The Adaptation pay off- it does says IFAD

From VIOLET MENGO in Warsaw, Poland

THE International Fund for Agriculture Development (IFAD) says adapting to climate change creates economic benefits for small holder farmers in developing countries.

This is according to a report issued today (Thursday 14^th) entitled the Adaptation Advantage: The Economic Benefits of Preparing Small Scale Framer for Climate Change.

The adaptation advantage: The economic benefits of preparing small-scale farmers for climate change adaptation means anticipating the adverse effects of climate change and taking appropriate action to prevent the damage they cause.

And IFAD President Kanayo Nwanze said investing in adaptation offers many benefits for food security, poverty reduction and environmental conservation when farmers take up more profitable and sustainable cultivation and post-production methods.

The report shows the economic and financial benefits of investments aimed at preparing small-scale farmers for climate change at both a community and a global level through adaptation investments.

Targeted investment is needed to encourage adaptive practices towards sustainable food security while avoiding crop losses and damages.

“By taking a cost-effective risk-based approach to these IFAD adaptation projects, we are able to measure the economic benefits for smallholder farmers themselves,” said Mr Nwanze.

“We are seeing cost-saving benefits and a rise in incomes, not to mention wider global benefits such as avoided emissions and biodiversity gains.”

IFAD’s Adaptation for Smallholder Agriculture Programme (ASAP) is a unique and innovative instrument that channels climate finance to small-scale farmers so that they can increase their overall climate resilience.

ASAP also provides the framework for a more comprehensive accounting of the economic benefits that arise from adaptation investments.

“Investing in adaptation for smallholders is a win-win scenario, and we need to show governments at the UN’s climate negotiations in Warsaw how climate finance – such as IFAD’s ASAP – can bring in net positive economic and environmental benefits for smallholders across the world,”  the President said.

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