Press release | 13 January 2025

Spain and IFAD to boost financing for international development cooperation at the Seville Conference

Media contact
Alberto Trillo Barca

Communication Officer, Global Media

[email protected]
© Pool Moncloa/Borja Puig de la Bellacasa

Madrid, 13 January 2025 – Amid mounting geopolitical uncertainty for international multilateralism, Álvaro Lario, President of the United Nations’ International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), and Pedro Sánchez, Prime Minister of Spain, met today to prepare for the Fourth United Nations International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4), which will take place in Seville from 30 June to 3 July this year.

Ten years after the third edition in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the Seville conference this summer will be a critical meeting to redefine development cooperation financing as part of an adapted global financial architecture that meets the needs of the current context. The success of the conference will depend on Spain’s leadership as host, fostering multilateral cooperation and sustainable development while balancing the interests of the Global North and South.

“The world’s most pressing challenges need ambitious and coordinated financial investments – especially when it comes to supporting the poorest and most vulnerable,” Álvaro Lario said after the meeting held at the Palacio de la Moncloa.

“In these turbulent times, we must pursue solidarity-based agreements at negotiation tables rather than resorting to brute force on battlefields,” added Lario, the President of IFAD and the only Spaniard currently heading a UN agency. “The Seville conference is a moment to reinforce multilateralism as the most efficient response to global issues.”

Global Challenges

Sánchez and Lario discussed the global challenges that urgently require increased and substantial financing to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. Topics included the climate crisis, inequality, migration, gender gaps, and debt in developing countries. IFAD is already leveraging innovative financial solutions to increasingly involve the private sector in addressing these issues.

With Spain experiencing a record number of small boats and rafts arriving on its shores in 2024, IFAD’s President reminded that the root causes of the crisis lie in inequality and a lack of opportunities in rural areas. Lario emphasized that the most effective way to prevent people from risking their lives at sea and falling prey to trafficking networks is to invest in the poorest rural communities.

“No fence, wall, or coastal patrol can deter the hope of people seeking a better life. It is much easier to save and improve lives on solid ground, in the rural areas where these migrants come from. Investments in agriculture that provide decent jobs for young people are therefore  fundamental to building a fairer, more prosperous, and peaceful world,” said Lario.

With the new Law on Sustainable Development Cooperation and Global Solidarity, Spain is now legally committed to allocating 0.7% of its Gross National Income to Official Development Assistance by 2030, a commitment supported by the vast majority of Spanish citizens, according to a Eurobarometer survey. This new law, coupled with the robust growth of the Spanish economy, offers Spain the opportunity to become a leader in sustainable development, particularly through its focus on food security and climate action within the framework of multilateralism.

The role of IFAD

As an international financial institution, IFAD plays an increasingly vital role in the current geopolitical context due to its unique ability to reach those most in need. It is the only UN specialized agency that exclusively invests in rural areas, in the so-called “first mile,” where smallholder farmers produce one-third of the world’s food.

IFAD also leads in financial innovation, such as issuing sustainable bonds to attract private capital to invest in initiatives that combat hunger and poverty. Between 2019 and 2021, IFAD-supported projects improved the incomes of more than 77 million people, demonstrating its capacity for large-scale impact.


Notes to Editors

Visit to Madrid

During his two-day visit, Lario will also meet with Luis Planas, Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food; José Manuel Albares, Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union, and Cooperation; Antón Leis, Director of the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID); and Eva María Granados Galiano, Secretary of State for International Cooperation. His official visit to Spain’s capital will conclude with his participation in the event IFAD in Latin America and the Caribbean: Investment Opportunities, to be held on 14 January, at 18:30 at Casa América. The conversation will be moderated by Belén Delgado, journalist with Agencia EFE.

Spain and IFAD

Spain is a founding member of IFAD and has contributed a total of US$119.66 million towardso the Fund’s core resources since its creation in 1977. Additionally, it has provided supplementary funds in the form of grants totaling US$ 18 million. Spain has pledged EUR 20 million for the triennial replenishment of funds that will finance IFAD’s programme of work from 2025 to 2027, making it the 17th-largest contributor by volume.

The partnership between Spain and IFAD focuses on investments in small-scale agriculture. To ensure food and nutritional security, emphasis is placed on gender equality, climate change adaptation, sustainable land use, financial inclusion, and increased collaboration with the private sector. Spain has also pioneered the development of new financial instruments for IFAD. In 2010, it supported the creation of the Spanish Food Security Cofinancing Facility Trust Fund. A concessional loan of EUR 285.5 million and a grant of EUR 14.5 million enabled IFAD to provide additional financing to 24 countries through regular and highly concessional loans.

About Álvaro Lario

Álvaro Lario is the only Spaniard currently leading a UN specialized agency. The IFAD President follows in the footsteps of Federico Mayor Zaragoza, Director-General of UNESCO (1987–1999), and Joan Clos, Executive Director of UN-Habitat (2010–2018).

Follow IFAD on InstagramFacebookLinkedInTikTok, XYouTube.


Press release No.: IFAD/01/2025

IFAD is an international financial institution and a United Nations specialized agency. Based in Rome – the United Nations food and agriculture hub – IFAD invests in rural people, empowering them to reduce poverty, increase food security, improve nutrition and strengthen resilience. Since 1978, we have provided more than US$24 billion in grants and low-interest loans to fund projects in developing countries. 

A wide range of photographs and broadcast-quality video content of IFAD’s work in rural communities are available for download from our Image Bank.

Keep exploring