IFAD: Invest in small farmers, rural women and the young
Business Desk :
The President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), Alvaro Lario, will attend the Finance in Common Summit co-organized by the African Development Bank and the European Investment Bank on October 19 and 20, 2022.
With the world facing tremendous challenges such as increasing hunger and poverty, as well as devastating climate change impacts, the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, the summit comes at a crucial time, reports UNB.
The confluence of crises has had devastating economic and social consequences, exposing weaknesses in global food systems and sparking a food crisis, according to a media release received from Rome on Monday.
As a UN agency and international financial institution, IFAD recognizes the investment power public development banks (PDBs) can bring to bear on these problems. Massive targeted investment to benefit the world’s poorest people could make a huge difference.
At the Summit, President Lario will make a plea to agricultural PDBs for a major increase in funding desperately needed to help small-scale producers adapt to climate change, increase agricultural production and develop value chains for local markets.
In partnership with Cassa Depositi e Prestiti d’Italia and Agence Française de Développement, IFAD and other PDBs launched the Platform for Sustainable and Inclusive Food Systems in 2021.
This was a significant step to help PDBs to provide financial services that meet the needs of small-scale agricultural producers.
The platform also serves to stimulate private sector investments in rural small and medium enterprises that are essential for the transformation of food systems.
Small-scale farmers in Côte d’Ivoire, and in Africa as a whole, often hold the key to the successful solutions needed to meet global challenges.
Increased investments in commodity value chains, climate resilience and employment opportunities in rural areas help rural people increase their incomes and improve their food and nutrition security, and create jobs for young people, strengthening communities.
