Italy and IFAD share a commitment to a world where people have access to safe, nutritious and sufficient food. Italy is IFAD’s host country and top donor. It also plays a key leadership role in strengthening IFAD’s financial architecture and enterprise risk management, and in affirming the Fund as the primary global vehicle for investments in smallholder agriculture.

Italy welcomes over 660 staff from IFAD’s 177 Member States, 28.3 per cent of whom are Italian.

Since 2002, through an additional US$71.3 million in supplementary funds, Italy has also supported the mainstreaming of innovations in IFAD’s investments. Every dollar Italy provides to IFAD’s core contributions mobilizes an additional US$8.4, focused exclusively on poverty reduction in rural areas, where 80 per cent of the world’s poorest people live.