25-27 March 2024 | Phnom Penh, Kingdom of Cambodia
Background and context
In 2023, record temperatures and new climate anomalies highlighted that the fight against climate change requires new urgency. It has been long understood that agrifood systems, and smallholder farmers, are at high risk from the changes in growing season conditions and potential increase in climate hazards that will accompany accelerating climate change. The agrifood systems are also a key source of emissions. Reflecting on the unique and crucial nature of the agrifood systems for food security, nutrition and the risks and opportunities it presents for tackling climate change, 159 countries, including 31 countries, from Asia and the Pacific, at the 28th Conference of Parties (COP28) of the UN Climate Change Conference signed, at head of state level, the COP28 Emirates Declaration on Sustainable Agriculture, Resilient Food Systems, and Climate Action.
Despite the importance of agrifood systems in the fight against climate change, small-scale farmers and agri-micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) receive a meagre share of available climate finance, and their share is declining. According to a recent analysis by the Climate Policy Initiative, climate finance to small-scale agrifood systems was just USD 5.53 billion or 0.8 percent of total climate finance tracked across all sectors in 2019/20 (USD 660.2 billion). A new report by FAO has highlighted that in 2021, climate-related development finance contributions towards agrifood systems declined by USD 19 billion or 12 percent compared to 2020.
Asia was the region affected most by this decline, dropping by 44 percent compared to 2020. A concerted effort from public and private stakeholders working in the interest of building the climate change resilience of small-scale farmers and businesses across the agrifood systems is now needed to understand and reverse this decline.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is organizing a regional event to strengthen a network of regional stakeholders to discuss the strategies and investment vehicles required to make climate finance work for agrifood systems in the context of the Food and Agriculture for Sustainable Transformation (FAST) Partnership and with the partners of the Agrifood Sharm-El Sheikh Support Program (CGIAR, the International Fund for Agricultural Development [IFAD] and the World Bank), as well as the Scaling up Climate Ambition on Land Use and Agriculture through NDCs and NAPs (SCALA) programme, Asia-Pacific Rural and Agricultural Credit Association (APRACA), Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC), COP28 UAE Presidency, Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES), International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), RECOFTC and the Sustainable Rice Platform (SRP). The event will also allow the members of the ASEAN Climate Resilience Network (ASEAN-CRN), who serve as the focal points for the regional Southeast Asia Agriculture Sector Readiness for enhanced climate finance and implementation of Koronivia Joint Work on Agriculture priorities in Southeast Asia project to discuss the direction of the project and its implementation and pass decisions to advance the project, contributing to the realization of countries’ NDCs. This initiative illustrates countries working together to accelerate the transformation of the agrifood systems amidst climate change through the preparation and development of investable pipeline projects, contributing to the implementation of the COP28 leader-led declaration on agriculture and food systems.
Objective
The event aims to identify climate finance challenges for agriculture and particularly for smallholder farmers, civil society, Indigenous Peoples, youth and women in the Asia-Pacific region, and to discuss investment strategies and vehicles required to make climate finance work for agrifood systems.
Outcomes
- Improved awareness of the decline of climate finance for agrifood systems in Asia-Pacific, particularly smallholder farmers, civil society, Indigenous Peoples, youth and women.
- Shared experience of inclusive, investment strategies to scale up climate finance investment for agrifood systems and smallholder farmers in particular.
- Regional networks of public, private and civil society stakeholders across the agrifood systems are strengthened and innovative partnerships aimed at improved investments for smallholder farmers are fostered.
Partners:
- ASEAN Climate Resilience Network (ASEAN CRN)
- Asia-Pacific Rural and Agricultural Credit Association (APRACA)
- Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC)
- COP28 UAE Presidency
- Food and Agriculture for Sustainable Transformation (FAST) Partnership
- Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES)
- International Rice Research Institute (IRRI)
- Partners of the Agrifood Sharm-El Sheikh Support Program (CGIAR, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the World Bank)
- RECOFTC
- Sustainable Rice Platform (SRP)
Participants
- ASEAN-CRN and/or ATWGARD focal points
- Other selected agriculture focal points from Asia-Pacific (South Asia and the Pacific)
- National agricultural banks
- International development organizations conducting similar initiatives in Asia-Pacific
- Bilateral donors, climate funds and philanthropies
- NGOs and CSOs representing farmers, youth and Indigenous Peoples
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