IFAD, EADB Agree to Scale Rural Development in East Africa

The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the East African Development Bank (EADB) have signed a new co-financing agreement to deepen their investment in rural development and food systems transformation across East Africa.

The signing took place at the UN Food Systems Summit +4 Stocktake in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

“With limited resources, it’s more important than ever to partner with public development banks like EADB,” said IFAD President Alvaro Lario. “These banks already provide about two-thirds of all formal financing to agriculture and are key to building food systems that are more inclusive, sustainable, and resilient for small-scale farmers.”

IFAD and EADB will jointly finance a range of projects within IFAD’s existing portfolio in East Africa.

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The region is a major focus for IFAD, which currently supports 182 programmes globally—over half of them in Africa.

In East and Southern Africa alone, IFAD is investing nearly US$2.3 billion across 22 countries.

“This agreement marks our shared commitment to advancing sustainable, inclusive development in farming communities,” said EADB Acting Director General Benard Paul Mono.

“We will support projects that modernize agriculture, strengthen value chains, and help farmers move beyond subsistence farming—making them more resilient to climate change and improving their livelihoods.”

The partnership will help mobilize additional resources to finance key areas such as rural infrastructure, agricultural value chains, and climate adaptation.

the two are looking at improving the lives of smallholder farmers and accelerate progress on national food system priorities.

Africa’s 33 to 50 million small farms support hundreds of millions of people—and, with the right support, can drive growth, improve nutrition, and power rural and national economies.