Rangeland development for the rural poor in developing countries: The experience of IFAD

The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) is an international financial institution established in 1977 as a United Nations specialized agency, following the recommendations of the World Hunger Conference of 1974. Its specific mandate is to combat hunger and rural poverty in marginal and resource-poor areas of the developing countries, and to improve the livelihoods of the rural poor on a sustainable basis. This paper highlights IFAD’s experiences in rangeland development IFAD projects directly involve and empower pastoral communities through micro-credit, delegation of water and grazing management responsibilities, and supportive legislation. Overcoming livestock feed deficit, especially from grazing resources, is a common challenge, as is competition for limited household labour, which commonly favours crop production over the tasks of rangeland management and maintenance of fodder shrubs. Positive developments include: the rethinking of rangeland development options; global awareness of the environmental and welfare benefits of the rangelands (e.g. CO₂ fluxes), and the emerging interest of the international community to adopt new collaborative initiatives. IFAD now hosts the Global Mechanism of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), which mobilizes resources to implement UNCCD recommendations.