A “just agricultural transition” — a comprehensive shift to sustainable farming that prioritizes the needs of smallholder farmers while reducing environmental impact — is essential to transform global food systems. It also requires a significant boost in dedicated climate finance to succeed.
To support the implementation of climate solutions in low- and middle-income countries, we urgently need new and ambitious climate finance from high-income countries — and this need grows more critical when we look to the agriculture sector.
Currently, agriculture contributes up to 22% of global emissions, yet it receives less than 3% of global climate finance. Smallholder farmers, who are key to feeding a growing population while protecting our planet’s ecosystems, receive a mere 0.3% of climate finance.
About the author
John Mundy
John Mundy leads One Acre Fund’s partnerships globally, focusing on efforts to connect farmers with climate finance and technology. He was previously strategy director for the World Food Programme’s Farm to Market Alliance and founding director of the Digital Climate Smart Agriculture practice for Mercy Corps AgriFin. John is a board adviser for Producers Direct, and in 2015 he was awarded an Acumen Global Fellowship.
