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The
International Fund for Agricultural Development has been fighting hunger
and poverty in rural areas of developing countries since 1978. This specialized
United Nations agency acts as a catalyst, bringing together partners, resources,
knowledge and policies to enable rural poor people to overcome their poverty.
Its unique approach involves designing, implementing and financing, with
low-interest loans and grants, projects and programmes that meet the specific
needs of poor communities. Since it began, IFAD has invested USD 7.7 billion
in 628 rural development projects in 115 countries and territories. These
projects have enabled more than 250 million small farmers, fisherfolk, landless
workers, artisans, nomads, indigenous people and others to take steps to
achieve better lives for themselves and their families. Because most of
the world’s 1.2 billion poor people live in rural areas, IFAD’s
work is essential in meeting the Millennium Development Goals of halving
the proportion of people living in hunger and extreme poverty by 2015.
IFAD created these postcards for its Twenty-Fifth
Anniversary in 2003 to honour the achievements of rural poor people. The
Rural Poor is about the people IFAD serves – their lives, the places
they call home, and the many obstacles they face in a world of poverty
where even small achievements are immense personal victories. The images
were captured in October 2002 by five world-renowned photographers in
ten of the 94 countries and territories where IFAD is currently working.
They are testimonies to the resilience of the rural poor, their ability
to find optimism amidst hardship and their determination to better their
lives for the sake of their children. IFAD is grateful to the rural poor
for their leadership and inspiration. If the Fund succeeds in its goal
of combating hunger and poverty, it is because of the contributions they
make and the lessons they share. The journey ahead for the 1.2 billion
people burdened by poverty on the Earth is a long one. But IFAD is committed
to this journey and to working with the rural poor, together, as partners
in a goal that will ultimately serve all humankind in creating a better
tomorrow.
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Women invest a large proportion of their time and labour in growing food and rearing livestock. They also provide meals, water and fuel to their families. Despite all they give, they have far less power than men in local decision-making and more limited access to land and credit. This woman in Machacmarca, Peru, works twice as many hours a week as her husband. After tilling the land, she continues with her household chores. Machacmarca, Peru | ŠIFAD, David Alan Harvey, 2002 |
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Girls who live in rural areas are often kept at home, away from school, to do household chores and look after their siblings. If this pupil of Lekie-Assi public school in Cameroon can finish her basic studies, she will have greater opportunities to improve both her own life and that of her family. Lekie-Assi, Cameroon | ŠIFAD, Pascal Maitre, 2002 |
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Raising livestock is the main source of income for the rural poor in much of Near East and North Africa where arable land and water are scarce. In these areas many women do not have sufficient access to land, credit, education and health services. This woman in Dyer-Al-Nibba, Yemen, spends long hours growing food, tending livestock, gathering fuelwood, fetching water, preparing food and caring for her children. Dyer-Al-Nibba, Yemen | ŠIFAD, Gerd Ludwig, 2002
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When former communal lands in eastern and Central Europe were redistributed,
many of the beneficiaries were too old to farm and they struggle
to survive. Fran Alia, 74, hitched an early morning ride to Puka,
Albania, from her village of Dedaj to sell these apples at the Puka, Albania | ŠIFAD, Gerd Ludwig, 2002 |
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Hard work is a daily reality for rice farmers in Hoang Su Phi, Viet Nam. They plough, plant, weed, water, hand-thresh, bag and finally transport their harvest to markets. In this remote mountain area, water is brought in, and the harvest is brought out, on foot. Hoang Su Phi, Viet Nam | ŠIFAD, Alexandra Boulat, 2002
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Mucoroge, Mozambique | ŠIFAD, Alex Webb, 2002 |
