Since its launch in October 2024, the Environmental eXternalities ACcounting Tool (EX-ACT) web application has seen remarkable spike in uptake. Designed to estimate emissions and carbon sequestration from agrifood investments and monitor greenhouse gases (GHG) targets over time, the FAO tool continues to attract strong interest from practitioners globally.

In just over one year since the tool went digital, the platform has attracted 4 466 registered users, a milestone that reflects growing demand for robust, accessible climate assessment tools in the agrifood sector and increasing recognition of the need to integrate environmental considerations into investment decision-making.

Beyond initial registration, EX-ACT has demonstrated strong user retention and consistent engagement throughout 2025, averaging approximately 500 active users per month. This sustained activity confirms not only the tool's relevance but also its practical value for professionals engaged in project design, investment analysis, and climate action planning.

EX-ACT serves a diverse community of practitioners, ranging from government agencies and international organizations to non-governmental organizations, FAO country offices, academic institutions, and university students. This diversity reflects the tool's versatility, supporting applications ranging from on-the-ground project implementation, policy development, national greenhouse gas inventories to academic research.

The tool's geographic reach now extends across 169 countries, underscoring its relevance to practitioners working in vastly different environmental, economic, and institutional contexts.

Regional user breakdown

EX-ACT is a globally relevant tool supporting climate-smart decision-making across different contexts and regions.  The regional user distribution reveals broad international engagement: Europe (28.4%), Latin America and the Caribbean (20.4%), Africa (19.4%), Asia (15.8%), North America (10.2%), Near East (4.6%), and Southwest Pacific (1.1%). Particularly active user communities are in the United States of America (linked, among others, to the World Bank systematic application of EX-ACT in agricultural projects), Italy (largely FAO HQ colleagues), India, and France.

Training as a key driver of engagement

Analysis of user activity data reveals a clear and interesting pattern: capacity-building initiatives play a central role in driving tool adoption and sustained engagement. Throughout 2025, significant peaks in platform usage directly followed major training events, including:

• FAO Investment Centre (CFI) training
• EX-ACT capacity-building sessions across Latin America and the Caribbean
• The Hand-in-Hand Investment Forum

Targeted outreach and hands-on training have helped to boost active tool use, deepen engagement, and lasting adoption among users.

Looking ahead

EX-ACT's first full year confirms strong user uptake and responsiveness to capacity-building efforts. In 2026, exciting developments are on the horizon:

• Biodiversity analysis feature: A new integrated biodiversity assessment module is nearing release, expanding EX-ACT's analytical capabilities beyond climate to encompass broader environmental impacts.
• Enhanced user interface and functionality: Ongoing improvements to streamline user experience and strengthen methodological approaches.
• Expanded training programme: Building on 2025's success, the team will scale up capacity-building activities across new regions and partner institutions.

By continuing to invest in training, tool development, and outreach, we aim to make EX-ACT an even more useful and accessible resource for environmental assessments in agrifood systems around the world.

EX-ACT is part of the Investments in Sustainable Markets, Agribusiness, and Rural Transformations team within the Agrifood Economics and Policy Division at FAO.

Explore the tool here, find out more about EX-ACT work or reach out to us at [email protected] for more information.