By Leah Douglas
(Reuters) – Funding for a climate-friendly agriculture effort led by the U.S. and the United Arab Emirates has reached $29.2 billion, the countries announced on Monday at the COP29 climate summit in Baku.
The Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate (AIM for Climate) was launched in 2021. Under the programme, governments, businesses and non-governmental organizations pledge funding for projects to reduce the climate impact of agriculture and make agriculture more resilient to the consequences of climate change. global warming.
According to the United Nations, food systems are responsible for about a third of human-induced greenhouse gas emissions. That includes emissions related to agriculture and land use, crop and livestock production, and the energy used in processing and transportation.
“We recognize that investment in agricultural research and development has long been a driver of prosperity and resilience, and has never been more important as agriculture and food systems around the world face a range of unprecedented challenges ” said US Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack. .
The AIM for Climate programme, planned as a five-year initiative, will end in 2025.
Nearly 130 projects have been announced with more than 800 partners with the aim of supporting smallholder farmers, reducing methane emissions and promoting research and technological innovation in agriculture.
AIM for Climate secured $17 billion in funding at last year’s COP28, and $8 billion at COP27.
