AFD Loans $356M to IFAD to Assist Rural Farmers

Agence Française de Développement (AFD), the overseas development agency of the French government, recently loaned EUR 300 million ($356 million) to the UN’s International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) to assist small-scale rural farmers in developing nations.

The funds are intended for managing natural resources, introducing sustainable agriculture practices and increasing access to financial services. This commitment is a response to both climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic having amplified the number of rural farmers living in poverty. According to the annual UN survey “State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World,” approximately 690 million people experienced hunger in 2019, and this number is expected to rise by 135 million by the end of 2020.