The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will invest at least US$1.4 billion by 2029 to help smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia adapt to the escalating effects of climate change. The announcement was made last week by CEO Mark Suzman, ahead of the COP30 summit scheduled to take place in Brazil.
The funds are earmarked to finance agricultural technologies tailored to new climatic conditions. These include soil health mapping, micro-organism-based bio-fertilisers, and digital decision-support tools for crop management.
This investment comes as small-scale producers face the full brunt of increased temperature variability, droughts, floods, and heatwaves. In Africa, where 95% of farmland still relies on rainfall, according to the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), seasons have become unpredictable, jeopardising the food security of millions of households. ILRI projects that yields of staple crops could fall by 10% to 20% by the end of the century without major adaptation measures.
The Gates Foundation intends to finance already proven solutions. For example, the International Potato Center, with previous support from the foundation, developed a new blight-resistant variety in Peru. Similarly, TomorrowNow, another beneficiary, sends weather alerts via SMS to farmers in Kenya and Rwanda to help them optimally plan planting and harvesting times.
Climate change now threatens both the productivity and the nutritional quality of crops. Rising carbon dioxide and temperatures reduce the protein, iron, and zinc content in staple foods like rice, exacerbating the risks of malnutrition.
This challenge is compounded by structural fragilities in Africa’s agricultural sector, including limited access to credit, scarce extension services, and a lack of insurance against losses, making investment in agricultural resilience even more critical.
The Gates Foundation’s initiative arrives in a context where the continent’s annual adaptation needs are estimated at US$50 billion.
