The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has announced a $1.4 billion commitment to help smallholder farmers in Africa and South Asia adapt to the growing challenges of climate change. The announcement came at the COP30 Climate Summit in Belém, Brazil.
The four-year initiative will fund efforts to develop climate-resilient crops and livestock, expand AI-powered digital advisory services, and restore degraded soils. Less than 1% of global climate finance currently supports smallholder farmers, despite their role in producing nearly one-third of the world’s food.
Among the key programs is AIM for Scale, which aims to reach 100 million farmers by 2030. The Foundation has also partnered with the Novo Nordisk Foundation on a $30 million soil-science research project.
Experts describe the pledge as one of the largest private-sector investments in agricultural adaptation, saying it could complement national efforts in countries like Nigeria, Kenya, and India to promote climate-smart farming.
The Foundation emphasized that empowering vulnerable farmers is critical to global food security, stating: “Climate adaptation is not charity; it’s an investment in our shared future.” Visit www.jocomms.com for more news.
