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The future of world food security
May 2012
Over the past five years, the world has been hit by a series of economic, financial and food crises that have slowed down, and at times reversed, global efforts to reduce poverty and hunger. Today, price volatility and weather shocks – such as the recent devastating drought in the Horn of Africa – continue to severely undermine such efforts. In this context, promoting livelihood resilience and food and nutrition security has become central to the policy agendas of governments. Smallholder farmers need to be at the centre of this agenda, and to play a leading role in the investment efforts needed to achieve it.
Kenya: Country Technical Note on Indigenous Peoples Issues
April 2012
The Republic of Kenya has a multi-ethnic population, among which more than 25 communities identify as indigenous.
Climate-smart smallholder agriculture: What is different?
April 2012
There is a growing consensus that climate change is transforming the context for rural development, changing physical and socio-economic landscapes and makingsmallholder development more expensive. But there is less consensus on how smallholder agriculture practices should change as a result. The question is often asked: what really is different about ‘climate-smart’ smallholder agriculture that goes beyond regular best practice in development?
Enabling poor rural people to overcome poverty in Uganda
April 2012
For over 30 years, IFAD has been strongly committed to rural poverty reduction in Uganda. Since 1982, the organization has contributed approximately US$300 million in highly concessional terms to finance 14 projects and programmes with the objective of empowering poor people in the country’s rural areas. It has also made six country grants totalling US$4.2 million. IFAD is currently providing financing and technical assistance for five ongoing projects and programmes.
Investing in rural people in Burundi
March 2012
IFAD has funded nine programmes and projects in Burundi for a total investment of US$141 million. IFAD’s experience in the country confirms that even under adverse circumstances programmes and projects conceived and designed on the basis of adequate consultations with incentives to rural communities can help improve household food security. During more than a decade of open conflict in Burundi, IFAD continued to implement programme and project activities. In keeping with its mandate for rural and agricultural development, the organization supported participation in social development and the cohesion of rural communities that were directly or indirectly affected by massacres and combat. By continuing activities in the face of insecurity and within the constraints of an international embargo on Burundi, IFAD helped communities maintain a sense of normalcy.
Facilitating access of rural youth to agricultural activities
February 2012
This paper serves as a working document for the youth session of the 2012 Farmers’ Forum and provides an overview of the findings of the MIJARC/IFAD/FAO joint project on ‘Facilitating access of rural youth to agricultural activities’. These findings will be completed and inserted into a final report that will be published after the Farmers’ Forum.
Good Practices in Building Innovative Rural Institutions to Increase Food Security
February 2012
Evidence from the ground shows that when strong rural organizations such as producer groups and cooperatives provide a full range of services to small producers, they are able to play a greater role in meeting a growing food demand on local, national and international markets. Indeed, a myriad of such institutional innovations from around the world are documented in this FAO case-study-based publication. Nevertheless, to be able to provide a broad array of services to their members, organizations have to develop a dense network of relationships among small producers, between small-producer organizations and with markets actors and policy-makers.
Syrian Arab Republic: Thematic study on participatory rangeland management in the Badia - Badia Rangelands Development Project
February 2012
The Syrian Arab Republic, like other countries of the Middle East, North Africa and Central Asia, is a dry country that is prone to drought, with large areas of desert or semi-desert that are too fragile to be cultivated but will support grazing for a restricted number of livestock. These areas of ecological fragility, if overgrazed and poorly managed, can quickly become degraded and desertified and, in the worst case scenario, can eventually become biologically sterile. Good management of these resources is therefore critical to maintaining healthy ecosystems and the livelihoods that depend on them.
Democratic Republic of the Congo: Country Technical Note on Indigenous Peoples Issues
January 2012
The DRC is a multi-ethnic country with some 250 ethnic groups, including several indigenous Pygmy groups.
Annual report on investigative and anti-corruption activities 2011
January 2012
In its efforts to help poor rural people overcome poverty, IFAD aims to ensure that development funds reach them in the most efficient, effective and transparent manner possible. Fraud and corruption divert resources away from the people who need them most. The goal of IFAD’s Policy on Preventing Fraud and Corruption in its Activities and Operations (EB 2005/85/R.5/Rev.1 - “the anticorruption policy”), is the prevention of fraud and corruption within the Fund itself and in activities financed by IFAD at local, national, regional and international levels.
Enabling poor rural to overcome poverty in Yemen
December 2011
IFAD is currently one of the two largest donors supporting Yemen’s rural agricultural sector. IFAD has worked in Yemen since the Fund’s creation, and has acquired a wealth of experience and knowledge of the economy and society, and developed a wide network of partners in the country. IFAD’s goal in Yemen is to achieve improved, diversified and sustainable livelihoods for poor rural women, men and young people, especially those who depend on rainfed agriculture and livestock production systems in the poorest areas. IFAD has three main strategic objectives in Yemen: • empowering rural communities by strengthening partnerships with civil society organizations and using community-driven approaches so that poor rural people can manage local community development activities; • promoting sustainable rural financial services and pro-poor rural enterprises by developing savings and credit associations for disadvantaged groups in remote rural areas and developing rural enterprises that provide jobs for the unemployed, especially young people and women; • enhancing food security for poor households by restoring the productive agricultural base and improving productivity so that poor households can produce enough for household needs and a surplus that can be sold.
Enabling poor rural people to overcome poverty in Honduras
November 2011
IFAD loans and grants have supported the government’s investments in poverty reduction programmes since 1979. Before 1998, when Hurricane Mitch devastated the country,IFAD was almost the only institution investing in rural development and poverty alleviation in Honduras. IFAD also designed one of the first projects to be implemented after the disastrous hurricane: the National Fund for Sustainable Rural Development Project (FONADERS).
Performance of IPAF small projects: Desk review 2011
November 2011
In June 2006, the World Bank and IFAD agreed to transfer the World Bank’s Grants Facility for Indigenous Peoples to IFAD. In September, the transfer was approved by IFAD’s Executive Board. This marked the beginning of the IFAD Indigenous Peoples Assistance Facility (IPAF), which issues public calls for proposals and makes small grants to support indigenous and tribal peoples throughout the world. Development projects financed through IPAF aim to improve indigenous peoples’ access to key decision-making processes, empower indigenous peoples to find solutions to the challenges they face, and respond to indigenous peoples’ holistic perspectives. The projects build on indigenous culture, identity, knowledge, natural resources, intellectual property and human rights. This report, prepared by an independent consultant, provides an overview of the performance of 53 small IPAF-funded projects in delivering results and improving the lives of their target groups. About 45,000 people directly benefited from these projects, and more than half of them were women. Project services reached about 1,200 communities. Primary project activities were training and individual capacity-building in such topics as security of tenure, natural resource management, agricultural technologies, traditional medicine, indigenous peoples’ rights, community programming, literacy and HIV/AIDS prevention.
Weather Index-based Insurance in agricultural development: a technical guide
November 2011
Poor rural people in developing countries are vulnerable to a range of risks and constraints that impede their socio-economic development. Weather risk, in particular, is pervasive in agriculture.
Enhancing market transparency
November 2011
G20 leaders, meeting at their Seoul Summit in November 2010, requested FAO, IFAD, IMF, OECD, UNCTAD, WFP, the World Bank and the WTO to work with key stakeholders “to develop options for G20 consideration on how to better mitigate and manage the risks associated with the price volatility of food and other agriculture commodities, without distorting market behaviour, ultimately to protect the most vulnerable.” This mandate was part of a comprehensive Multi-Year Action Plan for Development, of which food security was one theme among several including infrastructure, human resource development, trade, private investment and job creation, and growth with resilience.
Addressing climate change in East and Southern Africa
November 2011
Climate variability and change are expected to compromise agricultural production and food security severely in many African countries.
Trail Blazers: Stories of Women Champions from IFAD Projects
November 2011
Trail Blazers: Stories of Women Champions from IFAD Projects presents snapshots of the lives and achievements of simple rural women from the project areas whose immense courage and dynamic leadership helped improve their own lives as well as the lives of their families and communities.
Water User Associations in the context of small holder agriculture
October 2011
This report is the fruit of that endeavour and builds on efforts by IWMI, IFAD and many others to document and understand the impacts of PIM. Through the systematic review of 24 IFAD-funded PIM interventions and field observations from 5 project sites in the Asian region this study sheds new light on what works, where and why. Our study examines WUAs that have been created by IFAD projects and those which pre-date it’s interventions but are the main focus of capacity building or restructuring.
Fragile states: working to build resilience
September 2011
Fragile states are home to nearly 30 per cent of the world’s poor people. Though measures of fragility vary, such countries typically lack some of the basic tools of nationbuilding: good governance, strong policies, skilled personnel, functional infrastructure and services, educated citizens, an active civil society and a competitive private sector. Civil and border conflict is an all-too frequent reality. Poor people living in rural areas of fragile states are particularly vulnerable as they have very limited means to cope with the situation created by fragility.
Additional languages:
Arabic,
English,
French,
Italian
IFAD and Togo
September 2011
The country’s challenge now is to create the conditions for economic growth – and the Government of Togo believes that the best way to achieve lasting growth is through increased production and productivity in the agriculture sector. For these reasons, after more than a decade out of the country, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) is working closely with the Republic of Togo to put agricultural and rural development on track.
Smallholder conservation agriculture - Rationale for IFAD involvement and relevance to the East and Southern Africa region
September 2011
There is a growing need to investigate different crop production systems that prevent soil degradation while increasing productivity. Conservation agriculture (CA) offers a promising solution. Conservation agriculture is a climate resilient technology and management system that has demonstrable potential to secure sustained productivity and livelihood improvements for millions of climate-dependent farmers working in semi-arid areas around the world. Success stories are recorded for some countries in Asia, and in Australia and Brazil. However, for sub-Saharan Africa adoption of the technology has lagged behind these other countries, and concerns have been raised as to the suitability of the technology within the smallholder farming context.
Regreening the Sahel: Developing agriculture in the context of climate change in Burkina Faso
September 2011
The already vulnerable Sahel area is highly exposed to climate change impacts due to the strong dependence of its population on rainfed agriculture and livestock. Rainfall variability, land degradation and desertification are some of the key factors that are heavily impacting on local livelihoods. Droughts with varying degrees of severity occur in two out of every five years, making harvests of the major food and cash crops highly uncertain. The recurrent droughts of the 1970s and 1980s caused huge losses of agricultural production and livestock, the loss of human lives to hunger and malnutrition, and the massive displacement of people and shattered economies. Most climate models predict that the Sahel region will become even drier during this century.
Building and operating a mini-hatchery - sand method
September 2011
The manual is aimed at both extension agents and backyard poultry rearers and describes: • How to make a sand-type mini-hatchery; • How to collect and select fertile eggs; • How to place the eggs in the incubator; • The day-to-day operation of the hatchery; and • How to handle chicks or ducklings as they hatch.
The issue of land in Argentina
August 2011
The purpose of this paper is to identify the central issues around land tenure and management in Argentina, in light of the global changes in agriculture and rural territorial development. In addition, a series of policy options are put forward to address the most conflictridden situations, keeping in mind the goals of equity and development.
Madagascar - Étude de cas Le potentiel des jeunes AUE à participer au développement durable
July 2011
L’accès qu’ont les agriculteurs aux ressources hydriques est déterminé par de nombreux facteurs. Le cadre politique national et les stratégies adoptées par le gouvernement ont, entre autres, un impact important sur l’accès à l’eau, et sur les projets et programmes qui travaillent dans ce domaine. Au fur et à mesure qu’évolue le contexte politique, il est donc nécessaire de revoir la mise en oeuvre de ces projets, en particulier ceux qui ont trait à la construction d’ouvrages hydrauliques, afin de s’assurer que l’environnement politique et stratégique reste adapté aux besoins locaux et permette la mise en place d’une gestion locale, durable et efficace de l’eau agricole.
IFAD Annual Report 2010
June 2011
Learn about IFAD's work and results in the 2010 Annual Report. This includes stories about the rural people we invest in, and covers our advocacy to keep the needs of rural communities at the top of the international development agenda. The Report also provides the facts and figures we regularly share with our Member States and partners.
Lessons learned in the development of smallholder private irrigation for high-value crops in West Africa
June 2011
The objective of this report is to identify, characterize, and evaluate best practices in smallholder private irrigation in West Africa. The report presents a comparative assessment of the smallholder private irrigation initiatives in Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, and Nigeria. Issues discussed include: the potential and impacts of new technologies; the successes and challenges of different approaches to develop smallholder private irrigation (promotion of technologies, institutional arrangements, advisory and financial services, and environmental impact mitigation); and the lessons learned.
Higher and volatile food prices and poor rural people
June 2011
Food price trends have a major impact on food security, at both household and country levels. Many of the world’s poorest people spend more than half their income on food. Price hikes for cereals and other staples can force them to cut back on the quantity or quality of their food. This may result in food insecurity and malnutrition, with tragic implications in both the short and long term. Undernourishment increases disease and mortality, lowers productivity and can have severe lifelong effects, particularly for children. Price spikes can also limit the ability of poor households to meet important non-food expenses, such as education and health care. When they occur globally, price hikes can affect low-income, food importing countries, putting pressure on their limited financial resources. Higher food prices have a particularly negative impact on food security when prices spike suddenly or reach extremely high levels.
Higher and volatile food prices and poor rural people
June 2011
Food price trends have a major impact on food security, at both household and country levels. Many of the world’s poorest people spend more than half their income on food. Price hikes for cereals and other staples can force them to cut back on the quantity or quality of their food. This may result in food insecurity and malnutrition, with tragic implications in both the short and long term. Undernourishment increases disease and mortality, lowers productivity and can have severe lifelong effects, particularly for children. Price spikes can also limit the ability of poor households to meet important non-food expenses, such as education and health care. When they occur globally, price hikes can affect low-income, food importing countries, putting pressure on their limited financial resources. Higher food prices have a particularly negative impact on food security when prices spike suddenly or reach extremely high levels.
Additional languages:
Arabic,
English,
Spanish,
French,
Italian
Climate change - Building smallholder resilience
June 2011
Smallholder farmers are the backbone of the rural economy – but they are bearing the brunt of climate change. Worldwide, there are 500 million smallholder farms supporting some 2 billion people. These farmers inhabit some of the most at-risk landscapes, including hillsides, deserts and floodplains. Climate change multiplies the threats facing smallholders, endangering the natural assets they depend on and accelerating environmental degradation.
Additional languages:
Arabic,
English,
Spanish,
French,
Italian