Agricultural technology for sustainable development A/RES/72/215 a uniquely powerful entry point for understanding the issues around sustainable agricultural development as a whole; 4. Also recognizes the important role of family farming and smallholder farming in contributing to the achievement of food security and improved nutrition and the role that family farms play in ensuring global food security, poverty eradication and environmental sustainability, as well as job creation; 5. Calls upon Member States and relevant United Nations organizations and other stakeholders to mainstream gender perspectives into agricultural policies and projects and to focus on closing the gender gap by, inter alia, encouraging gender balanced investments and innovation in small-scale agricultural production and distribution, supported by integrated and multisectoral policies, in order to improve women’s productive capacity and incomes, strengthen their resilience and achieve equitable access to labour-saving technologies and agricultural technology information and know-how, equipment, decision-making forums and associated agricultural resources to ensure that agriculture, food security and nutrition -related programmes and policies take into consideration the specific needs of women and the barriers that women face in accessing agricultural inputs and resources; 6. Encourages Governments to develop and implement youth-focused agricultural development projects and programmes, including through training, education, financial inclusion services, including microcredit services, and capacity building, including with regard to innovation, in association with the private sector, in order to stimulate the interest and the involvement of youth in agriculture; 7. Remains concerned that agricultural innovations and technologies often bypass ageing famers, and in particularly ageing women farmers, as many do not possess the financial resources or the skills to adopt new practices, and in this regard stresses the need to strengthen the capacity of ageing farmers through continued access to financial and infrastructure services and training for improved farming techniques and technologies; 8. Acknowledges the importance of adopting innovative and sustainable food systems by harnessing science, technology and innovation, promoting participatory research, demand-driven extension and rural advisory services and increased public and private investment, building human capacity, encouraging entrepreneurship, creating an enabling economic and institutional environment and strengthening knowledge flows, in particular between scientists and farmers, taking into account local and traditional knowledge systems, in combination with new sources of knowledge; 9. Invites Governments and international organizations, in collaboration with cooperatives and cooperative organizations, to promote, as appropriate, consistent with the rules of the World Trade Organization, the growth of agricultural cooperatives through easy access to affordable finance, the adoption of sustainable production techniques, investment in rural infrastructure and irr igation, strengthened marketing mechanisms, access to appropriate risk management instruments and support for the participation of women and youth in economic activities; 10. Underlines the importance of supporting and advancing research in improving and diversifying crop varieties and seed systems, as well as supporting the establishment of sustainable agricultural systems, management practices and use of new technologies, such as conservation agriculture, integrated soil fertility management, integrated farming systems, animal disease control and integrated pest management, precision agriculture, irrigation, livestock management and biotechnologies, in order to make agriculture more resilient and productive and, in particular, to make crops and farm animals more tolerant to diseases, pests and 17-23284 5/7