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In an effort to tackle the devastating impact of climate change on rural hunger and poverty, the French Development Agency (AFD), today signed a €300 million loan to IFAD to help small-scale farmers in high-risk countries build their resilience to shocks and increase their productivity.

Only 1.7 per cent of climate finance – a fraction of what is needed - goes to small-scale farmers in developing countries despite their disproportionate vulnerability to the impacts of climate change, according to a report released by the IFAD and Climate Policy Initiative (CPI) today.

For the first time in history, today 13 Public Development Banks (PDBs) made a joint commitment to strengthen investments in food and agriculture in the context of a global pandemic and a changing climate.

Risk and uncertainty intensify in the agriculture sector – especially throughout Africa.

In many parts of the world, full participation in society – including the ability to earn an income – is still dependent on owning (or having the rights to) land.

Agriculture has periodically been shaken up by various technological revolutions. The latest? The advent of digital technologies.

Four years ago, back-to-back misfortunes upended Hafeeza Begum’s life. She knew it fell to her to get her young family back on their feet.

Rural young people are increasingly concerned about the environment. Many of them work in sectors that are threatened by climate change, and they’re well aware that their industry and food systems will need to become more resilient and sustainable than ever before.

In this month’s programme, we have the latest on COVID-19 from IFAD’s Associate Vice-President Donal Brown; news on nutrition from the Lao People’s Democratic Republic; and a report on getting youth issues right in development activities.

A unique opportunity for China to advance its agricultural and rural transformation agenda.

For rural people, especially low-income rural people, land and livelihood are one and the same.

Ten African Heads of State have issued a strong call to other world leaders to increase their funding to IFAD or risk jeopardizing Sustainable Development Goal targets for eradicating poverty and hunger, particularly in Africa.

Ten African Heads of State have issued a strong call to other world leaders to increase their funding to the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) or risk jeopardizing Sustainable Development Goal targets for eradicating poverty and hunger, particularly in Africa.

Today, World Food Day marks the 75th anniversary of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations. Born on the wake of catastrophe - World War II, three-quarters of a century later, FAO's mission to end hunger and nourish the world has been made more relevant because of another global scourge - the COVID-19 pandemic, said QU Dongyu, FAO Director-General.

For Idris Elba, returning to Sierra Leone late last year was about two things: reconnecting with his roots and learning about the challenges facing the country where his father was born, so that he could become a better advocate for its people

All across Latin America, rural women are taking charge of their communities’ food production – and their own economic and personal development.

Simon Chottu works hard and plays hard. An events manager by trade, he’s spent the last few years hosting hip-hop parties and organizing music events and competitions across the South Pacific.

Our food supply is at risk if we don’t start prioritizing rural women during this pandemic, said Gilbert F. Houngbo, President of IFAD in a strong call to governments to increase their investments in rural women.

IFAD is currently updating its Social, Environmental and Climate Assessment Procedures (SECAP) which was introduced in 2015 and last updated in 2017. This ongoing update of SECAP is not intended to be a comprehensive revision of the Procedures.

In times of crisis, rural women are the key that holds families and rural communities together – and in times like these, they need our support more than ever.

Meike van Ginneneken joins IFAD today as the new Associate Vice President of the Strategy and Knowledge Department.

On a dusty side street in Auki, a seaside market town on the island of Malaita, Arania Enterprises is bustling.

Life in the countryside isn’t always easy – especially for rural women, whose contributions and successes have only recently begun to receive the attention they deserve.

The return of spring to Santiaogou, a tiny village nestled high in China’s remote, mountainous Qinghai province, should have been idyllic.

One billion people – 15 per cent of the world’s population – currently have a disability, and 80 per cent of them live in developing countries. People with disabilities, despite being “the world’s largest minority,” are often overlooked.

Against the backdrop of the global impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change, the Government of Ethiopia and IFAD have launched a new US$305.7 million programme to help the most vulnerable farmers increase their resilience.

Le FIDA organisera aujourd’hui une concertation en ligne avec les représentants de pays arabes pour examiner les moyens de mettre fin à la montée de l’insécurité alimentaire et de la pauvreté dans la région.

There is good news today for the world’s most vulnerable and marginalised rural communities, as IFAD receives its first public credit rating. This sets the stage for increased investments in food security, employment, and rural economic growth, and is an important step towards the achievement of the SDGs.

All too often, the path to sustainable development is blocked by outdated policies and legislation.

On 1 October 2020, the UN marks 25 years since the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action – a blueprint to advance women’s rights. But according to the Gender Equality report there’s still a long way to go.

IFAD is always exploring new lending instruments to increase the number of potential financial solutions it can offer.

Along Indonesia’s coastal communities, many small-scale fishers struggle to make a living. Indonesia is the world’s third largest producer of fish, but many of these communities have historically lacked access to the technology and resources they needed to preserve their catch until it reaches the markets, which are usually far from their rural coastal inlets.

We are living in difficult times. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and all the fallout that has ensued, nothing is quite as easy as it was – unless, of course, you can do it from the comfort of your home, armed with a smartphone and a good internet connection.

Reflecting on the fundamental role that sustainable food production and consumption plays in promoting food security and sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems.

We begin this month’s programme with a conversation with IFAD's Associate Vice President Marie Haga about how vital it is for governments to invest in rural communities in developing countries, even during COVID-19.

On 16 September, the United Nations Rome-based agencies − FAO, IFAD and WFP − celebrated the 2020 UN Day for South-South Cooperation with a virtual event hosted by IFAD.

IFAD announced today a US$59.9 million investment to fund a six-year extension of the successful Commodity Value Chain Development Support Project (PADFA) in Cameroon.

160,000 poor rural households in Lesotho will benefit from new financing for a project that will boost food security and nutrition, mitigate the impact of climate change and strengthen livelihoods for greater income.

In dozens of homes across Bouenza, the volunteers gathered around their kitchen tables, ready to taste-test a new variety of flour.

This year marks the 75th anniversary of the United Nations, an organization whose commitment is to bring nations together to preserve peace and security and improve lives. IFAD is symbolic of that commitment.

I grew up knowing that Sri Lankan tea was truly something special. People all across my native Egypt competed with each other to bring home those packages with the trademark “Ceylon Tea” stamped on the side.

Although the residents of the global South may live worlds apart from each other, they often face a surprisingly similar set of challenges.

The scale of the challenge has become ever more daunting across the region.

Sumaka Japhet is a young rice seed cultivator and agricultural entrepreneur. We had heard of his success and local fame as a millionaire – and during one of our field visits, we travelled a long and bumpy road to meet him.

Sweden, through Sida, has pledged funds to help avert a potential food crisis in some of the world’s most vulnerable rural communities in the wake of COVID-19, IFAD announced today.

The Facility will support the generation and exchange of innovative solutions, approaches and methodologies that can be of value in the post-COVID-19 recovery period.

The villages of Naihe and Zhaowa, nestled in the hilly Liupanshan area of China’s Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, are surrounded by world-famous rugged beauty.

Water is a vital ingredient for growing many crops around the globe, but while the world has enough water, it’s often not in the right places, at the right time.

The restrictions put in place to contain the spread of COVID-19 in Pakistan were designed to keep the population safe and healthy, but have spelled severe losses for many rural businesses.

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues on, many people around the world, including small-scale farmers, are learning how to cope with its various effects.

Lack of access to seed is a common problem for small-scale farmers in Nepal and elsewhere.

The rural uplands of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic are home to generations of proud family farmers who depend on small-scale agriculture, with many still using traditional farming techniques.

Some 1.7 million small-scale farmers in Kenya, Nigeria and Pakistan will soon receive personalized agricultural advice through their mobile phones as a means to improve their incomes, food security and resilience to economic shocks caused by COVID-19, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) announced today.

From climate action groups to political institutions, youth are taking on leading roles and bringing new perspectives into the table – showing they are not only the future, but also the present.

Ranjana Chaudhary’s story sounds like the stories of many thousands, if not millions, of young people in Nepal.

As a result of the pandemic, the equivalent of 400 million full-time jobs have already been lost worldwide, and a further 71 million to 100 million people could consequently be pushed into extreme poverty.

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced many people to re-examine everything: their priorities, their jobs, even their roles in society.

More than 375,000 rural people in eastern Uzbekistan’s Fergana valley will benefit from new financing that aims to increase their incomes through the introduction of modern farming techniques, provide access to long-term financing for agriculture, and create jobs in rural areas.

We are failing in our response to increasing hunger levels by focusing predominantely on humanitarian aid, said Dominik Ziller, the new Vice President of IFAD who took office today.

For all the chaos they bring, crises also have a way of giving birth to unexpected opportunities. One way they do this is by urging people to develop new tools to help them resist disaster.

58 millones de mujeres viven en zonas rurales de América Latina y el Caribe; una parte importante de ellas juega un rol central en la producción y abastecimiento de alimentos

At first, when Nguyen Thi Bich decided to try her hand at highland chicken farming, she didn’t quite know what to expect.

In this month’s programme, we’re keeping farmers in focus. We’ve got the latest on how farming communities are coping with the COVID-19 crisis.

This call for proposals is to select a recipient or consortium of recipients to receive a four-year IFAD grant financing to implement the project: Rural youth employment opportunities: Support to integrated agribusiness hubs initiative, for a total amount of up to US$3.5 million.

IFAD’s Twelfth Replenishment (IFAD12) comes at a critical juncture. Hunger is on the rise across the globe, and progress against poverty has come to a standstill.

IFAD launches the first call for nominations for the Indigenous Peoples Awards to recognize the efforts and the achievements of development projects that successfully engage with Indigenous Peoples or ethnic minorities living in rural areas.

In 2020, the world is seeing once again that when crisis strikes, it is the poorest and most vulnerable people who suffer the most.

Although you won’t find the little village of Wowetta on any Internet map, it’s the centre of the universe for Priscilla Torres, a 37-year-old Wapishana woman. A very active and outspoken mother of three, Priscilla is a true community leader.

A new project will focus on two raw materials critical to the livelihoods of small-scale producers: cocoa and palm oil

The International Fund for Agricultural Development of the United Nations (IFAD) today announced support for a new project to boost agricultural productivity, improve food and nutrition security and build the resilience of at least 218,000 rural families in Angola who are vulnerable to climate shocks.

Indigenous Peoples and their unique knowledge are essential to address the COVID-19 outbreak and to build a more sustainable, resilient world.

Transforming food systems for affordable healthy diets.

Until COVID-19 hit in March, the G-Star Youth Group’s banana processing factory was buzzing with activity.

Rossana Polastri, Director of the Latin America and the Caribbean Division of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), has announced the winners of the Rural Youth Innovation Award. This prize has been created by IFAD to strengthen and build the capacities of young people and to promote opportunities being created by young people who are already changing the rural landscape of the region.

Globally, between 200 and 500 million pastoralists manage rangelands that cover over a third of the Earth’s landmass.

Chocolate comes in many different forms and varieties, but it always needs one vital ingredient: cocoa. But a decade ago, it was predicted that, by 2020, the world would have a cocoa shortfall of one million tonnes a year.

The International Fund for Agricultural Development of the United Nations (IFAD) today announced a new project that will boost support for about 210,000 poor rural households in Niger that are vulnerable to climate shocks and food insecurity.

It is increasingly clear that human health and our relationship with nature are inescapably intertwined. This holds true across many dimensions of health, including the potential for the transmission of disease – just as we are seeing with the current COVID-19 pandemic.

The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) today announced support for a new programme in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to reduce poverty, increase productivity and incomes, improve food and nutrition security, and build the resilience of more than 410,000 small-scale farmers households.

Knowing the geographic location of people or things helps us to monitor well-being and assess the impact of events.

Fatima Amaguar came home from university with an idea.

The Government of Peru and IFAD signed a financing agreement today for a new project to help family farmers increase their competitiveness and resilience, and to recover from the COVID-19 impact.

It is something of a paradox that, while there is broad agreement that micro-, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) are an integral part of the economy in developing countries, they remain underserved.

The COVID-19 pandemic is creating disruption - but sometimes offers opportunities for innovative solutions for rural farmers.

COVID-19 is not the only health crisis threatening to devastate the population of Kiribati. Cases of diet-related non-communicable diseases (NCDs) have tripled between 2005 and 2010.

Guadalupe Moller lives in Turco, a small community in rural western Bolivia. She’d spent most of her life in La Paz, Bolivia’s capital, but four years ago she moved back to Turco, where her family’s roots are.

Chef Lance Seeto is an icon of South Pacific cuisine. He’s also been a supporter of IFAD’s Recipes for Change campaign for more than five years now.

“I joined this project because I believe food can really change the world.”

IFAD is helping young people in agriculture evaluate the COVID-19 crisis and build their resilience for the future. In this episode, we hear from nine different voices on this important topic.

Small-scale farmers face multiple challenges in Cambodia - with limited access to credit and vulnerability to climate change.

What comes to mind when you hear the words “sustainable gastronomy”? Some of us focus just on the cuisine and think about delicious – and perhaps costly – dishes.

It’s not often that we have the opportunity to see how rural people see themselves. International organizations like ours tell their stories armed with cameras, notebooks and laptops – and, of course, our own point of view, which is important to compare with theirs.

With the significant decline in money sent home by migrants due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic,IFAD today called for governments across the world to declare remittance service providers essential businesses in times of crisis.

Four years ago, the residents of Chiquicha were just gathering the first fruits of an irrigation project.

Migrants are essential workers; they contribute to the economy of the places they go and, through remittances, to their communities back home.

"Tejaswini" means “a woman who is radiant”. And the one million Indian women who are part of the Tejaswini Rural Women’s Empowerment Programme, are indeed radiant.

In April, the World Bank projected a sharp decline of about 20 per cent in global remittances as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and shutdown.

Rethinking food systems for healthy diets and improved nutrition.

Canada announced today that it will be the first country to pledge funds to a new facility set up by the IFAD to help prevent a food crisis in some of the world’s poorest and most marginalized rural communities in the wake of COVID-19.

The economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has led to the loss of millions of jobs in the developed and developing world.

In a world living with Covid-19, it is clear that supply chains and logistics should be simple and easy to manage. And that’s what several Indian states are doing.

When exports of dried pineapple resumed at the beginning of May, after the lockdown, Jean Damascène Hakuzimana, President of the Tuzamurane farmers’ cooperative, was relieved.

Agricultural extension services play a fundamental role in building producers’ capacities to maintain good agricultural practices.

World Environment Day is a day set aside to raise awareness about environmental issues and encourage protective action. This year’s theme is “Time for Nature.”

Since the COVID-19 virus outbreak, much information and misinformation has been circulated about wet markets and an international rallying cry has been made for wet markets to be better regulated or even closed down.

The IFAD-supported Artisanal Fisheries Promotion Project (ProPESCA) was implemented to improve the livelihoods of artisanal fishers and their communities living along Mozambique’s coastline.

Despite the lush greenery that surrounds Ngarpongtang village in Thangrong, Bhutan, until recently, it was impossible to grow vegetables there. “I used to have to go to other villages to exchange pinewood for vegetables,” says Wangdi, a 54-year-old farmer. “We couldn’t get vegetables to grow here.”

Rural development projects financed and supported by IFAD have helped to reduce rural poverty and increase rural entrepreneurship in Madagascar, according to a new report presented today.

Resilience has become the talk of the town in the development community.

Extreme weather events, such as droughts, storms and floods, are putting pressure on the ecosystems that farmers depend on, as are gradual processes such as rising sea levels and melting glaciers.

To take advantage of the potential of AI, IFAD employed machine learning techniques to extract insights from across IFAD’s entire investment portfolio.

In 2014, the people of Sierra Leone faced a seemingly unstoppable virus and a catastrophic outbreak, leading to strict precautionary measures, quarantine and fear.

One emerging lesson from the pandemic is that those who are already vulnerable are likely to be the most severely impacted.

El Fondo Internacional de Desarrollo Agrícola (FIDA), el organismo especializado de las Naciones Unidas para el desarrollo rural, ha validado su estrategia de actuación hasta 2025 en México. En ella se fija como principal objetivo promover la inclusión económica activa de la población rural para luchar contra la pobreza.

In most of Africa, people are more likely to die from starvation caused by the economic fallout from the pandemic than from COVID-19 itself.

Zainab Semgalawe, lead regional technical specialist, talks about rural institutions

Sauli Hurri, senior regional technical specialist, talks about rural finance, markets and value chains

Michael Hamp, lead technical specialist talks about rural finance, markets and value chains

Oliver Page, regional specialist, talks about climate change and environment

Marie-Aude Even, senior regional technical specialist in agronomy at IFAD, talks about crops development.

Mattia Prayer Galletti, lead technical specialist at IFAD , talks about indigenous peoples.

Sara Mbago-Bhunu, IFAD’s director for the Eastern and Southern Africa Division, is among twenty-two renowned experts from across the Global South who are joining a major new Commission on Sustainable Agriculture Intensification (CoSAI).

Putso Nyathi, senior regional technical specialist in agronomy at IFAD for the east and southern Africa region, talks about agronomy.

The COVID-19 pandemic has shown us just how vulnerable agricultural value chains are to external shocks – and how much more we need to do to build the sector’s resilience.

Tom Mwangi Anyonge, lead technical specialist at IFAD , talks about youth, rural development and institutions.