)?

The Turquoise Nexus Initiative (TNI) is a global initiative aimed at promoting an integrated food–water–climate nexus approach by incorporating food security, sustainable water management, and climate adaptation into countries' Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement.

Jointly unveiled by Turkey's COP31 Presidency and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the initiative seeks to support developing countries in designing farmer-centric climate strategies, mobilizing climate finance, and building resilient agrifood systems.

The initiative has been proposed under the Food and Agriculture for Sustainable Transformation (FAST) Partnership, making it part of the broader global effort to strengthen the role of agriculture in climate action.

Objectives

The initiative seeks to:

• Integrate food security, water resources, and climate adaptation into national climate policies.
• Align Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) with sustainable agricultural development.
• Promote farmer-inclusive climate action.
• Improve access to climate finance for agriculture and water resilience.
• Strengthen the resilience of agrifood systems against climate change.

FAST Partnership

The Food and Agriculture for Sustainable Transformation (FAST) Partnership is a multi-stakeholder global initiative launched by the COP27 Presidency in 2022 at Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt.

It aims to accelerate the transformation of agriculture and food systems by 2030 while contributing to climate mitigation, adaptation, food security, and sustainable development. FAST has emerged as one of the most consistent COP-to-COP mechanisms focusing exclusively on agrifood systems within the UN climate process.

Its work is built around three pillars:

• Access to Finance: Enhancing countries' capacity to mobilize climate finance and investment for agriculture.
• Knowledge and Capacity: Developing analytical tools, voluntary guidelines, and strengthening institutional capacities.
• Policy Support and Dialogue: Mainstreaming agriculture and food systems into national and international climate policies.

Significance

The Turquoise Nexus Initiative recognizes that food security, water security, and climate resilience are deeply interconnected. By integrating these sectors into national climate planning, it seeks to improve policy coherence, enhance adaptation efforts, strengthen farmer livelihoods, and facilitate greater climate finance for developing countries. The initiative also complements global efforts under the Paris Agreement, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and the UNFCCC to build climate-resilient and sustainable agrifood systems.