Small holder family farmers in poor countries can grow their way out of hunger – with a bit of support.

Small farmers, the majority of whom are women, are responsible for 90 per cent of the food grown in Africa and produce about half the world’s food supply. They are determined, resourceful and incredibly hard-working. Given a chance, they could quite literally grow their way out of poverty and hunger.whose role lies at the heart of food security.

Countries like Malawi, China and Brazil have proven that support and protection of their small holder farmers can reap great results. By providing them with irrigation and technology and ensuring that they can buy the simple things they need to farm effectively like seeds, sustainable inexpensive fertilisers, and stable prices for their crops, these countries have helped REDUCE the numbers of hungry people in their countries significantly.

Rich countries – who have been propping up their own big-business farmers whilst telling poor countries they can’t protect their small, family farmers - must stop making hunger worse. Rather they should support solid plans from poor countries to support their farmers.

SUPPORT THE LOCAL! What must happen

• Supporting and protecting local small-holder farmers is the best way to secure long-term food sources in developing countries.
• Governments must spend at least 10 percent of their budgets on agriculture, and develop national plans to scale-up support to smallholder farmers.
• Donors should commit to underwriting these plans, covering any funding shortfall that remains.
• The focus of public investment should be shifted to low-cost, sustainable techniques reducing climate risk and are most likely to benefit women and poor farmers.
• The UN estimates that at a minimum, an additional $40 billion per year will be needed globally, while IFPRI estimates that spending in Africa must increase by $13.6 billion per year.
• Of the $40 billion, we believe that donors and developing countries have equal and mutual responsibility to fund this urgently needed additional financing. Therefore, US$20 billion should be spent by donor countries and the remaining US$20 billion should be from developing countries.

• Download the report ‘Fertile Ground: How governments and donors can halve hunger by supporting small farmers’
• Find out more about Sustainable Agriculture
• Real Lives: Leya Chede is a ‘small holder’ family farmer who produces food for herself and her local community
• More on the real causes of hunger

Notes
1., 2., 3., 4., 5., Failing the rural poor - aid, agriculture and the millennium development goals.pdf