Knowledge

In this review, the role of farmed animals in circular food systems in the tropics is presented in four case studies.

In this report, we highlight past trends and explore possible future trajectories of smallholder farming to predict who the farmers of the future are.

Using a food systems approach, this paper reviews existing evidence and discusses the conditions, rural population segments, and timelines needed to achieve desired outcomes.

This paper explores the role of water in Egypt’s food system and the dilemma the country faces: raise food self-sufficiency by allocating freshwater resources from the Nile to food production, or rely on food imports from water-abundant regions worldwide.

The paper finds that short- to medium-term interventions are most effective for improving the livelihoods of poor farmers, including food security and health, off-farm employment, and social assistance.

In this paper, the certification requirements and schemes of two export commodities—banana and cocoa—are discussed using food system analysis.

Agroecology applies ecological principles to agriculture and ensures a regenerative use of natural resources and ecosystem services, while addressing the need for socially equitable food systems in which people can choose what they eat and how it is produced.

IFAD’s strategy in Ethiopia focuses on providing smallholder farmers, pastoralists and agropastoralists with the critical assets they need to enhance productivity and resilience. These include natural resources, technology, finance, institutional capacity and access to markets.

Remittances sent by migrant workers to and within Africa were over US$85 billion in 2018, of which US$25 billion were sent by migrants residing in Europe.

This Just-in-Time Policy Note examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Pakistan’s food system and provides recommendations on key policy actions and adjustments to make the food systems more resilient to future shocks.

This paper explores the rise of SMEs in transforming food systems—from traditional, to transitional, to modern.

Developing competitive and inclusive food value chains requires domestic macroeconomic policies to improve the agricultural sector’s business environment and create outside opportunities, and sector-specific targeted measures to promote smallholder participation in competitive value chains by reducing market access costs.

This paper explores how traditional processing of fermented foods can be scaled up while enhancing functional food properties and strengthening local value chains.

This document offers insights into the challenges and opportunities of building public-private partnerships, and their potential to transform food systems in the region.

This briefing note provides a background of the Multidimensional Poverty Assessment Tool and case studies from projects in Kenya and Eswatini.

This paper argues that food systems transformation should incorporate a dietary perspective that is guided by information on diets, dietary trends, consumer motives, and the food environment characteristics.

This background paper examines the linkages and interactions between women’s empowerment, food systems, and nutrition.

This paper provides a framework for assessing the dynamics of rural wellbeing and food systems change.

This brief lays out the key elements of IFAD’s response to the global impacts of the war in Ukraine. Our goal is to protect the development gains and livelihoods of poor rural people, while reinforcing their resilience, focusing on the poorest and most affected countries. 

Greening our food systems to deliver healthier and more nutritious food sustainably cannot be done without financially empowered agricultural small and medium-sized enterprises (agri-SMEs).

Faced with a triple health, economic, and social crisis during the COVID-19 pandemic, Farmers’ Organizations (FOs) have been called on by members and partners to play a variety of roles in response to the crisis.

This article reviews how food system activities contribute to climate change and how dietary changes affect food systems. It shows that while emissions from food production are increasing in most regions, emissions from land use change are decreasing.

This paper shows that while anticipated increases in food demand by 2050 can largely be met regionally, potential yield increases or diversification will not contribute automatically to inclusive rural transformation. Instead, urbanization may potentially increase rural inequality and poverty.

Although the importance of inclusion in food system transformation is gaining traction, this paper argues that recent research and discourse on the topic is insufficient and that specific actions are needed to ensure that this transformation does not take place on the backs of the rural poor.

This toolbox provides guidelines on how to design and assess food biodiversity and dietary diversity projects with local communities, with the aim of improving the diets and nutrition of Indigenous Peoples.

Since 1981, IFAD has financed 19 rural development programmes and projects in Rwanda, for a total amount of US$358.04 million, and directly benefiting about 1,540,157 rural households.

Since 1979, IFAD has invested US$455.09 million in 20 programmes and projects in Kenya (at a total cost of US$980.31 million), in support of the Government’s efforts to reduce rural poverty.

This policy brief explains what FPIC is, how IFAD seeks FPIC, and examples of how IFAD and indigenous peoples are working together with FPIC.

This report documents how GIS methods and secondary data can be used as a complementary set of tools to conduct impact assessments when in-person interviews are not possible.

Resilient Food Systems (RFS) promotes a holistic approach to enhancing agricultural productivity and restoring degraded landscapes in smallholder farming systems. This report showcases the achievements and innovations of the programme across 12 countries in 2021.

The Agricultural Value Chains Development Programme (PADFA) seeks to improve post-harvest activities (packaging, storage, processing and marketing) for rice, vegetables, and mango in Côte d’Ivoire.

This glossary provides standardized terms in Arabic, English, French, and Spanish in order to share knowledge and widen understanding of nutrition.

Based on the work of the Global Donor Platform for Rural Development over the last two years, this white paper presents a set of responses and priorities for donor engagement and a menu of options for future donor commitments.

Using country-level data from 85 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), this paper outlines a food systems index (FSI) and analyses the linkages between food systems and structural and rural transformation, as well as population distributions.

This paper explores the prospects for a food system index (FSI) capturing several key components that influence differences in food system performance at the country level.

This paper highlights five fundamental paradigm shifts that are required to overcome trade-offs and build synergies between health and nutrition, inclusive livelihoods, environmental sustainability, and food system resilience.

This report looks at how the EU and IFAD have leveraged the partnership to develop new approaches that scale up actions to drive innovation in public-private sector partnerships, financing models, and pro-poor agricultural research, as well as supporting farmers’ networks.

Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR) is one of the countries with the largest number of different ethnic groups in the world. The history of these ethnic groups extends beyond human memory.

Internationally, the ‘Scheduled Tribes’ (STs) of India are generally referred to as ‘Indigenous Peoples (IPs)’. However, the Government of India emphatically rejects equating Scheduled Tribes (STs) with IPs even while abiding by the operational directives of bilateral and multilateral agencies with regard to IPs while operationalising projects with their financial aid.

This note provides practical guidance on how to roll out the Gender Action Learning System (GALS) for IFAD-funded projects.

This How-to-do note outlines how an internal knowledge gap mapping exercise can be put together to derive meaningful inferences.

This  catalogue features innovative geospatial tools and real life case studies from IFAD’s operations, to give a flavour of how and where IFAD uses such technology. 

Since 1979, IFAD has funded 17 rural development projects in Madagascar for a total of US$434.285 million. Four projects are currently ongoing.

This brief describes how an IFAD-GEF project promotes sustainable peatland management, secure carbon stocks, and conservation of biodiversity, while improving the living standards of local communities.

This policy note discusses how China could further advance its food and agricultural development model, making it greener, more sustainable, and more inclusive.

This policy note discusses the challenges and opportunities for China to update its development model to reflect the new context. It suggests three priority areas and nine policy actions which China should focus on.

The IFAD Development Practices Community shares ideas, good practices, tools and lessons to enhance the effectiveness of development projects and better address the needs of the people IFAD serves.

EvalForward is a Community of Practice on Evaluation for Food Security, Agriculture and Rural Development.

This brief raises awareness about water harvesting systems and describes the design of water harvesting interventions. It aims to inform stakeholders on the assessment of water demand, water available for harvesting, and the selection of suitable water harvesting systems.

The Farmer Field School (FFS) approach is adopted in the vast majority of projects funded by IFAD in sub-Saharan Africa. Through this stocktaking, we analyse the extent to which the FFS approach helped peasant farmers engage in collective action, band together, and become more autonomous in responding to the problems they face.

Understanding market demand is a critical step in the process of developing solutions to meet the risk management needs of rural poor people, particularly with regard to insurance.

This report offers a consolidated analysis of pre-COVID food security and nutrition challenges across the Pacific Islands and outlines key actions needed to respond to the current impacts, inform medium- to long-term recovery planning, and better prepare for future crises.

This infographic presents highlights of IFAD’s work in 2021. 

The purpose of this strategy is to facilitate a more systematic, organized and generalized integration of the protection, sustainable use and promotion of biodiversity in IFAD operations.

This document is an overview of the lessons learned from a project on “Scaling up rural youth access to inclusive financial services for entrepreneurship and employment” in Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi.

This study examines how behavioural barriers and biases perpetuate the gender gap and explores how behavioural science can reduce such barriers and biases.

Post-Tsunami Sustainable Livelihoods Programme for the Coastal Communities of Tamil Nadu, India, 2007-2020.

This synthesis draws on 17 recent IFAD Impact Assessments conducted in various countries and production systems to analyse project activities and theories of change.

This report examines the factors that have contributed to the resilience of remittances during the pandemic.

Agriculture is the largest economic sector in Asia and the Pacific region, providing livelihoods to more than 266 million workers. Therefore, examining the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on this sector is crucial for securing the livelihoods of rural people in the region and preventing a food crisis in countries that are already experiencing food and nutrition security challenges.

This paper captures and synthesizes key approaches, strategies and lessons for empowering rural youth in the Asia-Pacific region from farmers’ organizations (FOs) and regional and international development agencies.

A space for sharing lessons learned and good practices, which are essential elements for the sustainable development of rural territories.

The Regional Overview of Food Security and Nutrition in Latin America and the Caribbean 2021 gathers the latest data on the food security and nutrition situation in Latin America and the Caribbean region, showing a worrisome landscape.

This study takes stock of these experiences in an effort to contribute to building up the evidence base to help inform the future strategy and design of similar programmatic interventions.

Capturing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on China’s rural and agricultural economy offers an opportunity to ascertain how much influence it has had on rural farmers and how their coping strategies and the government’s mitigation measures helped ease the economic impacts on the lives of people living in rural areas.

This collection of success stories and good practices shows the impact of the Joint Programme on Accelerating Progress towards the Economic Empowerment of Rural Women (JP RWEE) among rural women in the seven participating countries: Ethiopia, Guatemala, Kyrgyzstan, Liberia, Nepal, Niger and Rwanda.

This case study presents the partnership between the Barakadi rice cooperative located in N'Dana in Burkina Faso, accompanied by the IFAD Project to Support the Promotion of Agricultural Sectors (PAFPA), and the NAFASO company, which focuses on production and rice marketing.

Partnerships between producer organizations (POs) and enterprises are promoted as a model for structuring value chains to integrate small producers more equitably and sustainably.

IFAD and Slow Food share a vision of supporting small-scale, diversified production and consumption mechanisms that focus on improving the marketing of local products. 

This brief identifies and describes the principal challenges, and outlines possible solutions that development programmes can support.

The 2021 GFRID Summit focused on the role of remittances and diaspora investment in strengthening market recovery in the midst of the current global pandemic and on heightening the resilience of migrant workers and their communities.

This third edition of the IFAD Climate Action Report (CAR) describes the efforts that IFAD has made during the year to integrate climate change into every aspect of its plans and operations. 

This is the official flyer of the JP GTA. It provides information about the Joint Programme's overview, background, objective, expected results, key components and country-level activities as well as key issues related to gender transformative approaches.

This is the first publication exclusively focusing on yak wool production and its commercialization, incorporating the socio-environmental narrative attached to High Asia region and its herders communities.

This brief illustrates effective instruments that overcome barriers to investments and leverage existing policy tools and instruments to address sustainable financing in the AFOLU sector.

This study examines six projects, in three principal ecosystems of the region: a mountainous region, wetlands and a river delta.

This brief summarizes relevant findings from socio-legal analyses, combining the review of key legal and policy documents and literature on existing barriers to the recognition of women’s land rights.

Lessons from a quick review of the diverse and varied financial schemes designed for, accessed by and used by poor smallholders and other rural stakeholders in IFAD’s project portfolio in West and Central Africa over the decade leading up to 2020.

IFAD country programme in Egypt is the largest in the Near East and North Africa. In total, IFAD has invested in 14 agricultural development projects and programmes for a total Cost of US$ 1.1 billion, with IFAD direct financing of US$ 519.28 million benefitting around 7 million people.

This paper presents key results and lessons learned on NbS, mainly from IFAD’s Adaptation
for Smallholder Agriculture Programme (ASAP) portfolio, to inspire future programmes to
reach greater scale in supporting inclusive rural transformation.

With funding from ASAP2, eight Climate Risk Analysis reports were produced by the University of Cape Town, covering Angola, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

This note offers practical guidance for IFAD staff, consultants and in-country partners for seeking FPIC in the design and implementation of IFAD-funded projects and programmes, in compliance with IFAD policies and procedures.

IFAD’s second Biodiversity Advantage report showcases five IFAD projects which highlight the integral importance of biodiversity in agriculture.

Over the six-month period analyzed in this report, Iraq experienced significant turmoil. In addition to the effects of the pandemic, with cases overall on the rise in Iraq, the devaluation of the Iraqi dinar in December 2020, and lower than usual seasonal rainfall, have all impacted upon the food security of households. 

IFAD’s technical assistance programme INSURED (Insurance for rural resilience and economic development) has been building knowledge about how to strengthen women producers’ access to climate risk insurance. 

The HtDN complements the IFAD toolkits on Poverty targeting, gender equality and empowerment and the Land Tenure Toolkit.

IFAD’s Rural Development Report 2021 is focused on rural livelihoods in the context of food systems transformation. The report promotes equitable livelihoods for rural people, who are front and centre in transforming food systems, alongside the need to improve nutrition and protect the environment.

In partnership with six radio stations in Burkina Faso, Ghana, Tanzania, and Uganda, Farm Radio International asked small-scale farmers, vendors, processors, marketers, and others how the food system should be changed to meet their needs and the needs of their communities.

This manual of good practices in fish nutrition and feeding in the specific context of the Democratic Republic of the Congo was produced to build the capacities of fish farmers and extension services, and promote other aquaculture technologies and manuals of good aquaculture practices developed by WorldFish.

The Global Donor Platform report provides a mapping of the patterns and scale of food systems-related funding and an assessment of the extent donors are embracing a food system framing and aligning their investments to the UN Food Systems Summit Action Tracks.

This second edition includes new terms that are emerging from most recent IFAD's publications and other recent sources related to Indigenous Peoples.

The purpose of the glossary is to ensure consistency and accuracy of terminology in Arabic, English, French and Spanish, and standardize the terminology used in relation to gender issues in official documentation and publications, and in all aspects of meeting preparations. 

This report presents the results of IFAD’s stock-take on agroecology.

Funding through the China-IFAD SSTC Facility under the third call for proposals were designated towards projects that support the generation and exchange of innovative solutions, approaches and methodologies that can be of value in the post-COVID-19 recovery period.

We investigate how perceptions of physical water availability in the past are related to farmers’ current irrigation behaviour.

Communications is key to help poor rural people build better lives. And this toolkit has been created to help us all get the job done.

A resource for IFAD staff and consultants, project staff and partners who want to learn more about KM.

This brief highlights how a project to fight Cassava Brown Streak Disease and Cassava Mosaic Disease led to policy improvements and operationalization for the cassava seed sectors in Rwanda and Buundi. It also presents the future actions needed to enable the functionality of the policy as part of the clean seed delivery system.

The reports gives a special focus on the Gender Awards created by IFAD in 2013 to showcase, celebrate, reward and increase the adoption of successful ways of promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment in IFAD projects.  

This report presents the potential impact of the planned IFAD-funded Regional Resilient Pastoral Communities Project on greenhouse gas emissions, both in terms of the overall impact of the project, and as a possible input to the update of Kyrgyzstan’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC).

See how IFAD responded to the unique challenges of 2020. Read about our ambitions for a recovery that brings about a more resilient, fair and inclusive world. Find out what we are doing to make this a reality.

This technical note presents a study that compared the average pasture conditions of the periods of 2000–2004 and 2016–2020 in Kyrgyzstan using remote sensing imagery.

The China-IFAD South-South and Triangular Cooperation (SSTC) Facility was established on 31 March 2018 with the signing of the Supplementary Funds Agreement between IFAD and the Ministry of Finance of the People’s Republic of China.

A pathway to introduce, design and utilize Integrated Farming Systems (IFS) for food security in Kiribati.

The 2021 SOFI report presents the first global assessment of food insecurity and malnutrition for 2020 and offers some indication of what hunger might look like by 2030 in a scenario further complicated by the enduring effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This publication provides a better understanding of the present trends, opportunities, policies and actions to be taken to nourish the one billion additional people who will populate Africa in 2050.

This resource book and policy briefs provide an overview of the impacts on food availability, ecosystem services and security of tenure in the shift to settled agricultural systems.

This detailed sector analysis features options for livestock and pasture sectors of Kyrgyzstan to adapt to climate change and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The AVANTI country summaries provide insights and takeaways from AVANTI experiences at the national level.

IFAD is committed to promoting secure tenure and equitable rights to, and governance of, land, territories and natural resources, as a central tenet of rural transformation.

Prototyping aims to gather direct feedback on the solution and the wider insurance scheme, incorporate changes before pilot testing, and make any additional adjustments before the official roll-out.

The ToRs include an outline of the required steps and processes, a timeline and a list of deliverables, together with information on the profile of the service provider or team of experts.

These are model terms of reference (ToRs) for use by project designers and implementers in development organizations and governments. The objective of the ToRs is to support the contracting a specialized service provider to carry out one or more agricultural and climate risk insurance feasibility studies within the context of an IFAD-financed project or similar initiative.

This free online learning programme supports IFAD and FAO projects and partners in finding solutions to secure tenure rights through participatory methods and geomatics technology.

Access to capital is widely understood to be one of the biggest constraints to business growth in Uganda. 

IFAD has worked in Bangladesh for almost 40 years. It has supported 34 projects, costing a total of US$2,356 million, with IFAD financing of US$913 million. 

This Inclusive Financial Services (IFS) stocktaking exercise assesses IFAD’s capacity to deliver IFS and addresses rural poor market development needs both historically and looking forward within the context of emerging opportunities and challenges.

The Insurance Toolkit provides technical tools and knowledge briefs to give project designers and implementers practical guidance on making agricultural and climate risk insurance work for smallholders. The Toolkit is produced by INSURED, with contributions from partners.

This report describes the findings of the country study carried out for the design of IFAD project on Livelihood and Productivity Enhancement of Smallholder Farmers (PROSPER) in Ghana.

This literature review report explores the conceptual linkages between climate change and nutrition using a food system approach.

This report describes the findings of the country study carried out for the design of IFAD Smallholder Agriculture Cluster Project (SACP) in Zimbabwe.

This report describes the findings of the country study carried out for the design of IFAD project on Restoration of Landscapes and Livelihoods (ROLL P) in Lesotho.

While the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) and digital tools has been increasing steadily across large swathes of rural Asia during the past two decades, the ongoing COVID-19 crisis has imparted a sense of urgency in terms of accelerating this trend. 

Collaboration with Local Companies for Adaptive Agriculture in Cambodia.

Sudan became a Member State of IFAD in 1977, with the first IFAD loan being approved in 1979.