Enabling poor rural people
to overcome poverty



GC36On 13 February 2013 at 3.30 p.m. you may follow via webcast a high-level panel on "The power of partnerships: Investing in sustainable rural development".

United Nations Special Representative David Nabarro will kick off this high-level panel in conversation with James Mwangi, CEO and Managing Director of Equity Bank, Kenya. Their dialogue will explore potential opportunities for smallholder farmers and rural entrepreneurs to strengthen food security, reduce poverty and build prosperity by forging alliances with public and private sector entities.

Afterwards, a panel of experts will discuss the pros and cons of different  partnership models in the agribusiness value chain, ways to foster an enabling policy environment for such partnerships, and the circumstances under which they are a viable option for smallholder farmers. The panellists will address questions such as:

  • What does it take to develop mutually beneficial partnerships between smallholder farmers and other private sector entities?
  • How can farmers’ organizations be strengthened to better link smallholder farmers with markets?
  • How can governments facilitate partnerships between smallholder farmers and other private sector actors without compromising farmers’ interests?
  • How can IFAD and its partners forge more effective alliances and facilitate the scaling-up of smallholder agricultural initiatives?

 

Panellists

Estelle Biénable is the Agricultural Economist at the Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD). Ms. Biénable is an expert on producers’ organizations and their role in linking farmers to markets, as well as modern market structural dynamics, natural resource management and environmental policy in the developing world. She is the co-author of Reconnecting Markets: Innovative Global Practices in Connecting Small-Scale Producers with Dynamic Food Markets (Gower Publishing).

Kevin Cleaver is IFAD’s Associate Vice-President, in charge of its programmes. He joined IFAD in September 2006. Before joining IFAD, he held several key positions in the World Bank, including: Director, Africa Technical Department, Africa Region; Director, Environmentally and Socially Sustainable Development, Europe and Central Asia Region; and Director, Agriculture and Rural Development, for the World Bank Group. He represented the World Bank on the Executive Committee of CGIAR and helped mobilize funds for  global programmes. Mr Cleaver has published  extensively on agricultural development.

Odacir Klein is President of the Brazilian Biodiesel Union (UBRABIO) and has worked extensively with cooperatives and the public sector in Brazil. He previously served as Mayor of Getúlio Vargas city, Secretary of Agriculture and Supply in the state of Rio Grande do Sul and, in 1995-1996, Minister of State for Transport. Mr Klein was also the Executive President of the Brazilian Corn Producers Association (ABRAMILHO), whose membership includes national and regional producers’ associations and cooperatives.

James Mwangi is CEO and Managing Director of Equity Bank in Kenya, which specializes in providing inclusive financial services targeted to people generally considered “unbankable” by conventional financial institutions. He is the Chairman of Kenya's Vision 2030 Delivery Board, a body charged with ensuring that Kenya becomes a middle-income country within two decades. Named Forbes African Person of the Year 2012, Mr Mwangi has won numerous international accolades, including an award shared with Nobel laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus for their efforts to improve the livelihoods of the poor through microfinance.

Ingmar Streese is Director of Global Programmes and Partnerships at Mars, Inc. He has been involved in public affairs and policy for more than 15 years in both the public and private sectors. Prior to joining Mars, Inc. in 2008, he headed the Brussels office of the European Natural Heritage Fund and worked on issues involving the environment, food and agriculture at the national and regional government levels in Germany, and at the German embassies in Dublin and London.

Moderator

David Nabarro is the Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Food Security and Nutrition and, since 2009, has been responsible for coordinating the UN High Level Task Force on the Global Food Security Crisis. A physician, Mr Nabarro has more than 30 years of experience of public health, nutrition and development work at the country, regional and global levels. He has held positions in nongovernmental organizations, universities, the UN system and the Government of the United Kingdom. He was formerly the Director for Human Development in the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development.

Social media and webcasting

The Thirty-sixth Session of IFAD’s Governing Council is an interactive event thanks to a number of social media components. Social reporters will keep the outside world informed through blogs, tweets, posting interviews and pictures on the following IFAD social media channels. You can follow the event via webcast and by following #ifadgc

 

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Panels, round tables and side events

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