3 October 2012 – On Wednesday 3 October 2012, the Chief Executive Officer of Agence Française de Développement (AFD), Mr. Dov Zerah, and the President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), Mr. Kanayo F. Nwanze, signed a renewable three-year partnership agreement. This signing has taken place under the 2006 France-IFAD agreement and formalizes the many operational collaborative projects that already exist between the two institutions.

AFD and IFAD share the common objective of supporting developing countries via agriculture and rural development. The two institutions operate in complementary geographical and thematic areas. They also share a sectoral vision and a concern for operational excellence in their efforts to support beneficiaries, the rural poor.

Both institutions are already actively involved via the African Agriculture Fund (AAF), the African Agroindustries and Agribusiness Development Initiative (3ADI) and by cofinancing country programs. They are now going to develop new operational partnerships on projects, which include funding for farmers, strengthening farmers’ organizations, the relationship between agriculture and the environment (climate change, biodiversity, water quality, etc.) and the dissemination of new farming techniques.

Example of a partnership implemented in 2012: support for the development of index insurance to reduce food insecurity

In April 2012, AFD and IFAD signed a financing agreement to support the development of index insurance in West Africa. These insurance products contribute to securing income for smallholders, who are particularly vulnerable to climate hazards. They can thus improve livelihoods in rural areas and reduce food insecurity. One of the aims is also to improve access to credit by reducing the default risk vis-à-vis financial institutions.

These crop insurance products have been developed and scaled up for a few years now, notably in India and Latin America. Compensation is calculated on the basis of an index that takes into account the impacts of adverse weather conditions on yields (e.g. rainfall) and therefore on income, without the need to assess the losses plot by plot, which is a lengthy and costly process. However, until now there had been few experiences in West Africa. The project involves implementing customized technical solutions via satellite technology to measure the impacts of climate hazards on crops.

About AFD

Agence Française de Développement (AFD) is a public development finance institution that has been working to fight poverty and foster economic growth in developing countries and the French Overseas Communities for seventy years. It executes the policy defined by the French Government. AFD is present on four continents where it has an international network of 70 agencies and representation offices, including 9 in the French Overseas Communities and 1 in Brussels. It finances and supports projects that improve people’s living conditions, promote economic growth and  protect the planet, such as schooling for children, maternal health, support  for farmers and small businesses, water supply, tropical forest preservation, and the fight against climate change. In 2011, AFD approved nearly €6.9 billion to finance activities in developing countries and the French Overseas Communities. The funds will help get 4 million children into primary school and 2 million into secondary school; they will also improve drinking water supply for 1.53 million people. Energy efficiency projects in the same year will save nearly 3.8 million tons of CO2 equivalent emissions annually.

Press release No.: IFAD/55/2012

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 almost US$14 billion in grants and low-interest loans to developing countries through projects empowering about 400 million people to break out of poverty, thereby helping to create vibrant rural communities. IFAD is an international financial institution and a specialized UN agency based in Rome – the United Nations’ food and agriculture hub. It is a unique partnership of 168 members from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), other developing countries and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).