Finland and Italy join UN organisations to develop a research agenda on food and fuel needs in rural areas  

Rome-13 October 2010 – The Governments of Finland and Italy will join forces with experts from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the United Nations Foundation, in Accra, Ghana, from October 18-19, to assess the impact of cassava as a bio-energy crop.

Specialists from a broad spectrum of stakeholders; the private sector, public institutions, government officials, development organizations, research institutions, and academia, are gathering to consider aspects of the cassava value chain, with a special emphasis on bio-fuel/bio-energy production to benefit the rural poor, especially women.

Rodney Cooke, IFAD Director of the Policy and Technical Advisory Division, attending the conference, said: “Boosting the production of cassava in order to generate income for some of the world's poorest farmers and small-scale processors in rural areas is vital. Cassava is one of the world’s most important food crops for poor people. Throughout the tropics, its roots and leaves provide essential calories – and income. Around 600 million people in Africa, Asia and Latin American depend on cassava for their survival. Promoting cassava technologies for greater food security is fundamental”.

This consultation will identify the issues in developing cassava as a bio-fuel/bio-energy: from breeding, production through to processing and the treatment of wastes, to develop the potential of cassava to meet both food and fuel needs of the rural poor, without compromising food security and environmental considerations.

The two-day meeting will assess the potential of cassava as a feedstock for bio-fuels, and share country experiences in the processing of cassava as well as issues related to breeding. In addition, the consultation will address agronomic concerns about cassava as a bio-energy crop, post-harvest handling, and policy issues with examples of experiences from various countries.

IFAD’s new Strategic Framework recognizes bio-fuel as an emerging market opportunity for the poor, especially those living in remote areas, which is where almost 70 per cent of IFAD’s projects are located. IFAD has approved a global grant on pro-poor bio-fuel development, aiming to develop appropriate technologies to intensify bio-fuel feedstock production from crops that either do not compete with food production, or multiple use crops that meet the many needs of smallholders for food, animal feed, fibre and fuel.

Notes to editors:

IFAD has invested a total amount of about US$110.0 million in the cassava value chains in the four major producer countries in Western and Central Africa: Benin, Cameroon, Ghana and Nigeria. IFAD also launched a US$1.3 million regional initiative on cassava processing and marketing that was financed through Italian Supplementary Funds. Under the initiative, IFAD set up a number of partnerships with regional and national research institutions and the private sector, and has organized several learning events, such as study tours within and outside of the region, as well as workshops and training exercises.

Press release No.: IFAD/62/2010

The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) works with poor rural people to enable them to grow and sell more food, increase their incomes and determine the direction of their own lives. Since 1978, IFAD has invested over US$12 billion in grants and low-interest loans to developing countries, empowering more than 360 million people to break out of poverty. IFAD is an international financial institution and a specialized UN agency based in Rome – the UN’s food and agricultural hub. It is a unique partnership of 165 members from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), other developing countries and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).