In this emergency briefing series, ISF Advisors and the RAF Learning Lab will look at how the COVID-19 crisis is likely to affect rural livelihoods and what the cascading effects may be on markets, food security, and national stability. This briefing series seeks to be pragmatic and elevate the real experiences of smallholders and service providers who are most impacted by ripple effects in the economy. The series builds on the 2019 Pathways to Prosperity report, and provides tangible recommendations to critical decision makers on how rural agricultural livelihoods can be supported. In this brief, we look at how the COVID-19 crisis will impact commercializing farmers who are at the heart of many countries’ food supply chains, and who depend on vulnerable ecosystems to survive. For the impact on subsistence farmers please refer to Pathway 1: Vulnerable households at the edge of the pandemic.
Our most recent content
COVID-19 Emergency Briefing: High-risk households dependent on, and critical for, food supply chains
07 May 2020
Partner Spotlight: Insights from AGRA’s Financial Inclusion to Smallholder Farmers in Africa Program
28 Apr 2020
The emergence and expansion of digital infrastructure in even the hardest to reach rural regions of Kenya, Tanzania and Ghana are making the delivery of financial services to rural communities much cheaper and less risky. Physical infrastructure is no longer required in order to reach farmers, bringing down the cost for providers to serve them. And as more data on smallholder farmers becomes available for analysis, certification and rating purposes, the transactional risks are also reduced. There is significant scope, therefore, for digital tools to play a role in facilitating assured markets, contracts, extension, information, price transparency and facilitating access to finance for smallholder farmers in these three markets.
24 Apr 2020
In this emergency briefing series, ISF Advisors and the RAF Learning Lab will look at how the COVID-19 crisis is likely to affect different types of rural households and what the cascading effects may be on markets, food security, and national security. This briefing series seeks to be pragmatic and elevate the real experiences of smallholders and service providers who are most impacted by ripple effects in the economy. The series builds on the 2019 Pathways to Prosperity report, and provides tangible recommendations to critical decision makers on how rural agricultural livelihoods can be supported. In this brief, we look at how the COVID-19 crisis will impact vulnerable subsisting farmers — in particular, how the economic repercussions could significantly impact long-term poverty relief. For the impact on commercializing farmers, please refer to Pathway 2: High-risk households dependent on, and critical for, food supply chains.
Featured Posts
Analysis:
How can governments create, incentivize, and regulate space for the private sector in agricultural...
Opinion:
As the COVID-19 pandemic reaches increasingly remote communities, urgent action is needed. By...
Tool: We found this dashboard created by 60 Decibels (funded by DFID’s Research and Evidence Division) to be a useful resource in understanding the lived experience of Kenyan farmers through the pandemic. Here’s a summary of what they are learning: