A pesar de que las personas pobres que viven en las zonas rurales son los principales productores agrícolas del mundo, en muchos casos no tienen acceso a sus tierras y no ejercen control sobre los recursos naturales de los que depende su subsistencia.
IFAD is an international financial institution and a specialized United Nations agency dedicated to eradicating poverty and hunger in rural areas of developing countries. Through low-interest loans and grants, it develops and finances programmes and projects that enable poor rural people to overcome poverty themselves.
IFAD’s collaboration with NGOs began shortly after the creation of the Fund, when it supported the Small Farmer Agricultural Credit Project in Bangladesh.