Financing food for a better future: Mobilizing private capital to transform agrifood systems
As global food insecurity intensifies, the need to mobilize private capital has become urgent and indispensable. A high-level webinar hosted by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) brought together leading voices from the private and philanthropic sectors to examine how blended finance can close the estimated USD 4 trillion investment gap required to transform agrifood systems and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.
The webinar – co-organized by the Private Sector Unit of the Partnerships and UN Collaboration Division (PSU) and the Rural Transformation and Gender Equality Division (ESP)– served as a preparatory dialogue ahead of the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FFD4). The conference will convene top decision-makers from governments, international institutions, businesses, civil society and the UN System to build consensus on sustainable financing solutions.
“Private capital has a vital role to play; not in replacing public finance, but in complementing and amplifying it,”stated Thomas Barbancey, Director for Multilateral Development Cooperation at Luxembourg’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He highlighted the Smallholder Sustainability Upscaling Programme (SSNUP), co-financed by Luxembourg, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein, as a flagship example of how blended finance and technical assistance can mobilize much needed private investments across agrifood value chains.
Unlocking capital for inclusive growth
FAO Senior Policy Officer, Adriano Campolina underscored the triple challenge facing food systems: a persistent USD 6-8 billion annual financing gap; the vulnerability of agriculture-dependent economies; and the urgent need to reach smallholder farmers, women and youth. “We must ensure that investments deliver triple dividends – for people, profit, and the planet,”Adriano stated, urging negotiators to align private incentives with public outcomes, and emphasized FAO’s commitment to responsible investment principles endorsed by the Committee on World Food Security (CFS).
From the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), Gene Moses outlined a dual-track strategy: enabling private sector development in rural areas and directly investing in agri-SMEs (small- and medium-sized enterprises) through IFAD’s Private Sector Operational Strategy 2025‒2030. “Catalytic finance must reach the rural poor, especially through inclusive partnerships with MSMEs, youth, and women entrepreneurs”, he emphasized.
Voices from the field: Youth, gender, and local capital
Panellists emphasized that solutions must be not only scalable but inclusive. Beatrice Githinji, Africa Lead- Advisory Services for Rabo Partnerships, spotlighted the looming demographic wave: “1.2 billion youth will enter the workforce in the next decade, yet only 420 million jobs are expected to be available. Agriculture must be part of the solution.” She underscored the urgency of enacting policy and regulatory reforms, alongside the creation of inclusive dialogue platforms, to unlock financing and foster coordinated investment, particularly in support of youth-led agri-enterprises.
Sawa Nakagawa, Executive Director of AlphaMundi Foundation (AMF), urged the greater alignment between philanthropic capital and food system impact. “95% of philanthropic capital remains invested - aligning these endowments with impact can dramatically increase financing for sustainable food systems,” she urged. Sawa showcased the Daraja Impact project in Tanzania, funded by the Swiss Confederation and implemented by Small Enterprise Assistance Funds (SEAF) in partnership with AMF, as a model for deploying technical assistance to women and youth-led SMEs.
Esther Kariuki, Head of Agribusiness of the Cooperative Bank of Kenya, shared powerful on-the-ground examples. Through partnerships with Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) and philanthropic foundations such as Shell Foundation and Mastercard Foundation, the bank has scaled financing to smallholders and deployed biodigesters to improve productivity. She underscored cotton’s potential as a strategic value chain investment, noting its role in lowering milk production costs – thereby strengthening Kenya’s most vital agrifood value chain. She also highlighted agriculture’s inclusive potential: “Agriculture serves as a strong entry point for people with disabilities - we must build ecosystems that supports them. Agriculture can become a powerful means of inclusion and empowerment.”
A role for risk mitigation and resilience
Insurance also emerged as a key enabler. Pascal Forrer, President of the International Association of Agricultural Insurance (AIAG), pointed to large-scale success models in India, China, and Turkey, where public–private insurance schemes have steadily grown nationwide over the past few decades. He called for robust legal frameworks and deeper collaboration between insurers and development actors, stating: “Our sector needs a more defined interface with development actors to fully realize its potential.”
Turning commitments into action
Lauren Phillips, FAO Deputy Director of the ESP division, closed the session with a call to action. “We’ve secured food security and agrifood systems into the FFD4 text. Now we must safeguard that progress – and ensure financing flows where it is needed most.”
The dialogue reaffirmed that blended finance, public–private partnerships, bold policy reform, and innovative finance are essential to unlocking investment at scale and delivering long-term solutions for the 3.8 billion people who rely on agrifood systems for their livelihoods.
