15 February 2017: The Third Global Meeting of the Indigenous Peoples’ Forum of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the 40th session of the IFAD Council were held back-to-back in Rome, Italy. The Council appointed Gilbert Fossoun Houngbo, the former Prime Minister of Togo, as IFAD’s sixth president.

The Indigenous Peoples’ Forum, which convenes every two years in conjunction with the IFAD Council, discussed how the participation of indigenous peoples in IFAD-supported rural development projects can be improved. In the meeting’s ‘Synthesis of Deliberations,’ indigenous peoples recommend that IFAD, among other measures: develop a holistic approach to supporting the empowerment of indigenous peoples; promote programme-based mechanisms to ensure their systematic participation in project design and implementation and in in-country policy engagement; support capacity building according to indigenous peoples’ specific needs and priorities; establish partnerships with indigenous peoples to mobilize resources for resilience and adaptation initiatives from the Green Climate Fund; and support direct market access for indigenous peoples’ products.

The document further recommends that governments: support participation of indigenous peoples in all development processes, uphold their rights and guarantee the inclusion of their needs and priorities in development plans; support indigenous peoples in mapping their territories and ensuring land tenure; ensure inclusion in SDG implementation; and generate necessary financial resources with assistance from IFAD.

Indigenous peoples commit to engage with governments, development partners and other organizations to support the recognition of their rights; and to engage in policy dialogue, raise awareness and continue advocating for policies and programmes for indigenous peoples’ empowerment.

On Friday, 15 February, a delegation of the Forum participated in a private meeting with Pope Francis. Pope Francis stressed the need to reconcile social and cultural development with the protection of indigenous peoples and their territories, noting this means that governments must recognize and appreciate indigenous communities as part of their population that must be consulted and whose full participation should be promoted.

The Third Global Meeting of the Indigenous People’s Forum was held 10 and 13 February. [Indigenous Peoples’ Forum Website][IFAD Press Release][Synthesis of Deliberations][Message by Pope Francis]

Following the Indigenous Peoples’ Forum, this year’s IFAD Council session focused on the appointment of the new IFAD President. Houngbo will take office on 1 April 2017, succeeding Kanayo F. Nwanze who has held the position since April 2009. Speaking at the opening of the Council session, Nwanze said that investing in rural development is “not a choice; it is a necessity.” He emphasized that rural development will allow countries to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), in particular SDG 1 (end poverty in all its forms everywhere) and SDG 2 (end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture). He also underlined the links between poverty, hunger and migration.

Houngbo’s vision is for IFAD to harness and maximize new technologies and become an incubator for innovations that will enhance smallholder productivity.

In his acceptance speech, Houngbo stressed the need to maintain IFAD’s ambition in the face of humanitarian crises and the pressure to address immediate needs, which can divert attention and funding from longer-term investments in rural development. According to his candidate profile, his vision is for IFAD to harness and maximize new technologies and become an incubator for innovations that will enhance the productivity of smallholder farmers. He also wants to support the free movement of goods and smallholder farmers’ access to markets.

The Council, which is the highest decision-making body of IFAD, also discussed the results of the tenth replenishment of IFAD’s resources, and held a Governors’ Dialogue on IFAD’s Path to 2030. The IFAD Governing Council was held 14-15 February 2017. [IFAD Opening Press Release] [IFAD Press Release on President] [Website of the 40th session of the IFAD Council] [IFAD President Candidate Profiles]

On the fringes of the meetings, IFAD also signed agreements for two new partnerships. Under a financial agreement with the Government of Indonesia, IFAD will provide a US$98.5 million grant and a US$1.5 million loan towards a project for integrated participatory development and management of irrigation, co-finaned by the Asian Development Bank and the Government of Indonesia. The project aims to improve food security for more than 24 million farmers through improved access to water for irrigation.

IFAD also signed a memorandum of understanding with the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), a member of the CGIAR Consortium, to enhance the organizations’ partnership on climate-smart agriculture. The two organizations committed to increase cooperation in making technologies developed by CIAT available to smallholder farmers participating in IFAD-supported projects. [IFAD Press Release on Indonesia Partnership][IFAD Press Release on CIAT Partnership]