International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)
Agenda 2030 offers clear evidence that IFAD’s mandate of investing in rural people and enabling inclusive and sustainable transformation of rural areas, notably through smallholder agriculture-led growth, is of absolute global relevance today and over the coming decade.
IFAD’s work aims to catalyse country and global progress for rural people to overcome poverty and achieve food security through remunerative, sustainable and resilient livelihoods. All three strategic objectives of IFAD are related to water: SO1 to increase poor rural people’s productive capacities (incl. access to natural resources, agricultural technologies and production services), SO2 to increase poor rural people’s benefits from market participation (incl. water for agro-processing) and SO3 to strengthen the environmental sustainability and climate resilience of poor rural people’s economic activities (incl. environmental sustainability and climate change).
Estimated annual water and sanitation budget: IFAD water-related portfolio currently covers 118 projects in 68 countries, representing about 1.3 billion USD in loans, grants and technical expertise.
Adaptation for Smallholder Agriculture Programme
SDG 13, climate - IFAD has pioneered channeling climate and environmental finance to smallholder farmers with the establishment of its flagship "Adaptation for Smallholder Agriculture Programme, ASAP". ASAP is incorporated into IFAD’s regular investment processes and benefits from rigorous quality control and supervision systems. IFAD places strong emphasis on facilitating the restoration and sustainable management and use of ecosystems and their services in projects and through policy engagement and partnership-building. Its programmes develop capacities and incentives for rural people to become better stewards of natural resources by fostering creation of environmental service markets for carbon sequestration, watershed management and safeguarding biodiversity. By 2025, IFAD’s objective is to reach 100 per cent climate mainstreaming. POLICY ENGAGEMENT (supporting agricultural institutions in IFAD Member States seeking to achieve international climate change commitments and national adaptation priorities); CLIMATE RISK ASSESSMENT (facilitating the systematic use of climate risk information when planning investments to increase resilience); WOMEN'S EMPOWERMENT (increasing the participation of women in, and their benefits from, climate-change adaptation activities); PRIVATE-SECTOR ENGAGEMENT (strengthening the participation of the private sector and farmer groups in climate change adaptation and mitigation activities); CLIMATE SERVICES (enhancing the use of climate information for when planning investments to increase resilience); NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT & GOVERNANCE (strengthening the participation and ownership of smallholder farmers in decision-making processes and improving technologies for the governance and management of climate-sensitive natural resources); KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT (enhancing the documentation and dissemination of knowledge on approaches to climate-resilient agriculture).
Water and Sanitation: Letting Data Lead the Way UN-Water 25 September 2019 – Guest article in International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) SDG Knowledge Hub by Mr Gilbert F. Houngbo, Chair of UN-Water and President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). The sixt … Read more
2019: a year with focus on indigenous people and marginalized groups UN-Water The theme for World Water Day 2019, celebrated on 22 March, is ‘Leaving no one behind’. This is an adaptation of the central promise of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development: as sustainable development progresses, ev … Read more
The linkages between migration, agriculture, food security and rural development. UN-Water The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), and the International Organization for Migration and the World Food Programme (WFP … Read more
IFAD publication on support to farmers’ organizations in Africa UN-Water The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) launch new publication on Support to Farmers’ Organizations in Africa Programmes. The Support to Farmers’ Organizations in Africa Programme (SFOAP) is a continental pro … Read more
Seeking sustainable solutions for water stress UN-Water Among ecosystems services, freshwater is one of the most fundamental for life. For smallholders, water means the difference between a decent life and poverty, hunger and malnutrition. The majority of poor rural people depend on rainfed farming … Read more
