The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) will urge global leaders at COP28 to urgently focus far more attention and funding to the hundreds of millions of small-scale farmers who feed much of the world and are key to global food security and stability.
They increasingly struggle to adapt to the escalating impacts of climate change and to produce the nutritious food we all need, IFAD said on Wednesday.
Small-scale farmers produce one-third of the world’s food (up to 70 per cent in many developing countries) yet their livelihoods and capacity to feed the planet are threatened by changing rain patterns, the deterioration of ecosystems and extreme weather events.
Solutions to help small-scale farmers adapt exist and provide numerous benefits in terms of emissions reduction, improved production and yields and natural resources protection, but require significant investments to implement change at a global scale.
The IFAD delegation, led by President Alvaro Lario, will be engaged during the entirety of COP28, with Lario more specifically participating at the World Climate Action Summit.
To draw attention to challenges and solutions, IFAD is organising 12 high-level events at the Food Pavilion which will feature climate experts, small-scale farmers, youth, and development partners.
IFAD will also launch its White Paper on Climate Adaptative and Water Resilient Food Systems prepared in collaboration with the NDC Partnership.
The White Paper makes the business case for significant investments in food systems to ensure they are resilient to climate change and able to address water challenges.
This year, IFAD is partnering with CGIAR, FAO and the Rockefeller Foundation to jointly host the Food Pavilion – a hub for discussing how agrifood systems can be part of the solution to the climate crisis while providing nourishing and sustainable food for the world and promoting decent livelihoods for small-scale farmers and rural communities.
IFAD is an international financial institution and a United Nations specialised agency.
