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Este documento expone los resultados de un estudio sobre el Programa de Microfinanciación Rural en Malí. Explora las repercusiones sobre la agencia y el uso de los recursos en los hogares, centrándose en el papel del género a la hora de abordar estas cuestiones.

Este documento presenta dos propuestas de índices para definir y medir la ruralidad: el índice de ruralidad relativa y la contigüidad de zonas de densidades similares.

This report is a guide to shape investments by IFAD and other international donors in climate change mitigation actions in the East and Southern Africa region.

Este documento presenta las conclusiones de una revisión bibliográfica de los principales factores que impulsan el sobrepeso y la obesidad, descritos mediante un marco de sistemas alimentarios e ilustrados con ejemplos de cinco países.

China ha experimentado una rápida transformación rural en los últimos 40 años, que ha ido acompañada del aumento de los ingresos de los hogares rurales y la reducción de la pobreza rural. En este documento se examinan la transformación rural de las provincias del país y sus principales logros.

En este documento se examina qué variables climáticas deben recopilarse, y de qué fuentes, para su incorporación a las evaluaciones del impacto.

El artículo se centra en las actividades destinadas a mejorar la gestión de los pastizales, las fuentes suplementarias de alimentos para el ganado y la creación de cadenas de valor ganaderas. 

Este documento describe una estrategia metodológica para incorporar las condiciones meteorológicas y climáticas a largo plazo en las evaluaciones del impacto, sobre la base de un proyecto respaldado por el FIDA en el Chad, en el que se invirtió en el almacenamiento de cereales.

Esta publicación aplica un marco metodológico para incorporar las condiciones meteorológicas actuales y las tendencias climáticas a largo plazo en las evaluaciones del impacto.

El principal desafío afrontado por los esfuerzos de adaptación al cambio climático y aumento de la resiliencia radica en la transición a un proceso que contribuya a mejorar los medios de vida, en lugar de amenazarlos.

En este artículo, se describe la función de los animales de abasto en los sistemas alimentarios circulares de los trópicos en cuatro estudios de caso.

En este informe se destacan las tendencias del pasado y se analizan las posibles trayectorias futuras en lo referente a la agricultura en pequeña escala, a fin de predecir quiénes serán los productores del futuro.

A través de un enfoque basado en los sistemas alimentarios, este documento examina las pruebas existentes y analiza las condiciones, los segmentos de la población rural y los plazos necesarios para lograr los resultados deseados.

En este artículo se examina la función del agua en el sistema alimentario de Egipto, así como el dilema que afronta el país: aumentar la autosuficiencia alimentaria destinando los recursos de agua dulce del Nilo a la producción de alimentos, o depender de las importaciones de alimentos procedentes de otras regiones del mundo que cuentan con abundante agua.

El documento concluye que las intervenciones a corto y medio plazo son las más eficaces para mejorar los medios de vida de los campesinos pobres, incluidos la seguridad alimentaria y la salud, el empleo fuera del sector agrícola y la asistencia social.

En este artículo, se examinan los requisitos y mecanismos de certificación de dos productos básicos de exportación —a saber, la banana y el cacao— sobre la base del análisis de los sistemas alimentarios.

En este documento se examina la creciente importancia de las pymes en la transformación de los sistemas alimentarios; su paso de tradicionales a transicionales, primero, y su posterior modernización.

Para crear cadenas de valor alimentarias que sean competitivas e inclusivas es necesario aplicar políticas macroeconómicas a nivel nacional que tengan por objeto mejorar el entorno empresarial del sector agrícola y crear oportunidades externas. Asimismo, es preciso adoptar medidas específicas para ese sector que promuevan la participación de los pequeños productores en cadenas de valor competitivas gracias a la reducción de los costos de acceso a los mercados.

Este documento analiza la manera en que se podría ampliar la escala de la elaboración tradicional de alimentos fermentados y, al mismo tiempo, impulsar las propiedades funcionales de los alimentos y reforzar las cadenas de valor locales.

En este documento se sostiene que la transformación de los sistemas alimentarios debería incorporar una perspectiva nutricional basada en la información y las tendencias alimentarias, la motivación de los consumidores y las características del entorno alimentario.

En este documento de antecedentes se examinan los vínculos y las relaciones entre el empoderamiento de las mujeres, los sistemas alimentarios y la nutrición.

En este documento se brinda un marco para evaluar las dinámicas del bienestar rural y la transformación de los sistemas alimentarios.

En este estudio se examina la manera en que las actividades relativas a los sistemas alimentarios contribuyen al cambio climático, así como la medida en que los cambios en la alimentación influyen en dichos sistemas.

Este documento muestra que, si bien los aumentos previstos en la demanda de alimentos para 2050 pueden satisfacerse en su mayor parte a nivel regional, el posible incremento de los rendimientos o la diversificación no contribuirá de manera automática a la transformación rural inclusiva. En cambio, la urbanización podría llegar a aumentar la desigualdad y la pobreza en las zonas rurales.

 

A pesar de que la inclusión cada vez está cobrando más importancia en la transformación de los sistemas alimentarios, en este artículo se sostiene que los estudios y argumentos recientes sobre la materia resultan insuficientes, y que se precisan medidas específicas para garantizar que dicha transformación no perjudique a las poblaciones rurales.

Sobre la base de los datos recabados a nivel nacional en 85 países de ingreso mediano bajo, en este documento se expone la creación de un índice en materia de sistemas alimentarios, y se analizan los vínculos entre dichos sistemas y las transformaciones a nivel estructural y rural, así como la distribución demográfica.

En este documento se analizan las perspectivas de crear un índice en materia de sistemas alimentarios que plasme algunos de los principales componentes que marcan la diferencia en lo que respecta a los resultados de los sistemas alimentarios a nivel de los países.

El estudio se centra en los desafíos afrontados para aumentar las ambiciones de naturaleza política, armonizar los objetivos de producción con los de consumo, reforzar la capacidad de respuesta de los sistemas alimentarios y consolidar la gobernanza inclusiva y participativa de estos sistemas.

En este estudio se investiga cómo las percepciones de la disponibilidad física del agua en el pasado están relacionadas con el comportamiento actual de los agricultores en materia de riego: frecuencia de riego y métodos utilizados para determinar la necesidad de riego.

Este análisis investiga el mecanismo potencial y la importancia práctica de los impactos del desarrollo de la cadena de valor agrícola en una zona rural geográficamente difícil de un país en desarrollo.

Stress-tolerant rice varieties (STRVs) are bred to be high yielding and tolerant to climate shocks such as drought. 

 In this paper, particular attention is given to the identification and promotion of productivity and resilience enhancing agricultural practices. 

Rice farmers in the mid-hills region of Nepal are vulnerable to drought, which can drastically reduce yields. Stress-tolerant rice varieties can mitigate this vulnerability, as can having a high seed replacement rate and using best management practices in rice cultivation.

En este documento se examinan la situación de los jóvenes de las zonas rurales y las oportunidades económicas de África, utilizando un conjunto de documentos de políticas de varios países africanos y organizaciones regionales e internacionales.

Los países de la región del Cercano Oriente, África del Norte, Europa y Asia Central, se enfrentan a un sin número de problemas sociales, económicos y políticos que han paralizado sus procesos de transformación estructural y rural. 

Este estudio ofrece una idea general de la situación que los jóvenes rurales viven en América Latina y el Caribe.

This study characterizes the structural and rural transformation of the Asia and the Pacific region.

This study presents a framework to analyse the political economy of rural youth policy and institutions’ opportunity space with a quadrant that measures the extent to which rural youth are a priority in policies and institutions versus the extent that governments have to effectively implement rural youth policies.

This study analyses how migrants positively contribute to the sustainable economic development of rural youth in their countries of origin.

This study takes a unique look at the determinants of youth migration across seven different countries using recently collected data.

Si bien los conflictos suelen definirse como "lo opuesto al desarrollo", generalmente hay una falta de información que se centre solo en los jóvenes que viven en las zonas rurales.

This study examines the intersections between youth access to land, migration decisions and employment opportunities in various African countries.

This analysis reviews existing research on the impact of digital initiatives on youth in the education, agriculture, financial and employment sectors.

En este estudio se analiza la financiación inclusiva y a la juventud rural mediante una investigación de vanguardia con nuevas ideas y enfoques que han surgido a lo largo de los años en este campo.

In this study, we show that rural transformation processes are associated with improvements in rural youth nutrition – malnutrition and underweight – in nearly all regions, although the pace of change varies considerably across countries.

El cambio climático es importante para todos los jóvenes. Es particularmente importante para aquellos cuyos medios de vida dependen de la agricultura.  Este estudio demuestra que la adaptación al cambio climático es factible y que las opciones aumentan a medida que aparecen nuevas tecnologías y enfoques de gestión.

Research on rural youth aspirations suggests that many young people are not averse to agriculture as such, but to agriculture’s current neglected condition

This study is motivated by the consistent portrayal of agriculture and the broader rural economy in Africa as domains of opportunity for rural youth. 

A key lesson is that lack of technical skills does not seem to be the biggest obstacle youth face in entering the labour force. Evidence on agricultural extension programmes suggests that peer-to-peer learning works best.

Este estudio se centra en la participación en los procesos de toma de decisiones y en cómo se podrían beneficiar los jóvenes del medio rural de sus conclusiones en proyectos e iniciativas de desarrollo.

This study analyses sex-disaggregated data from various countries to characterize rural youths’ transition to adulthood by gender. 

Little is known about the economic activities of rural youth. This study provides empirical evidence on this gap in literature. 

This study uses the concept of the Rural Opportunity Space from economic geography literature to shed light on these questions. 

Building on United Nations data, this study analyses how past growth of the youth population was dramatic in Asia and the Pacific, while projections suggest a sharp rise in the youth population of sub-Saharan Africa until 2050.  

This is the first study to quantify the general equilibrium impacts of introducing a new cash crop into a poor isolated economy, including impacts on environmentally sensitive fishing activities.

There are different views around the future of smallholder agriculture and its potential to contribute to the needed transformations of agriculture and rural economies. 

Agriculture and rural development research will play a critical role in meeting the ambitious targets under SDGs 1 and 2. 

This study is an analysis of what drives cofinancing in IFAD-supported programmes/projects, covering 20 years of data from 559 projects in 109 countries.

This analysis examines the dynamics of youth employment in agriculture and the agri-food system in Tanzania and Malawi.

En este estudio se estima el potencial de mitigación de las prácticas agrícolas apoyadas por las inversiones actuales del FIDA con el fin de orientar el diseño de futuras inversiones.

This paper considers the relationship between farm size and productivity patterns across countries and within countries. 

Este estudio examina el impacto de la investigación agrícola sobre la pobreza y el nivel de vida, mediante una revisión sistemática de evaluaciones de impacto experimentales y cuasi experimentales de variedades mejoradas difundidas por el CGIAR entre 2007 y 2015.

Este trabajo busca comprender mejor el contexto en el que operan las pequeñas explotaciones agrícolas.

Investments in irrigation systems have been shown to substantially improve farmers’ productivity, and thus alleviate poverty. This study provides an example of such an investment: the Participatory Small-Scale Irrigation Development Programme. 

This paper addresses an important gap regarding the systematic knowledge and evidence on how value chains can contribute to nutrition, while remaining financially viable and inclusive of smallholder farmers. 

This paper explores the conditions for collective action to generate inclusion when agriculture transforms. 

This study estimates the impact of agricultural research, specifically improved maize seeds varieties, on agricultural productivity and welfare in Uganda using a three-wave panel survey. 

This paper uses the available cross-country data to analyse the causes for the increase in the disparity between rural and urban areas in Asia. 

Policy engagement is a difficult activity to accurately monitor and evaluate, particularly when development agencies are interested in attributing impact to their efforts. 

This paper aims to identify the main drivers of poverty reduction in Malawi. Using an augmented poverty decomposition methodology, it explores in what way the different farm and non-farm economic activities contribute to poverty reduction and income growth. 

This paper aims to explore the influence of nutrition-sensitive interventions on dietary profiles of the beneficiaries of IFAD-funded projects.

This paper analyses the channels through which growth reduces poverty by evaluating the relationship between the sectoral composition of economic growth and the rural-urban composition of poverty. 

This paper analyses the relation between urbanization and poverty reduction, by exploring the role of secondary towns, mega cities and rural non-agricultural sector in relation to poverty reduction.

This paper challenges the traditional view that portrays income maximization as the main driver of migration and tests whether relative deprivation and social inequality lead to migration in sub-Saharan Africa. Examining data from the Living Standards Measurements Study – Integrated Surveys in Agriculture (LSMS-ISA) from Tanzania, Ethiopia, Malawi, Nigeria and Uganda, the paper finds that a household’s migration decision is based not only on its well-being status, but also on the position of the household relative to the wealth distribution in the local community. Results indicate that relative deprivation of wealth was positively associated with migration, implying a need to renew the discussion of relative deprivation and social inequality as a cause of migration in sub-Saharan Africa.

This paper examines the transformation and diversification of the rural economy in Asia, focusing on the role and importance of the rural non-farm economy and employment in economic transformation and related diversification of employment and income opportunities for rural communities.

The Women’s Empowerment in Agriculture Index (WEAI) can be a useful tool to measure the empowerment, agency and inclusion of women in the agriculture sector. However, computing the WEAI in its current form involves large data requirements, resulting in lengthy surveys with several questions on various dimensions and indicators within each dimension. This paper proposes a reduced version of the WEAI, or the R-WEAI, and examines two possible approaches to reduce the data requirements while ensuring comparability to the full WEAI.

Cash transfer and agricultural support programmes are both used to improve nutrition outcomes in developing countries. This paper examines previous reviews of the impact of these programmes and compares the evidence between the two. The paper finds that, although there are about the same number of programmes of each type, many more papers have been written about the cash transfer programmes than the agricultural programmes. While evidence suggests that both programme types improved the quality of food consumption, the paper concludes that both types show weak evidence of improvements in anthropometric outcomes.

This study describes the shifting age and sex patterns of populations across rural and urban sectors in sub‑Saharan Africa from 1980 to 2015. It examines the relationship between the slowdown in urbanization and rural and urban age structure gaps, sex composition and dependency ratios. Findings show that rural-urban migration of young adults plays a key role in explaining dependency ratios and sex compositional gaps in rural and urban areas. Results also highlight the value of taking into account local age and sex structures to better prepare for the demographic dividend and other consequences of demographic shifts in sub-Saharan Africa.

This paper describes the Participatory Impact Assessment and Learning Approach (PIALA) which was developed and piloted by IFAD. The approach aims to produce rigorous qualitative and quantitative evidence that can be used not only to identify and assess the impacts of development projects, but also to promote learning and improved understanding of the associated processes and pathways of socio-economic change. Illustrated with cases from Viet Nam and Ghana, the paper assesses the value of the approach for collaborative learning and reporting for IFAD’s country programming and global policy engagement, as well as for the wider development community.

Remittances have increased in low-income and lower- middle-income countries in recent years, playing an important role as a stable source of finance at the macro-level, and in poverty reduction at the micro-level. 

Drawing on a critical review of the literature and econometric analyses based on cross-country panel data, this study examines the relationships among remittances, growth and poverty reduction in Asia and the Pacific and highlights policy implications to be considered by governments and policy-makers.

This paper investigates the trends and the influencing factors of IFAD’s project disbursement performance over the past 20 years. Based on data from 577 projects in 111 countries, the study finds that disbursement of funds are often delayed and time-consuming.

Using econometric analysis, the study assesses the internal and external factors affecting the amount and timeliness of disbursements, and provides important lessons on how international financial institutions such as IFAD can better monitor and manage this important aspect of their development effectiveness. 

Graduation out of chronic poverty has recently been receiving considerable attention by the global development community for its potential synergies with social protection, microfinance and livelihoods development approaches to poverty reduction. 

This paper examines the evidence regarding the effectiveness of graduation strategies in reducing extreme poverty, with a focus on rural households, and proposes a new analytical framework to support future work on graduation as a learning and adaptation process in development practice.

Project Completion Reports (PCRs) are a critical tool for development organizations, both for accountability purposes, and as a means of learning from project experience to inform the design of future operations. This paper analyses a sample of PCRs from IFAD to assess the extent to which evidence is used to determine a project's effectiveness in bringing about development. 

The report finds that most claims on results are not supported by evidence, and discusses implications for the objective measurement of development effectiveness.

This paper analyses how food safety challenges and requirements affect smallholder farmers' access to markets. High food safety standards in destination countries force governments of developing countries to make strategic choices about establishing domestic standards and upgrading the infrastructure and knowledge base of smallholder farmers.

The paper suggests mechanisms that can be used to respond to these challenges, to enable smallholder inclusion in different markets.

This paper provides an overview of concepts, issues and research on the relationship between financial inclusion and inclusive rural transformation.

It demonstrates how changing demand for financial services, innovations in rural finance, and different investment strategies affect the interplay of supply and demand.

This paper analyses how different types of social protection interventions affect rural livelihoods. It examines how these interventions can help rural transformation by increasing productivity and asks how they can influence inclusiveness.

Using country-level evidence, it suggests that the effectiveness of social protection depends upon specific contexts and combinations of interventions, and asks what this means for building policy. 

This paper seeks to answer three main questions: (i) What are fragile states and situations and how do they relate to issues of inclusive
structural and rural transformation? (ii) In three selected case studies of diverse fragile situations (in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Republic of Haiti and the Republic of the Sudan – drawing on IFAD financed programme and country experience), what have been the key elements of structural and rural transformation and to what extent has rural transformation been inclusive? (iii) In these cases, how does fragility affect the inclusiveness of rural transformation? Which policies and approaches can successfully promote inclusive rural transformation in
fragile situations?

This paper examines the impact of IFAD-supported projects so as to learn lessons for future projects. It analyses the different methods used by IFAD to measure a project's impact, finds that IFAD is improving the well-being of rural people, and recommends that impact assessments be built into future projects from their inception.

This paper challenges current thinking on the connection between rural transformation and food security & nutrition. It advocates that improving rural and structural transformation has a positive cyclical effect upon communities by improving food availability, access, supplies and utilization which in turn improves the health and education of communities. 

Using evidence from across the developing world, the paper creates a policy agenda to maximise potential for smallholder farming to transform local economies.

This paper examines the role of rural-urban linkages in fostering inclusive and sustainable food systems and how these contribute to rural transformation and,  more broadly, to sustainable and inclusive development. Focusing on sub-Saharan Africa, the paper analyses the interdependencies between rural and urban areas and points to the key roles played by rural-based populations and producers, particularly smallholders, in promoting inclusive, mutually beneficial and sustainable urbanization. 

This paper investigates how household agricultural involvement affects food consumption and dietary diversity in rural Malawi. It analyses the relationship between on-farm income shares and the caloric consumption levels and shares across food groups. It finds that while food consumption and dietary diversity increase with agricultural involvement, the quality of diets does not improve. It highlights the importance of income diversification to dietary diversity and the need for investments in nutrition-sensitive agricultural value chains, nutrition education and crop diversification programmes. 

This paper looks at the role of agriculture in fostering inclusive and sustainable development in Sub-Saharan Africa. It discusses how improving agricultural productivity, smallholder access to markets and expanding agribusiness opportunities can accelerate transformation, investment and industrialization. The paper presents key investment and policy elements to be considered and points to the centrality of smallholders for the rural transformation process to be inclusive.

This paper analyses the role of migration in promoting rural livelihoods and discusses how migration interacts with transformative economic processes. Focusing on migration out of rural areas, it examines the impacts of migration on rural livelihoods and challenges the perspective that sees rural outmigration as a failure of rural development. 

This paper is a guide to current debates about agricultural development. It analyses the changes in development approaches and thinking in recent decades and explores today's critical issues in agricultural and rural development policy. With the main focus on Africa, the paper also includes insights from Asia and Latin America.