Climate change: a development challenge

Climate change is one of the most serious threats the world faces. It will affect all of us, but will have a disproportionate impact on millions of poor rural people. It puts more people at risk of hunger and makes it more difficult to reduce the proportion of people living in extreme poverty. For development work to be effective, we must help poor rural people cope with and mitigate the impact of climate change.

For IFAD, climate change has a special significance. Our mission is to enable poor rural people to overcome poverty. Agriculture is the main source of livelihood for most poor rural people, and it is also the human activity most directly affected by climate change.

In rural areas of developing countries, nearly 2 billion people live on less than US$2 a day. Poor rural people are the most vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Many live on ecologically fragile land and depend on agriculture, livestock, fisheries and forestry. Poor rural people do not have the access to financing and infrastructure that would allow them to withstand the impact of climate change.

We are already seeing the impact of climate change on agriculture in developing countries. Crop failures and livestock deaths are causing higher economic losses, contributing to higher food prices and undermining food security with ever-greater frequency, especially in parts of sub-Saharan Africa. At the same time, burgeoning populations mean that demand for food is rising. Food production in developing countries will need to double by 2050 to meet demand.

Agriculture and deforestation together account for an estimated 26 to 35 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions. Yet agriculture and forestry can play a key role in tackling climate change. Better land-management practices such as rehabilitating degraded crop and pasture land, better farming practices and planting forests can all contribute significantly to reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Poor rural people manage vast areas of land and forest and can be important players in natural resource management and carbon sequestration. They are often custodians of the natural resource base and can provide important environmental goods and services. Carbon-trading schemes need to include a way to compensate poor rural people for environmental services that contribute to carbon sequestration and limit carbon emissions. Support for soil and water conservation, incentives for sustainable production practices, and rewards for carbon sequestration and avoided deforestation are all part of the solution.

In response to the growing magnitude of climate change, IFAD is increasingly integrating adaptation and mitigation into its programmes. By listening to the voices of poor rural people during the planning process, we can reduce the risks of climate change while accelerating progress towards a world without poverty.

Source: IFAD