Agricultural Investment

The number of undernourished people around the world rose from 653 million in 2015 to 690 million in 2019. According to a recent policy brief produced for the Food Systems Summit, more than 840 million people could suffer from by 2030, putting Sustainable Development Goal 2 – the eradication of hunger and malnutrition by 2030 – in serious jeopardy.  

Africa’s population is expected to continue to grow rapidly, reaching 2 billion by 2050. In order to combat the region’s already high levels of malnutrition and meet future food demand, Africa’s agricultural production and productivity (which is low by global standards and further threatened by climate change) will need to grow significantly. In addition to these challenges, Africa is also experiencing an economic slowdown, partly caused by a decrease in global prices for African export commodities. This is hampering efforts to meet food security and poverty reduction targets.

Global discussion surrounding agricultural investment and funding has increased in recent years, with farmers, development advocates, and policymakers alike calling for wider investments to fight hunger and poverty. The 2012 edition of the FAO's State of Food and Agriculture Report follows closely on this discussion, focusing on the importance of farmers as investors and the need for a stronger global enabling environment.

The world's population is expected to reach 9 billion by 2050; how to feed this population is one of the challenges facing policymakers around the world. The combination of a growing global population, rising incomes in many countries, increased use of biofuels, and potential reductions in agricultural production due to climate change has created an urgent need for investments in sustainable agricultural productivity. Traditional agricultural technologies will not be enough to meet these challenges.