Covid-19 Rural Poor Stimulus Facility (single phase)


Established by The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the Rural Poor Stimulus Facility (RPSF) addresses immediate impacts of the Covid 19 pandemic on rural people, prevents the erosion of results from past and ongoing operations, and puts in place building blocks to support post crisis recovery and long term resilience. As an IFAD member state, Switzerland joins international efforts with this time-bound response to prevent the health crisis from turning into a food crisis.

Country/region Topic Period Budget
Global
Agriculture & food security
Humanitarian Assistance & DRR
Agricultural development
Agricultural services & market
Humanitarian efficiency
01.12.2020 - 31.12.2023
CHF  2’000’000
Background

The Covid-19 pandemic is a health and humanitarian crisis threatening the food security and nutrition of millions of people around the world. An estimated 2 billion people in the world did not have regular access to safe, nutritious and sufficient food in 2019.Before the virus hit, and it is estimated that an additional 130 million will suffer acute food insecurity[1]. The consequences of the pandemic and the measures taken (lockdowns, closure of borders) have affected already unsustainable food systems. The United Nations Secretary-General has launched a Call for Solidarity for urgent and coordinated global action. In this context, one of IFAD’s strategic response to COVID-19 is the establishment of a rapid-response Rural Poor Stimulus Facility to address the key immediate challenges faced by small-scale farmers as a consequence of COVID-19.

[1] The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI 2020) http://www.fao.org/3/ca9692en/online/ca9692en.html#

Objectives To improve the food security, nutrition and resilience of poor rural people affected by the COVID-19 crisis, in line with the United Nations framework for the immediate socioeconomic response to the pandemic.
Target groups

Depending on the resources mobilized: between 1 and 7 million rural smallholders affected by COVID-19, with a special focus on countries with the greatest needs and low institutional capacity to respond to the crisis.

IFAD will seek to support rural people that are at highest risk of falling back into poverty or food insecurity. The priority will be given to people living in fragile situations (particularly in sub-Saharan Africa), women, youth, indigenous people, displaced people and people with disabilities. 

Medium-term outcomes

1.  Minimise impact on productivity and benefits from market
    participation

2. Food availability and prices are not affected

3. Rural employment on family farms and at small and medium
    enterprises is maintained

4. Producers avoid negative scoping strategies such a selling
    productive assets 

5. Digital services leveraged in rural areas

Results

Expected results:  

-  Provision of inputs and basic assets for production

- Factilitated access to market

- Targeted funds to rural financial services

- Delivering of agriculture-related information
  through digital services


Directorate/federal office responsible SDC
Credit area Development cooperation
Project partners Contract partner
United Nations Organization (UNO)
  • International Fund for Agricultural Development


Coordination with other projects and actors Ongoing projects of IFAD, WFP and FAO, the Covid 19 Multi-Partner Trust Fund’s (MPTF) contributions to food security and nutrition, and other donors’ activities in the same geographic contexts and thematic fields. 
Budget Current phase Swiss budget CHF    2’000’000 Swiss disbursement to date CHF    2’000’000