Directory of finance sources for climate change mitigation in agriculture

Basak R. 2015. Directory of finance sources for climate change mitigation in agriculture. Copenhagen, Denmark: CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS).

This directory includes information on potential sources of funding for projects that seek to

reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in agriculture in low-income countries. To meet

food security needs as well as commitments to reducing GHG emissions, a number of

countries have been interested in how to access climate finance. For decades it has been

well known that improved rural finance can support farm innovation by providing the capital

resources for initial investments. Investments have been made in improved irrigation,

seedlings, machinery, or other inputs that are constraints for many poor farmers, as well as

in efforts to facilitate farmer innovation through extension, demonstration sites, and support

for farmer organizations and farmers’ experiments. With international pledges to provide

finance for climate change and the need to reduce emissions in ways that also achieve

sustainable development, new kinds of finance for agriculture are becoming rapidly

available. Yet many people in the agriculture sector remain unaware of these sources or the

means for accessing them.

This directory was prepared at the request of the CGIAR Research Program on Climate

Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) to contribute to research outcomes in low

emissions agriculture. CCAFS and its partners have been supporting research for the

development of low emissions paddy rice, livestock, pasture management, agroforestry and

fertilizer use in production systems of smallholder farmers in low-income countries. As part

of this research CCAFS aims to support the scaling up of appropriate practices through

policy and climate finance mechanisms, such as Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions

(NAMAs). This product is intended to support national governments in reaching donors and

accessing such finance to reach their full potential impacts.

To this end, the directory provides an inventory of all known potential climate finance

providers. It aims to answer the following questions for each of the potential funding

sources:

• Would the organization fund low emissions agriculture projects (via grants, loans or other

type of financing)?

• Are there specific grants and funding windows that would be most appropriate?

• Are there countries or sectors of focus?

• Are there any mandatory requirements for projects?

• What are the funding amounts (minimum and maximum)?

• What details are required for the proposal?

• Is there a minimum financial return required for projects (e.g., a given Return on

Investment)?

• What other financial indicators would normally be used to assess a project?

• What kinds of entities do they usually fund? Private? Public? Only governments?

• Are there specific indicators required to monitor adaptation or mitigation for grant projects

funded by this organization?

• Who are the key contact points within the organization for any additional technical

questions?