In packed libraries and conference centers across Nairobi, heads of state, finance ministers, and development partners gathered to discuss Africa’s economic future. The Africa Forward Summit, held May 11-12, brought together some of the continent’s most consequential political and financial voices to discuss an ambitious agenda spanning trade, technology, and growth.
The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), a UN agency and the only international financial institution exclusively focused on financing rural transformation, was there to pose a question underpinning every conversation: How can we build a global food system resilient enough to withstand conflict, climate disasters, and economic shocks?
At every turn, IFAD reminded leaders that any serious economic ambition must answer that question, and the answer begins with placing the people who grow the food that sustains us all squarely at the center.
Without strong agricultural systems, progress elsewhere falters, from trade and technology to health and education. The urgency is growing. 266 million people are experiencing acute hunger — nearly double what was recorded in 2016 — as conflicts, economic instability, and climate shocks send shockwaves through global food systems. And though these shocks are global, it’s small-scale producers who are often hit hardest due to cascading fuel, fertilizer, and transportation costs.
That’s why IFAD’s focuses on what it calls "the first mile:” the starting point of global food supply chains. This is where investment can have the greatest impact — creating jobs, strengthening climate resilience, and protecting productivity — yet funding remains scarce. It’s a paradox. Smallholder farmers, who produce roughly one-third of the world's food, receive just a fraction of the attention and financing their role demands.
That’s where IFAD comes in. AFS came at a critical moment in the lead-up to one of the year’s most important food-financing decisions: IFAD14. Here’s why it matters — and how you can influence what governments decide to do for the world’s farmers next.
Let’s Start at Square One — What Exactly Is IFAD and IFAD14?
IFAD’s on a mission to invest in people living in rural communities so that they can increase their incomes, strengthen food security worldwide, and build local resilience to climate, conflict, and economic shocks.
Every three years, IFAD undertakes what's called a replenishment, where contributing states review its priorities and make new financial commitments to fund the next three years of its work. IFAD14, so-named because it’s the organization’s fourteenth such replenishment, will conclude this December in Rome and finance IFAD’s slate of work from 2028 until 2030.
The commitments put forward here will shape the scale and ambition of IFAD’s projects, ranging from rural irrigation and market access initiatives to agricultural training, school meals programs, women's cooperatives, financial tools, and climate-resilient resources. For a farmer facing drought in northern Kenya, or a young entrepreneur trying to build an agribusiness in Ghana, access to these resources can be life-changing.
Reaching The "First Mile"
IFAD’s focus on rural communities is essential because the people who produce roughly one-third of the world’s total food often receive the least support. Small-scale farmers receive less than 1% of global climate finance, even though they are among those most exposed to droughts, floods, and unpredictable growing conditions. Closing this gap is exactly what IFAD14 is built to do.
That imbalance is especially visible across Africa. In many places, smallholder farmers are the backbone of the local economy; the agricultural sector alone employs more than half of sub-Saharan Africa’s workforce. Farms smaller than 2 hectares account for roughly 80% of farmland across the continent.
Investment at the first mile can unlock gains far beyond any farm, however. When producers access better seeds, roads, loans, markets, and tech, they can grow more, earn more, and benefit entire communities.
IFAD’s Impact on the Ground
Governments have supported IFAD for decades for one simple reason: its work leaves a profound, measurable impact.
Today, IFAD has invested nearly $23 billion in ongoing projects across more than 90 countries, directly reaching 92 million people in rural areas. Recent impact assessments found that participants in IFAD-supported projects boosted their incomes by 34%, agricultural production by 35%, and market access by 34% — life-changing figures for farmers who often work at razor-thin profit margins.
"For a young woman in a very rural area in one of these developing economies, it means the difference between being able to bring her children to school, to afford nutritious food, and also to employ other women that are also in the community," IFAD President Alvaro Lario said in Nairobi.
IFAD-supported projects have also helped 1.1 million households adopt climate-resilient and environmentally sustainable practices, and built more than 7,300 kilometers of roads connecting rural communities to local markets, schools, and healthcare centers.
"So it's transforming the lives on the ground through these investments that allow them to have economic opportunity, access to water, access to finance, access to the latest technology, so that we can also make sure that farming is a business that gives them a decent livelihood, and a decent income," explained Lario.
African Leaders Make the Case
African leaders at the Summit echoed that message. Rather than presenting smallholder farms as a development challenge, they framed rural investment as an opportunity to turbocharge economic growth and long-term stability.
That distinction matters. IFAD’s has historically drawn support from more than 100 countries — making its replenishment one of the most widely supported among major financial institutions. Its last replenishment cycle saw contributions from more than 65 low- and lower-middle income countries, evidence that countries receiving support are paying it forward and sustaining it.
Throughout the Summit, President Lario met with heads of state and senior officials from across Africa to discuss food systems, economic growth, and the contributions IFAD14 will make to both.
President John Dramani Mahama of Ghana put IFAD's role in concrete terms.
"Organizations like IFAD help us to bring increased productivity. They help us to bring irrigation and water for all-year farming, they help us to bring warehouses for preserving and storing food. And today, we've been having a discussion with IFAD about agro-processing and agribusiness, and now we even have fin-techs,” he explained. “That is the future of agriculture in Africa, and IFAD and institutions like that are helping to make it become a reality."
How High Are the Stakes?
Nearly 80% of the world’s poorest people live in rural areas. While the immediate impact of investment there might be clear, the consequences of underinvesting in the first mile extend far beyond where food is grown.
That’s because when food systems buckle, the global food prices rise. When climate shocks devastate crops, those losses reverberate across supply chains. When farmers cannot afford fertilizer or reach markets, production falls. When harvests shrink, food prices inevitably rise. And when people lose steady incomes, societies pay the costs. Escalating conflict in the Middle East is heightening concerns about ongoing disruptions, potentially leaving up to an additional 19 million people hungry by the end of the decade.
At the same time, Africa's young population is surging. By 2050, one in four people on Earth will be African. Investing in their futures today will shape how that demographic growth translates into jobs, stability, and shared prosperity over the unfolding decades.
Strengthening food systems is an essential way to prevent crises before they start, and investing in IFAD14 is one of the most powerful levers governments can pull to do so.
The Countdown to December’s On
Governments have only a few months to decide how much they’ll invest in IFAD14. Their commitments will shape IFAD’s work over the next three years, during what is likely to be a precarious period for rural communities.
This decision may not dominate headlines, but its consequences will be felt far beyond the first mile — through food prices, economic opportunity, and the resilience of food systems everywhere.
Some countries have already stepped up. Chad became the first country to pledge to IFAD14, increasing its contribution by 11%. Others will unveil their commitments in the lead-up to December’s final pledging conference.
Without public pressure, IFAD14 could pass like one of the many other development finance pledging moments with little fanfare outside policy circles. Or it could become a moment when the world rallies and demands that leaders pay attention.
What happens at the first mile affects all of us. Call on your leaders to invest in the farmers and rural communities by downloading the Global Citizen app, taking part in our IFAD action journey, and contacting your representatives to make sure IFAD14 is impossible to ignore.
The first mile is where we can make an impact. Let’s start there.