Official Opening of the Hand-in-Hand (HIH) Initiative Investment Forum

Excellencies, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Hands in Hands Initiative Investment Forum opening ceremony. I would like for those of you who have not done so yet to please take your seats as we are starting the event. My name is Angelica Jacome, and I have the pleasure of accompanying you throughout this journey today. This is our fifth edition, and we've been growing together. I'm very happy to see many familiar faces from previous editions, as well as new partners. The theme of this year's World Food Forum is "Innovate Today, Nourish Tomorrow." And to start, we will watch an inspiring curtain-raiser video. It highlights how the Hand in Hand Initiative and its investment forum has delivered remarkable results in its first five years of life.

Global hunger has declined for three consecutive years, but progress is still too slow and uneven across regions. In 2025, 645 million people faced hunger. Nearly 2.7 billion could not afford a healthy diet. Sustaining progress against hunger and making healthy diets affordable for all requires building more resilient and sustainable agri-food systems, especially as the frequency and intensity of political and climate shocks escalate. When COVID-19 exposed vulnerabilities in global supply chains, governments kept food trade open and grocery store shelves remained stocked. When the war in Ukraine threatened to block grain exports from two of the world's largest producers, governments found alternate routes and major wheat-exporting countries boosted their supply, preventing a global food crisis. The Strait of Hormuz blockade is the latest reminder that shocks cascade fast across connected markets. No country is insulated in an interconnected world. Transforming agri-food systems to reduce hunger, expand access to healthy diets, and prepare for the next crisis is not optional. And that preparation requires serious, sustained investment. Yet, even as the need has surged, too little of that need has been translated into bankable opportunities. Too many projects stall, too many investors walk away, and the gap between need and finance has widened. This is where the Hand in Hand Initiative steps in. The Hand in Hand Initiative closes the gap by bringing together four pillars of agri-food investment through its data empowered model. By deploying cutting-edge geospatial intelligence and analytics, it channels investments precisely where they're needed the most. The goal is to eradicate poverty, hunger, inequality, and build resilience by reshaping agri-food systems for the world's most vulnerable communities. First, countries define their national priorities and develop investment plans. Second, FAO provides data, analysis and technical expertise to help countries identify where agricultural potential is greatest and investment can have the most impact on incomes, hunger and poverty. It also ensures that country investment plans are sustainable and grounded in robust evidence. Third, multilateral development banks, international financial institutions, and traditional donors reduce financial risk and make investments viable. Fourth, the private sector provides the capital to invest at scale. Together, these four pillars provide a multilayered approach to de-risking investment. Technically and financially, private investors better understand opportunities and potential returns. This gives them the confidence to finance government-led investment plans developed jointly with all players. Since 2022, Hand in Hand has translated national priorities into investable opportunities, mobilizing $7.88 billion in financing committed or under negotiation, and the pipeline continues to grow. In 2025, 31 countries and six regional initiatives put forward 17 billion in investment plans with the potential to benefit 159 million people. This year, 38 countries will present national investment plans alongside five regional initiatives. They feature opportunities that strengthen value chains, increase productivity and improve livelihoods. They span staple crops, livestock, fisheries and aquaculture, and high-value commodities like coffee and cocoa. These investments also support innovation to build resilience against climate and market shocks. By connecting governments with development banks and private investors, Hand in Hand mobilizes investment to strengthen food security and nutrition and build resilient agri-food systems, so that even as shocks intensify, progress does not have to stop. Welcome to the fifth Hand in Hand Investment Forum.

What an inspiring way to start our day and our thanks to everyone who made this possible. Now it is my great pleasure to invite Dr. Qu Dongyu, FAO's Director General, to provide opening remarks.

Excellencies, ladies, gentlemen, good morning from Rome. Welcome to 2026 Hand in Hand Investment Forum. In the next few days, 38 countries will present their investment plans along with five regional initiatives and two special events. Each reflect different priorities of objectives and all identify areas where the need are greatest and investment can have the most impact. Together, they translate the country's agri-foods potential into investable opportunity. designed to raise the productivity, incomes, improve livelihood, strengthen resilience, and also finally have a better life. Global hunger has declined for three consecutive years, but 645 million people still face hunger in 2025. Yesterday evening I read the data in 1974, it was 25% population in the world are suffering hunger. But now comparably it's less than 8% of total population. So a lot of people complain about UN and all this special agency. But look back history in the little longer run, it's a remarkable, yeah, because we are population also keep increasing, but comparable ratio is dramatically decreased. It's our collective action and the commitment to make this happening. But still we have a lot of things to do together because the demand are different. As I said, food security have four levels, staple food, Rice, wheat, bread, whatever, spaghetti, or noodles, or corn, or cassava, or even some pastels, taro. Staple food, in general, it's a very lean proportion of the people, less than 1%. They had not enough. But look, the second level, the nutrition level, has come more. It's about 15%. And then you come to the health level, it's not even in Europe, I said, it's not reached the goals. It's 2.7 billion could not afford the health of that. But if we reach to the highest level of functional food, I said maybe 60% of the world, even more, 70% of the population not meet that. So it's We have to keep the bar rising because that's why the life span is longer and longer compared to any individual members. Globally also, doubled. I remember in 75 years ago in China, only average life span is 40 years old. But now it's almost 80. It's If you look at Italy, I think also quite longest, 83 something. But in 1950s, after World War II, maybe around 50, 53. I couldn't remember exactly. You can check the statistics. So lifespan, it's basically contribution from healthy food, and for others, hygiene, clean water, and also the medical condition and the cares, and so on and so forth. So I just mentioned that when we talk about the problem, don't underestimate our great achievement already. Otherwise, you lost the confidence. When you talk about the great achievement, don't forget still some vulnerable people suffered most. Otherwise, from one stream to another, I think it's not the right position for being the leaders and profession people. We must protect the gains and the sustained progress. That means making agrofood system better prepared for the shocks ahead. Our agrofood system has shown remarkable resilience. During the pandemic, wars, extremely climate event, countries working to keep the food available and the trade open. You can imagine that any big shocks, big conflict, of course, in the hot spots, they suffer most. But luckily, outside of the hot spots, in fact, less and less. But you can imagine, even 60 years ago, in 1961, '63, we had the disaster, natural disaster. And globally, we suffered from hunger. That's why the FAO, Mr. Convery, made the decision to establish WFP. And the DG of the from original from India. I think I didn't ask him. With the maybe you can ask him. Again, why he made this proposal? I suppose that time, India, about 800 million or 700 million population, 90% are suffering from hunger. Similar, China also, about 600, 700 million people. That's something behind his thinking, why he pushed that much. Food is so basic. Yeah, no matter food come from the United States or come from Europe, who willing to donate. That's why should we have some program to receive. That's the basic thinking. Now, as the FAO DG after seven years, I always think why he put all his effort to make the World Food Program was established. At the beginning, there's so many debate also. Now you look, say, oh, it's why some people are against from Europe. Because they calculated from the trade point of view. So anyway, I just mentioned the history. We have the learning from history. When you talk about the crisis, and now the crisis, compare that time, natural crisis or man-made crisis, compared before, it's much less. But we have to seriously deal with it. That's our role. But each shock also exposes the vulnerabilities. That's what I said. In our interconnected world, a disruption in one place can raise costs and threaten food security far beyond it. Building resilience requires sustained investment in agrofood systems, but too many opportunities are untapped because of the high risks. People are now more cautious to take a risk. Before I come, all the peace staff, they almost have zero tolerance to risk. Hey, listen, you come from your door on the way to the office, you have a lot of risk. Transportation, or you something wrong and suddenly falling down, you don't come to outside of your door. Please take risk in a rational way. That's my suggestion. Every Hand in Hand initiative was launched in 2019 for that reason. let the countable, bankable, professional investment plan come from AFO, together with partners, with members. We had a long debate with chief economist, Maximo Torero. AFO, what is the real advantage? You said the four pillars we discussed so many times, but one advantage makes those four pillars together is FO professional network. No any other organization, national institute can replace FO. No any other organization in the world can comprehensively address the issues like FO we have. But why didn't it happen before? Because within FO, we didn't connect from different divisions. Yeah, we threw the water for the forum, honey, honey, restaurant, now coming from seeds to food, especially we make the all the members, all the professional silos from country to the FL to connect and make it working, thinking, working, design together. We didn't force you. That's the very open, natural process. I'm from China, I have enough passion. Passion and patience, of course. Without the passion, you couldn't keep your passion longer. So seven years, even next year or after that, you know, you have the regional chapter. If you don't have a global, you have a national chapter. You have to do business together. I always, I was a professor, I know how methodology works. I don't want to force you some one approach or another, or another. I always give the methodology, and then you can learn best your own situation. It is start with the conscious own priority and the FAO bring together geospatial data, economic analysis, and technical expertise to help identify the territories of value chance where investment can reduce poverty, hunger, and create economic opportunity and support countries in developing investment plan. Because I said many members still didn't know the FAO investment plan is not belongs to FAO. It belongs to World Bank. Because they have a 75% shareholder invest. Why are they willing to use FO name? I didn't charge them. Because FO, we have the, as I said, the professional network. They couldn't have. It's small investment for them, they benefited most. FO also benefited from that because we have a professional proposal. We need the financial bodies and the support. That's our ancestor design, that's kind of a UN inter-agency collaboration. 65 years ago. Now still like that, never cut the budget from World Bank. It's small, but it's not their copy, but it's very important, critical part of it. 25 in kind from FAO, but all the most of the staff, employees come from FAO. Of course, we are international recruit. So that's why when I come, I discuss with chief economists and also direct. Now we transform the FO investor sent. It's a real proposal or justification, feasibility study, investment plan for members. Before, they just make money for their own life. keep the salary paid a little bit higher than the others, they are so happy. I said, no, that's the basic requirement. We should make investment for all the members. Ladies and gentlemen, Hand in Hand is a good example of the inclusive partners where each partner can have a unique role based on their respective comparable advantages. Development bank and other partners have absorbed early risk, and the private investor can then bring the capital to take a viable investment to scale. But more important, the one missing, based on my humble experience and observation during the past 45 years, the government. No matter you're poor or you're rich, you have to initiate. You can't expect the private sectors and the development bank take the first risk. No. Government. That's why I started one country, one commodity. No matter how you're poor, you focus on one commodity, you give them one million. I don't know any poor country's ministry have one million, right? And they support. Let your local government work together with you. And they become bankable proposal to the development agencies. And then the private sector, they will follow. A lot of government, especially central government, you didn't take that initiative. They just talk nicely, and then they always complain other development bankers, private sector didn't follow. No, you are not serious. With your limited budget, try it first. kick like the player football. I'm not, but you had to kick off the ball first. Who? It's government. That's your public domain, require you to do so. Hand-in-hand is change how these investments are designed, de-risked, and financed. And we have already seen what the hand-in-hand innovative finance model can deliver. Since 2022, hand in hand has helped the countries translate the national priority into 387 investment cases, totally $47.26 billion, with the potential to benefit more than 338 million people. I said many times, FAO is a technical agency. But how to make technical agency become the reliable professional justification, assessment and feasibility study. That's something we need to explore. Lead by the investment centre, cooperate with the regional country office and relevant technical divisions. That's what can happen. Otherwise, you are saying you are a technical agency. Some colleagues behave like a professor. went to the country, gave the small talk, and they finished. That's a typical traditional business model of the FO professional people. Spend money in the air, and they come back with a little bit of local stuff. That's why a lot of DGs don't want you traveling. I knew, I fully understand, but I encourage you traveling, but if you with the deliverables in the future. This year's investor forum with 19.4 billion US dollars in proposed investment and potentially beneficial of 117.5 million people is a large year. Of the coming session, countries will present the opportunity and the international finance institute, development banks, private sectors, investors, and other partners will be able to examine assessment, not examine, assess. assess the plans, and discuss how they bring them to life. I encourage you to use this time efficiently and effectively to build a strong and fruitful partnership. The Hand in Hand Initiative now operates across 87 countries and supports six regional programs. This global reach reflects the shared convictions. With better evidence, stronger partnership, and sustained investment, we can make the agro-food system more efficient, more inclusive, more resilient, and more sustainable. That is the vision of the four betters, better production, better nutrition, better environment, better life, leaving no one behind. Let us use this forum to turn knowledge into practice, potential into investment, and investment into a better future for people who need it the most. I always say, we are working for vitamin A and B, C, but we need vitamin M to start, together with innovative technology and innovative business model. Thank you. Thank you so much.

Thank you, Director General, for this inspiring and powerful intervention, where you reminded us that a lot of progress has been made and we need to sustain our achievements, particularly as we face multiple shocks. You also recalled that we have a lot to do together to ensure food security and nutrition, particularly for those most vulnerable, to truly leave no one behind, and shared with us your reflections on how Hand in Hand and FAO can assist the globe to reach the next level in a concrete manner. I am now honored to invite to the podium our first keynote speaker, Mr. Donal Broughan, IFAD's Associate Vice President, Department for Country Operations.

Distinguished Director-General Chiu, Excellencies, Fellow panellists, ladies and gentlemen, good morning and thank you for the opportunity to be with you today at the opening of this Hand in Hand Initiative forum. I think the theme for this year, from fragmentation to integration, transforming agri-food systems through strategic investments, is absolutely key. and, if I may say, long overdue. I am very pleased, on behalf of the International Fund for Agricultural Development, where I am the associate vice-president in charge of our country operations, to be able to address you this morning. For those of you who are not so familiar with IFAD, we were set up in 1977, in the middle of the global food crisis. For almost 50 years, we are slightly younger than our big brother, the FAO. Next year, it is our 50th anniversary. I think that we celebrated the 75th anniversary of the FAO last year. We are 50 years old and we have worked as a financial institution that is the only one that is dedicated to investing in rural areas and rural people. We operate across agri-food systems and rural economies, with a focus on empowering smallholders and rural micro and small and medium enterprises to drive transformation. So, we're very complimentary to our other Rome-based sister agencies. And our business model is anchored in partnering partnering with governments, communities and the private sector for investments that transform rural markets and rural lives. As such, the theme of this year's forum resonates very, very strongly with the work we do. And in that context, I'd like to say that today, IFAD has around 200 public investment projects across approximately 90 countries. but complemented by a growing private sector portfolio. We have more than $9 billion of EFAD financing investments and a portfolio of over $25.7 billion with co-investments included. So for every dollar of EFAD financing in our current program of work, we mobilize nearly $2 from domestic and international co-financiers. Almost a third of our portfolio is co-financed with other international financial institutions, and over a quarter of our sovereign portfolio has co-financing from private actors. Those are not just numbers; behind them are real experiences of partnership and real efforts to avoid fragmentation and to promote integration. Let me give you a few examples focused on countries represented in this meeting today. I will start with Bolivia. The country is home to more than 3 million camelids and around 70,000 camelid-producing families, many of whom live in high-altitude territories where poverty, climate vulnerability and limited access to markets intersect. Since 1994, IFAD-supported programmes in the camelid sector have mobilised more than 64 million in total investments, reaching more than 54,000 households. Over time, the partnership has evolved from individual activities towards an integrated approach, connecting water and rangeland management, animal health and genetics, climate resilience, producer organisations, processing, traceability and access to higher value markets. As we have increasingly connected activities, we have expanded our partnerships. The forthcoming Programa Resiliencia Camaleidos programme is at the heart of the Camaled investment proposition that is presented this week, and it exemplifies that model. It will target more than 20,000 camelid producers, with a combination of IFAD financing, resources from the global biodiversity framework fund, government and beneficiary contributions. A similar model can be found in Mozambique, which is also represented here. Over successive country programme cycles, IFAD has worked with the Government to move from individual initiatives to an integrated approach. combining value chain development, financial inclusion, climate resilience, private sector engagement and natural resource management. In doing so, we have increasingly engaged with other financiers to avoid fragmentation. One example is the ProCAVA programme, which combines financing from IFAD, the African Development Bank and the European Union into a broad platform of climate-resilient and inclusive agri-food value chain development. Already reaching more than 170,000 rural people, ProCARVA demonstrates how coordinated investments from different actors can simultaneously strengthen productivity, resilience, livestock systems, seed systems and access to climate information. Complementing this public investment, we have provided financing from our non-sovereign window to microfinance institutions to sustain access to finance for smallholders and micro and small medium enterprises in northern Mozambique at a time when conflict, climate shocks and economic disruptions were undermining livelihoods. And my last example from another region is Tajikistan. also present here today. Over the past years, IFAD and the government have partnered to scale strategic investments around pasture management, climate resilience, ecosystem restoration and market development. In this context, IFAD has supported the country to align partner financing, including from the Green Climate Fund and the GEF, creating a broad investment platform around government priorities. To complement those investments, we have worked with the Government on the policy framework for its vision of the agri-food sector. For instance, through the livestock and pasture development programme, IFAD has supported the establishment of pasture user organisations and contributed to strengthening the pasture governance framework. I could give other examples from the countries that are represented here today or about other partners who are also present, including the World Bank, with which we are now collaborating under AgriConnect, the European Investment Bank, Olam, Gates Foundation and others. Given the time constraints, let me wrap up with three key messages. First, I want to emphasise the importance of government capacity to drive clear visions for agri-food system transformation and to convene relevant actors. Government capacity to develop priorities and coordinate implementation, including by partners and co-finances, is key. But this capacity is not a given, but rather a strategic area of investment, not just within ministries of agriculture, but all the way down to the rural villages. Yet, as the international community, we do not prioritise this. whether due to the long time that capacity development may take or the imperative of delivering impact fast, particularly in crises. We can and should do better in this area. Second, we need to move beyond conversations about de-risking specific private investments and start looking to invest to making markets work better and for everyone. At IFAD, we increasingly see supporting rural markets as a corporate priority. Concretely, for every new country strategy or project, we ask: what is the state of the markets in which rural people operate? Are those markets working well? Are they generating value that is sustainable and resilient to shocks? Where are the pain points, and how can our investments or policy engagement help to address them? Taking a market lens to our investments means that we engage to create value beyond each project. And of course, to do this, we have to partner and avoid fragmentation of efforts, as no single actor can grow markets. We also have to use our synergy, our public and our private financing instruments, another critical agenda for IFAD at this time. And finally, and I think probably for me the most important point, there is no sustainable transformation in this sector without farmers at the decision-making table, including small farmers, women, young farmers. In all these examples I have mentioned, our starting point has been listening to smallholders and to rural communities, not as beneficiaries, but as investors and co-creators Invariably, the payoff in terms of relevance, impact and sustainability of investments is clear. So as we go into the next days of discussion, I want to close on this point. Truly listening and co-creating investments with smallholders and rural communities can be a strategic game changer for transformational agri-food systems. And on that note, I'd like to thank FAO again for putting together this really important forum. And thank you for listening to me.

Thank you, Donal. It's always a pleasure to have IFAD, a true partner with us. And you stressed in your intervention the importance of partnership. And you brought to us three particular recommendations, which align very closely with the Hands in Hand initiative, which is the issues of government capacity, investing in a way that works better for everybody, and really bringing farmers and to the decision making table. It is now my honor to invite Ms. Gelsomina Vigliotti, Vice President of the European Investment Bank, to join us.

Good morning, Director General, Excellencies, distinguished guests, colleagues. Let me begin with a simple observation. Agriculture, agri-food, value chains and the bioeconomy are no longer viewed only as development sectors. They have become strategic sectors. They sit at the intersection of food security, economic resilience, climate adaptation, competitiveness and international partnerships. For Europe, resilient global agri-food systems support food and supply security and access to strategic commodities. For partner countries, they create jobs, strengthen food security and build local industries. This is a genuine win-win. creating value locally while strengthening resilience on both sides. This year's forum theme, moving from fragmentation to integration, resonates strongly with the European Investment Bank. Finance, project preparation, markets, sustainability, and implementation must be addressed together. At DIB, we therefore look at complete value chains and the territories in which they operate, because stronger value chains means stronger rural economies, greater resilience, and more sustainable growth. DIB brings significant financial capacity. Since its first agricultural operation over 16 years ago, the Bank has supported more than 130 billion euro of investment in agriculture and the bioeconomy, over 80% of it in the last 20 years. But scale is only part of the story. Strategic partnerships help combine finance with knowledge, early stage preparation and implementation capacity. With IFAD, we support rural development and smallholder finance. With WFP, we are translating climate resilience into practical rural finance solutions. The FAO and the Nandi Initiative is especially important because it connects national priorities, robust evidence and investment partners. helping countries turn broad ambitions into credible, targeted investment plans. Its evidence base and tools, including the geospatial platform, directly benefit EIB project preparation by guiding where and how to invest. The recently approved 447 million euro cashew value chain development project in Cote d'Ivoire illustrates this integrated approach, combining EIB and European Union financing to strengthen a sustainable local value chain. Sustainability is also becoming a condition for competitiveness. Traceability, responsible sourcing, deforestation-free production and social sustainability can improve transparency and resilience. But without adequate support, they can also exclude smallholders, cooperatives and local enterprises from international markets. Our objective is to help partners make this transition successfully. Together with FAO and other partners, we are expanding technical assistance and implementation support for traceability, environmental and social management. the European Union deforestation, regulation and corporate sustainability standards. In short, we want sustainability to become a route to competitiveness and market access, not a new source of exclusion. The challenge is not simply to invest more, but to invest better, bringing finance, knowledge and implementation together. strengthening local value creation and ensuring that investment creates better opportunities for farmers, entrepreneurs and rural communities. No institution can achieve this transformation alone. Governments, development banks, the United Nations system, the European Union, the private sector, civil society and farmers' organizations must work together The EIB stands ready to deepen this partnership and help turn strategic ambition into investable projects and investments into measurable impact. Thank you.

Thank you very much. Ms. Vigliotti, for that very powerful statement, stressing also strategic partnerships and showing how the integrated approach of the Hand in Hand is able to connect national priorities through robust evidence with partners and investment, better investments. And also, you brought up the issue of ensuring that sustainability works for everyone, that it's inclusive, not exclusive. I am now pleased to invite Mr. Shekar, Chief Executive Officer of Olam Food Ingredients.

Thank you and good morning to all of you, Director General, distinguished, your excellencies, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen. It's indeed an honor and a privilege to be here with you and I believe as a private sector participant to offer our perspectives on this matter. And this matter is huge. It's important for each one of us in this room from fragmentation to integration. And we have heard from other speakers and from the Director General in the framework offered by the four pillars of FAO and how we can make real progress. So what we wanted to really share was how can we convert this into a pipeline of programs and partnerships which can create a drumbeat of scalable impact on the ground, where it matters, when it matters. And that's going to be the theme of the next few minutes as I talk through some ideas that we have in how we can make this happen collectively. So let me start with a small anecdote. I have been in this industry for the last 35 years and I've had the privilege and pretty much a ringside seat to watch the development of the food and agri system across multiple crops, multiple geographies, across various markets, through various geopolitical tensions and things that are happening even today. But I'd like to start with a story which happened with me probably over 30 years ago. It was in West Africa. We were at the end of a cocoa campaign. And we were having a year-end post-campaign festivities. We had invited a lot of farmers, villagers, and we were having a celebration of the campaign that had gone by. And I was sitting with this group of farmers and asking them, what more can we do as a company to support you? And there was a gentleman who I remember very strongly because it has had a lasting impression who said, "Don't come here just for the year-end party. Be with us when it matters, where it matters." And the point was very simple, but very, very impactful. They need money at the start of the harvest. They need inputs as depending on the season, what matters in every season, and every season is different, and even accelerating in the way climate change is changing around us. They need help when they harvest before the crop goes bad on the farms. They need pricing in both high price and low price environments. And that is really what matters to the farmer. So all our efforts would go to waste if we don't direct our attention to the farmer where it matters and when it matters. So how can this be done? It's quite obvious that there is sufficient capital, or more than sufficient capital, and commitment in this room, as with many other rooms and many other forums that all of us attend. So capital is not the problem. I think real magic happens, which is really about sustainable impact, when we do three things. And I've seen this over a period. It's, again, quite simple and simplistic, maybe. But it is the first thing that needs to happen is the connect between farmers and markets, the access to markets, the liquidity at a fair price at all points of time. And that access could be local, could be regional, could be international. Absolutely critical that we make this happen in every program and every partnership that we do. The second critical thing is the capacity and the supply chain and local delivery capability that is offered to the farmers. It could be in the form of infrastructure. It could be in the form of food science. It could be in the form of agriscience. It could be in many ways. But there is a need for a local delivery mechanism, which could be provided by private sector, public sector, local governments. And it is absolutely critical that any scale program has that in place. And the last thing is, then, after all this, is the capital, whether it comes from private or public sectors, donors, DFIs. And it is a combination of these three. that enables this to happen. And this can't be one and done. This has to happen through multiplicity of programs directed at multiple crops, multiple origins, multiple markets, and a huge number of farmers. And that is really where we see the importance of these three areas converted into micro partnerships at scale on a continuing basis. and not addressing just one issue, but the interconnectedness of issues from farmer livelihood to communities to climate change, which are all connected. So it cannot be also a unidimensional on the ground. It has to be, the answers has to be in a mix of how we address all this together. So let me give you a couple of quick examples. As OFI, as OLAM, we have been working with farmers, over 3 million farmers across the globe, 50 countries, serving over 100 markets. At this point in time, we run over 130 programs with multiple partners. But the importance is that it's not just one program, it's over a series of programs with a series of partners and repeated again and again and again. And that is really where this whole thing is important. And even in the last year, we opened up 26 new programs in 15 countries from South America to Africa to Asia, with more than 20 different partners for different programs. An example is Indonesia, where we have been supporting cocoa for over three decades, and working with a very major confectionery brand. And that's been a program that I've been running for a long time. But in this last year, we combined with Rockefeller Foundation and our customer to create an alternative livelihood beyond cocoa for the farmers. And this is about growing fruits and vegetables, and more importantly, being able to sell this to local communities, to local schools, and providing health and nutrition in the schools. So a program of cocoa has been expanded into an additional livelihood for the farmers, creating community impact on the ground. And even in the quick 12 months, we have got over 1,000 farmers enrolled with over 700 schools being served by the produce. Similarly, in Cambodia, we are doing a program on cashew farmers, and Cambodia is now being the is one of the fastest growing cashew origins in the around the globe. So long story short, these are real examples of partnerships that can work, are working. And I'd like to close on a optimistic note. I think if we make the farmer connect to markets, if we can provide the local delivery capacity, and if we can then direct capital towards a series of programs which have scale impact, I believe we can make true difference. I think there is capacity and commitment in this room, but finally we'll be judged by the impact we can create for the farmers where it matters, when it matters. Thank you all for the opportunity and thank you for listening to me.

Thank you very much, Mr. Shekhar, for an insightful intervention, sharing with us how the four pillars of Hand in Hand allows us to move from fragmentation to integration. and the importance of directing assistance to farmers where and when it matters through access to markets, supporting a local delivery mechanism, and financing for scale and impact, because at the end of the day, it's impact that will be judged upon. It is now my honor to invite Mr. Andrew Wilson, the Deputy Secretary General of the International Chamber of Commerce.

Mr. Director General, Excellencies, colleagues, at the International Chamber of Commerce, we are acutely aware that behind every investment we discuss at this forum is ultimately someone taking a decision. A farmer deciding what to plant, a business owner deciding whether to expand, a parent deciding what their family can afford to eat. Our responsibility collectively is to make those decisions a little less uncertain and the future they lead to a little more secure. Today, we see that responsibility as being absolutely urgent. Disruption in the Strait of Hormuz threatens the fertilizers needed for future harvests. Disruption in the Black Sea has severely curtailed the movement of grain that has already been harvested. Far from those shipping routes, we see across our network that farmers face higher costs, importers face tighter supplies, and vulnerable families face impossible choices about how to meet their basic food needs. These pressures compound the risks posed by extreme weather and the financial constraints facing many developing markets. So the immediate priority from our perspective is clear: keep food and essential agricultural inputs moving, safely, reliably, and at the scale the world needs. ICC is working with the United Nations on practical arrangements to facilitate shipments of fertilizers and essential inputs through Hormuz. We're also supporting efforts to restore commercial shipping through the Black Sea. But we're here today because we know that responding to the next emergency, and the next, and the next, is just not enough. We must invest now in the food systems that give people the means to withstand those shocks and the opportunity to build better lives. That, from our perspective, is the ultimate promise of Hand in Hand. The UN, governments, investors, and businesses working together to turn national priorities into practical progress. To fulfill that promise, we would respectfully suggest three priorities at the outset of today's forum. First, as we heard earlier, connect investment with markets. Imagine a farmer who increases her harvest only to lose it because there is no storage or no reliable road to reach a buyer. She has done her part. The system around her must do its part too. That means investment in power, transport and cold chains. It means ultimately efficient borders and predictable and stable trade policies. The path from a farm to a family's table must work at every step. Second is to make local ownership the foundation of every project. Farmers, local businesses and communities understand obstacles that may never appear in an investment prospectus. We need their knowledge from the beginning. We need projects shaped by the people who will use them, operate them, and ultimately sustain them. The people closest to the challenges faced on the ground must have a voice in designing the answers. Third and most fundamentally, we urge all partners to make finance accessible. Good intentions will not finance a warehouse. A national strategy will not pay for small businesses' next planting season. We need well-prepared projects, clear rules, reliable contracts. We absolutely need guarantees and public insurance that help viable investments proceed. But we also need affordable financing that reaches smaller enterprises and farmers at the time that they need it. ICC stands committed to bring together companies, financial institutions, and public partners across different sectors and across different jurisdictions to advance that work. Our message is, let us leave this forum with projects closer to financing, responsibilities agreed, and next steps clear. Because the measure of our success will be found beyond this room, in the farmer who can invest in scaling output, in the business that can hire another worker, in the family that can afford a nutritious meal. Those are the outcomes that give our work meaning. Let us make them possible. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Mr. Wilson, for your reflections and sharing with us that we cannot keep on responding to emergency after emergency and the importance of investing in agri-food systems. You also shared with us three takeaway messages or suggestions, which again align very much with the Hands in Hands initiative about connecting investment with markers, local ownership as a foundation and ensuring that partners make finance accessible. So for our next intervention, unfortunately, he cannot make it here today with us. He has provided a video message. He is Mr. Pascal Donohue, managing director of the chief knowledge officer of the World Bank. And we will now display the video message on screen.

Good morning and warm greetings from Washington. I'm sorry I can't join you in Rome, but I'm delighted to convey the World Bank Group's strong support for the Hand in Hand Initiative Investment Forum. The food sector in our world is navigating so many crises, from climate shocks and conflict to trade disruptions and now El Nino. Meeting urgent humanitarian needs is essential. But we have to continue to invest in a stronger, more productive and more resilient food sector. It's the most effective way of protecting countries from shocks, strengthening food security and creating millions of jobs. So that's why your work really matters. The countries presenting this week have already done the hard work. They've identified opportunities grounded in evidence. They've identified national priorities and have a vision for growth. The challenge now is to turn these opportunities into investment, implementation and results at scale. And this is why we and our partners have launched AgriConnect to help 300 million farmers access the markets of financing, service and technologies needed to grow their businesses and incomes. It means strengthening infrastructure to connect farmers to markets, supporting reforms to grow and create jobs, and channeling private capital into the sector at scale. Well, one year in, we're supporting action in 57 countries, from Brazil to Nigeria to Papua New Guinea. Close to 20 million farmers have already been benefiting from reforms, investments and partnerships. The next step is to bring more capital, more knowledge and many more partnerships behind country-led priorities. And we invite partners across the public and private sector to work with us through AgriConnect to expand what works, to unlock new capital, to bring proven solutions to millions more farmers. Collaboration is essential. So let me also thank the FAO for convening this important forum and our partners here in Rome, including IFAD and the World Food Programme, for their leadership in building a more productive, resilient and sustainable food sector. Thank you, and I wish you a productive and a successful forum.

Thank you very much for that video message, and we extend our gratitude to all our keynote speakers. We will now proceed to our first panel discussion moderated by Maximo Torero Cullen, the FAO chief economist. This panel will explore lessons learned from countries and regions in the Hand in Hand Initiative in order to identify innovative approaches and strengthen collective impact. Please join me in welcoming Maximo Torero Cullen and our distinguished speakers. His Excellency Kurbon Hagizmoda, Minister of Agriculture from the Republic of Tajikistan. The Honorable Uten Puntshu, Minister of Agriculture and Livestock, Kingdom of Bhutan. Honorable Robert Albino, Minister of Agriculture, Environment, and Fisheries, Republic of Mozambique. His Excellency Sabkhir Saad, Minister of Agriculture, Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. Ms. Marisol Castillo, Executive Secretary of the Central American Commission on Environment and Development, CECADE, of the Central American Integration System, SICA. Mr. Richard Ekwau, Director of Agriculture and Finance and Rural Development Department at the African Development Bank. Mr. Winfred Wudkun, Director General of Sectors Department of the Asian Development Bank. And last but not least, Ms. Lina Salazar, lead economist in the Agriculture and Rural Development Division of the Inter-American Development Bank, IDB.

Okay, so thank you so much. for joining us in this incredible meeting of the Hand in Hand Investment Forum. And colleagues, the goal today is to, as it was said before, to convert all this action, all this work that we have been doing with all the countries and the banks and all the institutions behind in trying to convert these investment plans into real investments. So we have 55 minutes to talk about this topic, and I hope we can come up with results and how we can move forward and accelerate the process we are talking. So let me start first with the first question to the Minister of Tajikistan. Mr. Excellency Kurbon Hakkimov, the Minister of Agriculture of Tajikistan. Minister, Tajikistan has made climate adaptation a priority, promoting drought-resistant crops, so bringing science, and strengthening domestic production, an approach relevant to the region exposed to climate and conflict shocks. How can targeted investments in climate-smart agriculture and regional cooperation reduce vulnerability, support income diversification, and improve access to finance from scale producers, and how Hand in Hand can help?

Thank you very much. Wojciech.

Distinguished moderator, esteemed ministers, colleagues, ladies and gentlemen. First of all, allow me to express my sincere gratitude to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, and to Director-General Zhu Dongyu, as well as the organizers for the excellent organization of today's forum. For the Republic of Tajikistan, the topic of today's session is of fundamental importance. Nowadays, we see agriculture not just as a distinct economic sector, but as a unified, integrated ecosystem, one that brings together land and water resources, technologies, processing, logistics, trade, and food quality. Agriculture remains a major source of income and employment for the people of our country. Under the leadership of the President of Tajikistan, His Excellency Emomali Rahmon, since gaining independence, we recently celebrated a jubilee here, The country has undergone far-reaching structural transformations. Over the past 25 years, the average annual economic growth rate has been upwards of 7.7%. Gross domestic product has increased almost 100-fold, while the poverty rate has dropped from 83% to 19%. Thanks to sustained agricultural reforms, agricultural production has gone up 122-fold, exceeding 85 billion somoni. Now, Tajikistan produces over 85 percent of its own supply in key foodstuffs, and exports environmentally friendly products to 30 countries worldwide. The international agency S&P Global has upgraded Tajikistan to B+ with a stable outlook. This is concrete evidence of our macroeconomic resilience as well as of investors' high level of trust. Distinguished delegates, the experience of Tajikistan and Central Asia illustrates the following: that sustainable transformation of agri-food systems is not possible unless we take into account the inextricable link between water, energy and climate. Investment in water resources is a direct contribution to crop yield, food security and climate resilience. Tajikistan is carrying out major infrastructural projects. This includes the flagship of our national power production, the Rogun Hydroelectric Power Plant. In so doing, Tajikistan has established an ambitious goal, namely to become a completely green country by 2037 on the basis of green technologies. Nevertheless, infrastructure alone is not enough. What we need is a closed value chain from fields and gardens to storage, processing and export. The practical embodiment of this approach, in our view, is the FAO Hand in Hand initiative, Under this program, Tajikistan has developed a portfolio of priority investment projects. These include the creation of an apricot cultivation center, the development of seed potato cultivation, aquaculture development, and improvement of the pasture reclamation status, as was noted by Mr. Brown. The total amount of proposed investment is over 42 million US dollars, while the number of beneficiaries exceeds 700,000 people. It is crucially important to us that these projects bring farmers closer not only to production, but to markets and consumers. This gives rise to a crucial question. What can our regional experience teach us about the global transformation? Firstly, on an integrated approach. Investing in water and land should be inextricably linked to the rolling out of the latest technology for storage, processing and accessing international markets. Second, partnerships between the public and private sector. The state nourishes an enabling climate, legal framework and infrastructure, while the private sector, which in our country is responsible for 70% of our jobs, while the private sector acts as a driver for innovation and trade. Third, regional solidarity. In May 2026, Dushanbe held the 35th Regional Conference of FAO for Europe and Central Asia. This blatantly showed that it is through cross-border cooperation in water resources and seed breeding, as well as logistics, which is a key enabler of global food stability. Ladies and gentlemen. In close cooperation with UN organizations, we are continuously moving away from the philosophy of produce more to a new standard, that is, to produce better, to process better, to eat better, and to develop sustainably. Our vision for agri-food transformation rests upon five core pillars. The first is sound water and land use. The second is high value addition within the country. The third is the integration of farmers into markets and technology use. Fourth, improved climate resilience. And five, human-centered policies and healthy diets. The transition from fragmentation to integration is the practical progression from individual projects towards a holistic system, from commodity exports to high value-added products, from short-term solutions to strategic investment. Tajikistan stands ready to engage in open dialogue and to share the experience it has gained. It stands ready to participate in the development of efficient global solutions. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Minister, and thank you for the importance of the work being done, the regional conference that happens, and also the need to accelerate investments to assure that we can be resilient to these shocks and water, which is a crucial issue in your region. We are going to have a session also on the breadbasket in Central Asia that will happen during the week. So please, if you are interested, come to join us. Now, let me move to Honorable Minister Jigme Khesar Wangchuck, Minister of Agriculture and Livestock of Kingdom of Bhutan. Minister, you have been working with us a lot as Tajikistan in trying to push Hand in Hand. So how can the Hand in Hand initiative help countries like Bhutan to translate evidence-based agri-food priorities into investment-ready opportunities mobilize innovative and blended finance, and build a stronger public-private partnerships for inclusive and climate-resilient agri-food system transformation. And please keep within the time that you have been allocated. Thank you.

Thank you. So let me make myself comfortable first. Although I come from a very small country, but I brought the biggest, one of the biggest pockets, so I'll make myself comfortable with that. Good morning, Excellencies, distinguished delegates, friends, ladies and gentlemen. And thank you, Mr. Maximo, my dear friend, thank you for giving us this opportunity to be part of this distinguished panel here. And also, thank you so much for this wonderful question. This gives us opportunity to share our experience, not that we have all the answers and all the best solutions for all the countries to learn from us, but because it's along the way of implementing hand-in-hand investment initiative in Bhutan, so we have learned a lot of lessons, so we just wanted to share with all of the members here. For us, this Hand in Hand initiative has been a very transformative platform and tool for us. It has actually helped us answer one of the fundamental questions, which is that how do we move from knowing what we need to do to actually investing in what we want to achieve? So since joining Hand in Hand initiative in 2021, We have been very fortunate, very lucky to have been able to participate in three of the consecutive Global Hand in Hand Initiative Forum here in Rome. Thank you so much for that. Besides being able to participate in the regional Hand in Hand Initiative Forums. What that has helped us is, it has also helped us through the evidence-based analysis, agro-ecological zoning, and also investment planning. So we have been able to identify right commodities, right locations, and right value chains where a small country like Bhutan has a comparative and competitive advantage. The other thing, what we have also learned and benefited from Hand in Hand Initiative is just trying to take the time, is that it has helped us design an informed 13 five-year development plan, which aims to transform our agri-food sector into an economic and sustainable growth. sector and it has also helped us implement what we called as our 21st century economic roadmap which aims at growing our economy by tenfold by the year 2050. And likewise, most recently under the visionary leadership of His Majesty the King Jigme, We are also building what we call this Galypho Mindfulness City, GMC we call it in short, which is a city we are trying to build integrating the mindfulness, the environmental stewardship, innovation, besides Bhutan's own values of gross national happiness in it. So this hand-in-hand initiative has been very transformative, not only in in terms of helping us identify the right commodities, right locations, but also it has also helped us, you know, connect the productions with the markets. So therefore, for us, you know, this hand-in-hand initiative, especially in the context of GMC, is very, very important. And Likewise, you know, drawing inspiration and motivation from this global hand-in-hand initiative forum, Bhutan hosted our own investment forum, which we call it as Bhutan Agri Food Trade and Investment Forum, the latest one, the version two of the BTF. held in May this year has not only helped us showcase our own products, but also go into actually making deals with investors. So that has been a very transformative, you know, benefit that we have managed to draw out of a hand in hand initiative. Likewise, we don't only believe in, you know, enabling production, but also and also, you know, the capital part, but also One of the initiatives that we have also implemented, which is a brainchild, I like to call it, of the Honorable Director General of FAO and my own Prime Minister, is the One Egg, One Child initiative, which has helped us feed nutritious food to our young children in 343 of the 500 plus schools in Bhutan, covering almost 32,000 students. So, therefore, Hand in Hand Initiative, in short, has been very transformative for us. And my message here, particularly taking advantage here, is to all the investors and development partners is not only let us invest not only in terms of, you know, the projects, single projects, but basically trying to create an enabling ecosystem for us to transform the agri-food sector. So with this, I'll end it here. Thank you so much.

Thank you. Thank you very much, Minister. And as you have seen, no matter the size, It is working, investments are happening, so we need to keep accelerating. That's why we urge you to do the appointments and try to look at the investment plans that all these governments are creating. Thank you very much, Minister. And also the important thing of moving from global, regional to local. Now we have investment forums at the country level, at the regional level and at the global level here. So this has accelerated and that's something that we need to do because we need to bring companies also from the countries to link with international companies so that we can help the financing process. Honorable Robert Albino, Minister of Agriculture, Environment, and Fisheries in Mozambique. We now move to Africa. Across Africa, multilateral financing has grown significantly, reaching 44% of total development finance in 2023, while bilateral financing has declined. Mozambique, as part of this regional trend, has experienced similar shifts in its own financing landscape. How can territorial analysis, which is at the core of the Hand in Hand, and the identification of communities in highly diverse contexts, support access to finance? And why this is crucial for agri-food system transformation in Africa, and how can Hand in Hand help? So please, you have a clock there. Please, Minister, the floor is yours.

Good morning, and thank you for this opportunity. Mozambique is also expressing this changing financing landscape as mentioned. Bilateral financing is becoming more constrained, while multilateral institutions and development banks are increasingly important partners for financing agriculture and agri-food systems transformation. At the same time, the relationship with our partners in changing as we move progressively from traditional development assistance towards investment, trade and partnerships. It is a shift from aid to trade. This means that we need to come to financing partners, not only with a list of broader development needs, but with clear investment priorities, where to invest, in which value chains, under what conditions, and with what expected development and economic returns. Our job as government is also to ensure an enabling business environment with adequate policies and instruments. Mozambique has just completed the design of the new 10-year agricultural sector strategy, with technical support from FAO and other partners. As we move into implementation, the hand-in-hand approach is particularly useful to bring together geospatial, socio-economic, and agricultural data to help us prioritize territories and value chains to inform investment decisions. We started with four investment notes on rice value chain, which we are presenting tomorrow, and intend to expand to this approach to other commodities. The value to us is the transition of national priorities into a specific investment opportunities that can be discussed with financial institution and private investors. This territorial dimension is particularly important to Mozambique. The investment requirements of a commercial agriculture corridor are very different from those of a climate vulnerable smallholder production area or a coastal fisheries economy. Financing instruments, therefore, need to be tolerant to the distinct profiles of farmers, SMEs, larger agribusinesses, and other investors, reflecting differences in their capacity, risk exposure, financing needs, and ability to attract and absorb investments. Climate risk must also be part of the investment decisions from the outset. Mozambique is highly exposed to droughts, floods, and cyclones. We cannot mobilize investment today without considering whether that investment will remain productive and viable under tomorrow's climate conditions. Resilience is therefore not an additional component of agricultural investment. It is a condition for its sustainability. Another key aspect is regional integration. Southern African countries face many common challenges that transcend national boundaries, including climate risks, transboundary animal and plant diseases, shared water resources, and interconnected trade and transport corridors. Stronger regional cooperation is therefore essential to harmonize sanitary and phytosanitary standards, certain cross-border value chains, improve resilience, and create larger, more attractive markets and investment. Ultimately, Mozambique needs better evidence to direct limited public resources, stronger investment proposals to mobilize public and private financing, and financing instruments adapted to the realities of our territorial and producers. We therefore see an important role of FAO as technical and knowledge partner. helping countries test and dividends and analytical work needed to translate agricultural strategy into credible, resilient and bankable investments. Thank you very much.

Thank you. Thank you very much, Minister. And you mentioned something very important. public investment based on evidence. And that's crucial because that is what helped and create enabling environment for all these investments to happen. And that's the whole agenda that we have of repurposing agricultural support so that we use every dollar you have to be catalytic, like what is happening in Tajikistan, what is happening in Bhutan, and in many other countries here. So that's central because that facilitates investments and also helps to the risk investments. So thank you very much for administering. Now, let me move to Jordan. His Excellency Saeb Ghrayzat, Minister of Agriculture. Across MENA region, land degradation and water scarcity are big challenges, pose urgent threats to food security and climate resilience. Challenges that are also intensifying in many other parts of the world. Jordan offers a compelling example of how innovative finance can support land restoration with early resource showing measurable returns. What lessons from Jordan and the wider region could be replicated at a global level, learning from how to include mitigation of a specific weather traits among the benefits of investment and strategies? And how can this impactful for agri-food system transformation and how can Hand in Hand help? And Hand in Hand is learning every day on how we can use the innovations that you are working. So, Minister, please.

Thank you, my friend, Maximo Torero, and joining this panel, talking about the challenges regarding land degradation with scarcity in the MENA region, specifically in Jordan. And Jordan is one of the most water-scarce countries in the world. We rank number two, but I think we are running for the first place. Despite that, despite all the climate change challenges, Jordan managed to be able to secure water for all sectors, from agriculture to domestic usage, to industrial as well. That was through the governance and the water strategy that was put by the government for the years 2024, 2030. And let me say that even though we have those challenges, we were able to adapt with all of those in a manner that we can really utilize our limited arable land. Most of the land is under irrigation, the Jordan Valley, but the rain-fed areas is very limited to certain areas, the Western Heights and Plains in the country. But again, how this worked, and allow me to talk about one of the projects that Jordan.

Was able to get.

It's the integrated landscape management. This is Gcf. Project 45 million. and I'm honored to have her, Royal Highness Princess Basma. She is the maestro behind this project, and this will address all landscape management issues, along with other soil conservation and land restoration initiatives in the country. So this is how Jordan is working and also through the financial solutions provided by the Agriculture Credit Corporation, which is the subsidiary, financial subsidiary for the Ministry of Agriculture, we give interest-free loans for people to have water harvesting initiatives in their farms. So that would alleviate some of the burden of the scarcity of water, and at the same time to grow crops and also to keep the vegetation and reduce the erosion. So the sustainable land management projects, and we had a big sustainable land management project that was also implemented in the country with IFAD. And all of those are of high priority for Jordan. But let me say that Jordan succeeded in being able to provide food and being self-sufficient up to 62% of our produce now is in the country, which is really high compared to the limited resources we have. We have very limited amounts of water, agriculture is consuming 48% of the total water budget. But in other countries, and all the distinguished delegates know, they can use up to 70% of their water budget. We're using the 48%. Also, we're using part of it is the treated wastewater, which is efficiently treated and blended with fresh water. And this really is kind of success story. And what we can share, and like you said, and transfer to other is the water saving practices we are doing in Jordan. We don't have the luxury of wasting any single drop. So we have to utilize every single drop in a manner and where we have added value and the crops that are really more of drought tolerant and we're developing varieties through the National Center of Research and all the academic research institutions and the private sector. And also we have some of the private sector people with us here today. They'll be joining us this afternoon for the Hand in Hand Initiative and investment. For Jordan, we follow up three projects that are really we see an opportunity for investment and I would like to take this opportunity to invite the interested attendees to come to and see what we can work together in collaboration. bringing the expertise, bringing the companies, bringing the investors that would help us in having this hand-in-hand initiative working. By the way, Jordan is the one who was selected from the MENA region to present this case. So we'll be delighted to share all those ideas and meet with you along the day. And thank you, Maximo, for this interesting panel.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you very much, Minister. And Johannes, thank you very much for the Princess to be here also supporting this initiative. And I think you said very important things. Water management is central. We need to use water in the most efficient way. That will be our constraint in the future. That's where we need to learn from you. That's why it's so important that you come here and present your best practices on how you are resolving this huge challenge. And you have been successful. but also landscape restoration. It's a comprehensive way of looking at projects now differently. It's not one investment. It's a whole package of investments. And that's where we need to accelerate, and that's where we need to move. That's innovation. That's what we want here in Hani Hani. Thank you so much. Now, let me fly to Central America and to CICA, the Central American Commission on Environmental and Development, Central American Integration Center, CICA. Mrs. Marisol Castillo, Executive Secretary of SICA. Thank you very much for being with us today. And we know that the region of SICA, and we have a regional initiative, the dry corridor here, and we have been working intensively because one of the goals of Hand in Hand is to convert the dry corridor into the green corridor. And we are going to achieve it. It will take some time, but we will do it. But the question to you is how SICA is supporting and challenging investments where they can have a greater impact and support access across member countries, because you integrate the whole region. This is particularly relevant as we saw Dominican Republic now is out of the hunger map, and that can happen and that can be done. So what lessons from SICA experience could be helpful from global efforts to reduce hunger and inequality in other regions? How can Hand in Hand help you on this? Gracias.

Thank you very much, Mr. Terrero. Thank you for the invitation to take part in this event. I am truly honored to be here with you all this morning. The advances seen in the Dominican Republic that, according to the SOFI 2026 report, has come off the hunger map, sends a powerful message to our region and the world at large. Hunger is not unavoidable. We are also grateful to see that Costa Rica in 2025 also came off the hunger map. And several other countries from our region are working toward that and are on the right track. What makes these results possible? Sustained policy commitment, strategic investment, strong institutions, and coordinated action involving several sectors. And that is where SICA plays a key role. For relatively small countries that are closely interconnected, regional interconnection isn't just an ambition, it's a need. No country can resolve the issue of climate change, drought, or price instability alone. SICA provides a platform to bring together those who bear the responsibility for the agriculture sector, the environment, finance, or economic development sectors. And under our Council of Ministers and the leadership of our governments, this does not allow us to build joint solutions, harmonize policies, and tackle challenges that no country can resolve on its own. These links, this interconnection is present here in the room. We have here today the Executive Secretary of the Council of Ministers of Agriculture, David Martinez. We also have the Executive Secretary of the Council of Ministers Finance and Housing, Mr. Federico Ribeiro. Also, we have with us Mr. Manuel Torres from the Central American Economic Integration Bank. This reflects that very intersectoral vision, that joint outlook, and that is how we wish to continue working. Where do we channel our investments? Well, toward the territory where poverty, food insecurity, climate vulnerability, and the lack of opportunities all come together. We also channel investments toward those who face barriers in accessing financing, services, and markets, such as smallholders, women, youth, and above all, rural communities and indigenous peoples. I would like to take advantage of this opportunity to share a few thoughts with you. First is that we can be guided by evidence, but political ownership and decision-making is up to those who have the power to do this. It's not just about opportunities. Transformation can only be lasting when governments lead it, but also communities and partners feel part of the process. My second thought is that hunger cannot be resolved through a single sector. We need to link food security with climate change adaptation, the protection of our natural resources, infrastructure, market access, social inclusion, and dignified employment. A producer that loses their harvest due to a drought doesn't just need seeds. They need water, climate-related information, but also credit and a market. That is why SICA works with the agriculture, environment, finance, and development sectors. The third lesson is that we need to rethink our financing architecture. Fiscal restriction and high levels of debt call for solutions that involve several financial tools that reduce risks and facilitate more inclusive, sustainable investments. What does that mean? Funds are not enough, and that is where the Hand in Hand initiative has decisive value for our region. The methodology and technical support of FAO can help us identify priority territories and convert them into concrete investment opportunities and connect them to financial partners. The Hand in Hand initiative can be a bridge between three fundamental aspects, regional political priorities, national actions and investment at the local level as far as CICA is concerned. It can also help us turn evidence into high impact investment and mobilize development funds, the private sector, and other strategic partners. The Dominican Republic's experience shows us that we can make progress. Through SICA and with the support of the Hand in Hand Initiative, we can transform regional cooperation into concrete results, more resilient territories, more dynamic rural economies, less inequality, and a region where hunger will no longer be part of our day-to-day reality. Thank you very much.

Thank you, Marisol. Of course, regional initiatives showcase regional problems, common problems, and we can use a territorial approach to identify and prioritize those problems and find a solution. That is why I would like to ask everyone here, all the investors, to help convert the dry corridor into a green corridor. This is a goal we have, and we can achieve this. this has government support.

The Asian Development Bank and Mr. Winfried Winklen, Director General of Sector Development, Asia Development Bank. I was the pleasure of have the annual meetings, being the annual meetings of the ADB, and I was impressed by the innovation in landscape investment that you are doing. So the ADB has committed 40 billion food system transformation agenda, which is truly ambitious in its scope, and we are very happy about it, covering the entire value chain from farm to fork, and even including dedicated natural capital fund. With such a broad and comprehensive portfolio. I imagine one of the challenges is ensuring that all of these moving parts work together cohesively. Could you share how the ADB thinks about prioritization across the agenda, how it's going to invest in the hand-in-hand initiatives, and, for example, how do you strike the right balance between investing in climate-resilient infrastructure, protecting natural capital, and bringing in private sector partners, particularly as your aim is to exceed 27% private investment to make sure that overall impact is greater than the sum of its parts. How it can help hand in hand.

Thank you very much, Maximo. Thank you for having me here on the panel. You ask a lot of of meat there in the question. Let me just make three short points. Maybe I start with the 40 billion US dollar. That is a big amount. Of course, the 40 billion US dollars is what the Asian Development Bank committed to investing in food systems transformation through to 2030. It's a big number, but frankly, for us, it's not about the money. For us, the starting point really is is the problem? What are we trying to resolve with the funding? And naturally, the problem will vary from country to country. So we start with the country's priorities together with the country and the analysis and ask, what is the binding constraint? What is preventing this food system from working in the respective country? And what would change that problem? What would need to be done?

Second point.

We need to invest in systems and not in projects. For me, fundamentally, food system transformation is really connecting the farmer with the consumer and strengthening everything in between. So that then requires looking beyond agriculture. From the farmer's perspective, The farmer does not experience water or infrastructure or markets or finance or natural capital in separation. It's the entire system that matters to the farmer and that's what we need to work on. The third point, Maxim, I'd make is we have to be smart about capital. We need to match each risk with the party that can best handle it. Public finance should focus obviously on public goods, the institutions, the critical infrastructure. Concessional finance would have to focus on specific risks that the market cannot yet absorb. And the private sector can finance, operate, and scale in commercially viable investments. We do have very high ambitions for mobilizing private investment. So roughly 25--like a fourth of the 40 billion U.S. dollars would come from private sources. But really what matters most is using those scarce resources, public and concessional, to catalyze--to create the environment and address the risks to catalyze more private money ultimately. Our final point, where does Hand in Hand fit in? From our perspective, I think it can very much be the connective tissue. Hand in Hand can help the countries identify the issues, the prioritize, and see where needs and investment opportunities converge, basically, and turn that analysis then into investment priorities. The--and it can, of course, bring as you're doing, it can bring the governments, the development finance institutions, the technical investors at the same table. The MDB such as the Asian Development Bank and other colleagues, we of course come in by helping translate those priorities into bankable project and pipelines that can then be financed, implemented, and scaled. Thank you.

No, thank you. Thank you very much. And I like a lot, please join me in applauding for ADB for being here with us. And I really like your connecting tissue because that's our job. Our job is to facilitate and to link. But this is led by governments and we want the private sector and investment banks to come to play a significant role. But also what you mentioned about the risks and exactly that is correct. We need to allocate, not only we need to diversify risk, But also we need to allocate the risk properly to who should be coping with that risk. And that's central. We cannot ask the private sector to take all the risk. Governments have to play a role, public goods in every environment. That's their part. Private sector has to take a risk, but they want a risk linked to a return. And that's where the prioritization is helping us. And banks has to be catalytic. So scale up your commitments with other money so that we can invest and move forward. So thank you so much for that. Let me now move to another bank, the African Development Bank. And the African Development Bank plays a crucial role, especially, of course, in the African continent. So Mr. Richard Kwawu Ofori-Monte, Director of the Agricultural Finance and Rural Development of the African Development Bank. The AfDB Feed Africa strategy, particularly through the TAT, and I was at the beginning of the TAT design when I was in the Cir. a long time ago, and it has demonstrated a strong commitment to scaling previous technologies for rapid productivity gains, and the Dakar 2 initiative, 61 billion vision, really speaks to the scale of that ambition. With such a technology-driven approach, how do you think about integrating at the local level? And given the need for substantial private sector engagement to realize the CAR2 vision, how do you balance the push for rapid scaling with the equally important goal of embedding these technologies into broader food system transformation? And how Hand in Hand can help you.

Well, thank you and good morning. I think this is a loaded question. And in your question, you had used two acronyms, TAT and then DACAT2. So I think for the benefit of those gathered out here, I think I'll just have to elaborate a little bit on what's TAT and DACAT2 are, so that at least we can know the perspective for where the bank is approaching food systems transformation across the continent. The Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation, TAT, is the African Development Bank's flagship technology delivery program and our Feed Africa strategy. It was established to rapidly scale agricultural technologies across Africa. Unlike other research programs, TAT focuses on moving proven technologies from laboratories to farmer fields and mainstreaming them into large-scale investment operations. So now let me give some statistics. Since the launch of TAT in 2018, the TAT program has evolved into Africa's largest agricultural technology delivery platform, reaching nearly 25 million farmers. supporting cultivation of 36 billion hectares and generating more than 62 million metric tons of food and catalyzing over 3.2 billion in agricultural investments. In short, I would say TAT has become the bank's principal platform for translating agricultural innovation into measurable development impact at scale. Now, what is Dakar 2? Dakar II was a landmark African Union and African Development Bank-led summit in Dakar, Senegal, in January 2023. Dakar II brought together heads of states, governments, development partners, private sector investors, multilateral players, exactly, to come discuss food security challenges and accelerate the continent's journey towards food sovereignty. It marked a very significant shift from dialogue to action, where countries adapted country-led food and agricultural delivery compacts. And I believe these are some of the discussions that are going to be happening around here. Now, the achievements of TATS. And Dakar 2 created a momentum to demonstrate that Africa can accelerate agricultural transformation when technology, policy, finance, and partnerships come together. Now, you talked about local level integration. At the local level, integration means for us connecting improved seed varieties, climate smart technologies, mechanization to input supply systems, extension services, irrigation networks. For example, introducing drought tolerant wheat varieties in Ethiopia is not simply about just increasing the yields. Success depended on, you know, linking local seed multiplication, extension support, et cetera. Similarly, improved cassava technologies in Nigeria or disease resistant varieties in East Africa were only achieved or would only be achieved through the full impact when linked to processors, aggregators, manufacturers, and export markets. For the African Development Bank, That's why the bank is increasingly combining technology deployment with broader ecosystem investments through initiatives such as our special agro-processing zones, agricultural corridors, rural infrastructure, digital agriculture. Now, you spoke a little bit You spoke a little bit about the private sector. The private sector is very essential in recognizing or realizing the vision of Dakar II. I mean, public resources alone cannot deliver food sovereignty for Africa. That's very true. Now the role of the Hand in Hand Forum, I think this FAO Hand in Hand Investment Forum can play a transformative and catalytic role. I mean, it's more than a convenient platform. It serves as a mechanism, obviously, for translating agricultural priorities and investment opportunities. One of the greatest constraints to agricultural investment in Africa is not the absence of capital, it's the shortage of well-structured bankable opportunities. And I believe this FAO summit will help address some of the pitfalls. Thirdly, I think the summit will also help reduce information asymmetries and perceived risk. I think perceived risk is often the factor that really deters investors from entering agricultural markets. Um most of most obviously in Africa and for private sector investors, I think the forum provides access not just to individual projects but to a broader investment ecosystem and market development opportunities. And I think for governments that are out here, it provides a platform to demonstrate commitment, policy reforms, and investment readiness. Finally, let me end out here on the last note for the African Development Bank. I think the opportunity is very clear. We leverage that, the technologies for African agricultural transformation to identify scalable technologies. We use Dakar II to define national priorities and investment pathways, and we are going to work through the FAO Hand in Hand Investment Forum to mobilize partnerships. capital that's needed for food systems transformation. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you very much. Please join me in an applause. So, colleagues, so that you understand, every investment plan of the hand in hand is unique because it uses territorial approaches to identify the bottleneck, why those farmers cannot get the level of income that they are supposed to get, given the agroecological conditions and the situation where we are. So everyone is unique, and that's where the technology and innovation for resolving those bottlenecks is crucial. So if we have private companies here that are bringing technology, technology on irrigation, technology on, on productivity, on seeds, and so on and so forward, look at those investment plans, but not just go to the government to offer your services. work with the banks to create a compact, a package that you can come with the governments and bring them the investment that they need to achieve this goal. That's the way we look at it and we look at the so thank you very much. I think we have a huge convergence with the initiative and with the new initiative that you have in place and we hope we can work together. And the other thing that does, as you see, we have Asian Development Bank, African Development Bank, and now we have the IDB, Inter-American Development Bank. So we also want to create competition, positive competition, among the different regional banks and the global banks, of course. So here we have the pleasure to have Mrs. Lina Salazar, lead economist in the Agricultural and Rural Development Division of the Inter-American Development Bank. Thank you very much for being here, Lina. The IDB strategy position in Latin America and the Caribbean as a solution to global food security with a strong commitment to sustainable agricultural expansion. And this raises a key question for investors and partners. How do you balance the financial case for scaling up production with the long-term value of protecting natural ecosystems? what we call good food for all for today and tomorrow. And how does the IDB's public-private model manage the trade-off in practice? And beyond traditional ROI, rate of return of investment, how do you measure and communicate the value of conservation outcomes and how Hand in Hand can help you?

Well, good morning, everyone. Thank you very much for inviting us. I'm very honored to be here and being part of this panel. Well, first of all, I want to mention that Latin America and the Caribbean has a very unique position. We are the world's largest net food exporter region. On the other hand, we're also the home of richest natural capital, including the Amazon freshwater resources, and also, of course, a great amount of biodiversity. And for this reason, we have great responsibility, but also great opportunities to participate actively on this sustainable agriculture expansion. And at the IDB, we believe and we are convinced that productivity, agricultural productivity, it must be at the front and center of the agricultural sustainability agenda. And last year, we had the opportunity to publish our flagship report on where we analyze the last six decades of agricultural growth in the Latin American and the Caribbean region. And we found very striking results. Well, first, in the last 60 years, we found that the Latin American region has increased agricultural growth by six times. So agricultural production has increased six times, mainly historically has been driven by productivity gains. But since 2010, we found that actually input use has been leading this agricultural growth. And this is rather bothersome and concerning because as we know, When we are increasingly depending on input use rather than on productivity gains, we're not only increasing damages to the environment and reducing environmental sustainability, but it's also bad business. It's bad for economics. We are increasing production costs. We are less competitive. And this means that we are also depleting the natural resources that we are going to use for future agricultural production. So it's really bad overall for business and economics. So how can we just convert this input use or input-led agricultural growth into productivity gains for our region? So we found two opportunities through our research. First of all, we found that technological progress has been the engine of agricultural productivity growth in Latin America and the Caribbean over the last 60 years. And this is very interesting because it means, of course, we need to keep investing on new technologies that make a more sustainable agricultural production and resilient. But at the same time, we found that not all farmers have benefited equally from this progress. And especially small farmers and medium landholder farmers have not benefited from these advances. And so we need to invest on agricultural technologies and agricultural adoption of these technologies and adaptation to the local context. The second opportunity that we found, and this is a very interesting result from our research, is that its efficiency gains are key for improving agricultural sustainability. So, for instance, for most of the countries that we analyze and even at the subregional levels, we found that that technical efficiency has been actually negatively affecting productivity growth. This means, in a way, is good news because we know that since we have less-- we are not being as efficient, then we can increase agricultural production with the same amount of resources and inputs that we are using at the moment. But on the other hand, it means we need to invest on agricultural extension services, on technological, on technical assistance, and also on trainings, digital trainings to farmers so that they are able to use these resources more efficiently and these technologies more efficiently in a way to increase production without affecting the environment. Yes, we need to keep in some, we need to keep pushing the technological frontier, but also investing in adaptation and adoption and more efficient ways to use our natural resources and the inputs that we are using at the moment. This, what, what you mentioned, Maximo, on, on your question is, how can we also move away, or how can we use this, uh, traditional way, uh, of, uh, the return of investment that we, that we have. very commonly implemented in our analysis is actually now we need to move towards measuring productivity in a sustainable way, not only accounting for the regular inputs and outputs, but also to include environmental measures as part of the productivity analysis. And what we have found also in our research, which is very interesting, is that Deforestation is not the only main agricultural output that has been damaging the environment, but the most important contributor to these environmental damages in the region has been nutrient imbalance. And this is very interesting because 60% of the agricultural, of the environmental damages from agriculture are based, are mainly coming from nutrient imbalances and nutrient pollution. This means we need to invest also on fertilizer, on better, more efficient fertilizer utilization. And it means that we can, with the same amount of fertilizer, produce more and better without damaging the environment. And so this means that as well, we can increase efficiency and ultimately the true return of agricultural investment should not only be captured on what we are producing today. We shouldn't be only capture agricultural production today, but what we preserve for the future and for producing in the future. And for this, we need, of course, the Hand in Hand Initiative to bring together knowledge, evidence into concrete investments that are bankable and as well into scaling up these investments through the private sector. And at the IDB, we're very well positioned through our three branches, the public sector, which focuses on enabling the conditions from the government perspective with policies, incentives, and projects, the IDB Invest, which focuses on bringing mobilizing private capital to expand and scale commercial, viable commercially initiatives. And finally, the BID Lab, which finances mainly new entrepreneurship and innovations that can increase productivity in a sustainable manner. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you very much. Join me now applause to her, please. So, colleagues, just to finalize, so we have heard today about how countries are innovating, how they are trying to lead their investment, the case of Mozambique, the case of Bhutan, the case of Tajikistan, the case of Jordan. All of them are bringing ideas, innovation, enabling environment, facilitating the process. The banks are trying to bring innovation in finance, trying to attract the private sector, derisk the private sector, bring the environmental concerns, externalities. Now, all our investment plans have a tool that is being used to look at these topics. So we don't just do investment plans that create bigger rates of return. We are doing investment plans that are sustainable. That's why we measure emissions, we measure biodiversity loss, and we measure all the different externalities that the investment plan could create or could bring positive returns in terms of those externalities. And that's where we use the EXACT tool, which is a tool that FAO has developed for a long time, and many banks are using it today. But we also try to attract and bring together all the pieces, the connecting tissue, as you mentioned. And that's where we need your support to bring us together. So please join Hans in thanking this great panel for all what we have learned today. Thank you very much.

Our sincere thanks for a very important and impactful discussion, clearly demonstrating how Hand in Hand Initiative supports countries and regions across the world and how their leadership is brought to light here in this forum, and also the role of the banks in bringing in the innovative financing and the fact that our investment plans, as Maximo mentioned in the end, are taking into account many of these externalities. So this is all very important to transforming agri-food systems, advancing resilience, sustainability, and efficiency of these systems. So once again, thank you for this very inspiring exchange. Focused on the role of impactful investments and agri-food systems. Building on this energy, we will now move to our second panel, dedicated to a critical question. How can we build innovative partnerships and financial mechanisms that can navigate the complex and changing global context? To uncover the response, I am pleased to welcome Ms. Susannah Savage from the Financial Times, who will moderate this very stimulating and diverse panel, which includes Mr. Matthias Behringer, Executive Vice President and Head of Public Affairs, Science and Sustainability from Bayer. Mr. Ivan Ivanov, Global Lead Advisory Skills Knowledge from the World Bank Group, Ms. Tania Strauss, the Head of Sustainable Growth and People Agenda, member of the Executive Committee, World Economic Forum, Mr. Peter Umanie, Thematic Lead for Food Systems and Land Use from the Global Environment Facility, Ms. Ana Maria Lobo Guerrero, Director, Adaptive and Equitable Food Systems from the Gates Foundation, Mr. Christian Ellermann, Senior Climate Change Specialist, Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency, MIGA. Ms. Emmeline Fellus, Senior Director, Agriculture and Food from the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. And last but not least, Ms. Daniela Bernacchi, Executive Director for the UN Global Compact, Italy. So, Susanna, I hand over the panel to you.

Everyone seated, great. Well, thank you all for being here. I think it's a really important discussion about how do we turn investment into more resilient food systems and help farms and businesses withstand shocks and keep food supply reliable. We're going to look at what different partners can contribute, what prevents them from working together and where that cooperation is already delivering results. I wanted to start with the business this perspective, if that's okay. Where's my tooth? From Bayer's experience, where could working more closely with governments, development banks, or philanthropic organizations make the biggest difference to agricultural investment? And what can those partnerships achieve that a company cannot achieve alone?

Yeah, first of all, very good morning. Thanks for having me here. Where this orchestra of different players can help is in the capital allocation decision of businesses. So every dollar we invest competes with a dollar we could invest somewhere else. There are lots of opportunity costs. And what we realized is that the better we orchestrate across the different players, the better we work hand in hand. the more likely it is that we invest in places we otherwise wouldn't go. So, for example, our most modern seed production at the moment is located in Sambia. It's a $33 million investment. And that investment ultimately made the cut compared to other investments because we were able to find a way to not only orchestrate different players, the World Bank Group, for example, invested in irrigation in the same place where we invested. We also got risk insurance, which was very important because the seeds we are producing are destined for more than one country. So that's really crucial. And the area where I think we need to all work together even more at the section of climate and agriculture is crop insurance for smallholder farmers. Because what we realize is that while we take crop insurance for granted in most places in the world, which give farmers peace of mind, and also a willingness to invest even after a bad harvest. For smallholder farmers, this peace of mind is often absent. So apart from investing in innovative seeds, apart from making sure that research and development results are shared quicker with smallholder farmers, I think it's important that we devote more energy on creating an environment that produces peace of mind for them, that peace of mind apart from all the other things I talked about, is probably the most important factor for us to decide to invest in a country like Zambia as opposed to, let's say, Spain.

That's really interesting that insurance has become such a big topic, especially as climate change has worsened, and especially when we look at smallholder farmers versus large-scale farmers in countries like the US or Brazil, where it's just a completely different ballgame. I wanted to move on to the World Bank, Yvan. The World Bank Group launched Mission AgriConnect last October as a flagship initiative in agriculture. For those in the room who haven't followed it closely, who aren't familiar, what is it and what is it trying to change on the ground? And where does IFC, the private sector part of the World Bank, fit into that?

Thank you.

And thank you for inviting me to this very important forum. In a way, the mission AgriConnect is a response to this call by FAO to work together and to bring.

Better investments to the agri-food sector.

So AgriConnect is about three things. First, it's about better agribusiness. Second, it's about food security. And third, it's about farmers, it's about better livelihoods. And in this ambition, we, as World Bank Group, we want to reach 300 million farmers together with our partners. And we had here, early in the morning, IFAD, that is one of our main partners in implementing Agri-Connect. The other IDBs also will contribute to this. One thing that was discussed this morning is that the farmers need all this infrastructure around them to deliver. And this is what AgriConnect is about. It is about investing in the infrastructure, investing in the skills, helping farmers get together, aggregate farmers so that there is a better way to reach the farmer. And it is mostly about end-to-end looking at the sectors. and making sure that those sectors work for a market demand. One thing that also was mentioned this morning by the DG is that it's good to be focused. if a country wants to achieve something, and he gave this example, every of the ministers in this room probably has a million dollar. Use this million dollar on one thing and make it well. So this is also AgriConnect. AgriConnect is about focusing on the few things that work, the few sectors that work, and putting the effort to make them work better. And last but not least, so we will invest as World Bank Group $9 billion. We're looking to leverage in others and bring private capital to the tune of $5 billion a year. But that's not the most important. The most important is that we are looking through Agri-Connect to unlock the opportunities for private sector investment. And that's very important because as many of the speakers before me said, capital, there is a lot, but bankable projects, they are not enough. So, and it is a joint work of the government and the private sector to come to those projects, but it is in the domain of the public, it is in the public domain to create those opportunities so that there is more investment.

Thank you. It's really interesting. Just to Tanya, this forum is about moving from fragmented projects to coordinated investment. From your work for the World Economic Forum, bringing governments and businesses together, where is that coordination most urgently needed?

Yeah, thanks so much. And thank you to the leadership of FAO and DG Chou and Maximo on this fifth anniversary of Hand in Hand Investment Forum. I think the future of food is profoundly more complex than simply more. I think Bill Anderson would agree to that. I know Brian Sykes of Cargill agrees with that because he said that. And it stays with me because as we hear some of the conversations today around some of the global choke points and trade flows that have impacted not just energy markets, but input markets and transport costs and logistics, it's a stark reminder that these challenges and crises are structural and not seasonal. it's incredibly important to digest that. And like degraded soil responds to care, so do structural challenges respond to structured coordination. So I think the urgency is around understanding that we need to solve for the long term and that we need to recognize the collective capabilities of stakeholders around the table on addressing those collectively, not only through a shared interest, which is difficult sometimes, but shared risk understanding, perhaps more motivational. And then, of course, a lot of the tools that have been mentioned, maybe two that I would love to highlight from a market perspective. One, we heard a lot about this morning already. One, I haven't heard yet, but I know is important to so many of us, which is procurement. It's a critical lever in the equation because it presents To Matthias's point, not just peace of mind, but the confidence required from producers, suppliers, and lending institutions to understand and predict revenue and plan and co-invest. I think we've been hearing a lot about the, not the absence of capital, but the absence of bankability and how to move, as you're saying, Susanna, from fragmented pilots to a portfolio approach. So let's look at the role of those private financial institutions alongside the incredible breadth of multilateral and public financial expertise in the room here in Rome, because I think there is an opportunity for instilling confidence there to say there's a predictable, credible, revenue stream. And I actually think these two levers play very closely together, procurement and credible demand signals paired with the bankability pipelines that are required for financial institutions to engage co-designed with and for smallholder agriculture. So we're not only talking about large farmers, although they are feeling so much pain right now that they are welcome to this table as well, but also designed for the fit for purpose deployment of those solutions.

Are you starting to feel more optimistic about this?

Yes. So here's the thing. I'm an optimistic person and have that reputation. And I think the reality is that we are in a era of compounding pain and shocks. And so if that motivates us to work differently, then yes, I'm an optimist that we will respond to that challenge.

Yes, globally, agriculture is facing a complete storm of shocks. Anna Maria, maybe could you talk about the role that philanthropy can play in bringing governments and businesses together from the point of view of the Gates Foundation, especially around investments that would otherwise fail to reach smallholder farmers in particular?

Yeah, thank you very much. Thank you for the invitation. We are very privileged to be part of this conversation. We really believe in the importance of working on agricultural development to address poverty. So I think that it's the right time to have this conversation. So let me start saying something that when you work in philanthropy is very part of the way that we do things, and it's that our role is to change the conditions that are excluding smallholder farmers, both men and women. And I'm emphasizing women because what we have seen is that there are these structural issues in terms of access to land, in terms of access to information, to finance, that are preventing women from benefiting from innovations in the agricultural sector. So Going back to philanthropy, it's really being able to change those conditions, what we have called the enabling environment in the last panel. And it's not, we're getting away from simply subsidizing an individual investment. So we don't want to go that because we believe that that's not a good use of resources. So, but if you ask me, how do we bring these different actors together from a philanthropic perspective, three things that come to mind. The first one is using the convening power. And that's something that we at the Gates Foundation, we do a lot. So part of our role is not only providing resources and funding, but for instance, getting together around the table, governments, businesses, farmers, with a very specific purpose, which is to understand what is the Is it lack of water? Is it lack of seeds, extension systems? And in each country it's going to be different, that was said this morning as well. But it is really important to start from there. So to get these actors together to think about what's the real challenge before thinking about the financing mechanism. Because then if we are clear about the challenge, it's easier. One thing that we are doing at the Gates Foundation right now in our focus geographies is to start a conversation at the country level. So how do we align with the country priorities, what we heard from governments, and keep it in mind farmers' needs. So those are two components that are really important and that are defining what we are going to do in agricultural development in the next 19 years. So that's one thing that we do. The second one, it's to finance the foundation so that others can come in. So what the Gates Foundation does is to put a lot of resources on delivering innovations that are accessible as public goods, but also we fund the private system, the public system to deliver those innovations to small-scale farmers. And this could, like specific examples are shared climate data, that it's very important for decision making, or validating a technology at the local level, or something that it is very important. aggregating small-scale farmers so they can have more voice and participate in the market. The whole idea of this is that once that we invest in this, others are going to come in. Other businesses are being able to serve these small-scale farmers. And then the third role that is very important, it's to use flexible capital where really we can change a decision. And in here, a grant might fund the evidence for testing a new service or something that is very relevant, addressing the risk, mitigating, reducing that risk that might help a lender to serve unfamiliar customers. And in here, one specific example that we are supporting is the Aceli Africa example. And it is really interesting what they are doing in terms of, So somehow sharing the lenders risks and of taking the cost. So they had lent, for instance, to women that are interested in accessing equipment for micro irrigation. And this is smaller loans that usually lenders are not interested in doing. So funding the model, seeing where it works, how it gets adjusted so that these conditions can change and lending can go into populations that are usually excluded. One thing that I want to reiterate is that when we think about catalytic capital, we many times think about the money that we are able to mobilize. The way that we see catalytic capital in the Gates Foundation, it's more on that money that we are all in agreement that it's their capital is not the problem. Who like who is benefiting from that money? And that's where we believe that we can make a difference. Those excluded populations that usually cannot benefit from that capital, catalytic capital needs to change that, being able to reach that and translate that into outcomes. So going beyond increases in productivity into real incomes in the hands of smallholder women farmers with the decision making to improve their livelihoods.

It's a really good point that we're not looking at the same playing field across the board here, that there are different groups that are excluded. One of the things I wanted to discuss was how this looks in different countries. Christian, how can the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency work with governments and investors to get agricultural projects moving in countries where you don't have businesses that are willing to invest, where there's a reluctance there? How do you operate in those circumstances?

Thank you very much, Susanna, for the question. We see that investment often hesitates, not really because of the economics or the business case of a project, but because of risks that investors cannot price. In many of the transactions we see, the market, the business case, and the technology design are actually pretty sound. But what prevents a decision from being taken is uncertainty about non-commercial, non-technical risks, or the perception of those risks in a certain country, as the colleague from African Development Bank said in the previous panel. So this could be about risks of contract enforcement. currency, inconvertibility, risk of expropriation, or political instability. So where these stay open, investors either stay out or they demand a cost of capital that, you know, is pricing out of the margins that the agri-food sector can provide. So at MIGA, as part of the World Bank Group, we try to close that gap regarding political risk through political risk insurance and guarantees. So we cover investments through equity and loans into developing countries against these risks. We can also provide credit enhancement to where a government or a state-owned enterprise has a payment obligation. So this improves generally the terms then on which lenders will finance a project, for example, in the terms of the tenor or the cost. So commercial and technical risk would stay with the sponsor and the lenders. So that means that the guarantee really works when the business is sound and the specific non-commercial risk is the barrier. Two examples. In Kenya, we recently guaranteed a European investor's expansion of a food ingredient supply chain project that gives livestock farmers reliable access to affordable feed. That is expected to generate 120 jobs and it also has a very important component benefiting women through a gender action plan. Another example in Brazil, we're supporting Banco do Brasil through a lending facility for farmers that are adopting no-till practices and also certain climate resilient practices. So what distinguishes MIGA from commercial insurers is the development outcome really and the focus on that and that it's built into the financing. Whether private insurers play an important role, we work alongside them, of course, but our decision also rests on whether the project delivers for the host country. So that means jobs, inclusivity, productivity, climate resilience, and others, and all under the World Bank Group environmental and social standards. So, our strength as MIGA, of course, comes from being part of the World Bank Group. And so, in the same sector, in the same country, we may have the bank working with the government on policy. We may have IFC investing in companies and MIGA coming in for the risk part. So, no individual instrument would mobilize the private capital at scale there, but rather the combination does and together with our partners here, of course.

Thank you. I mean, we've talked a lot about risk, but obviously, agri-food companies are facing an existential risk as the climate changes and the environment is impacted. Emeline, I just wanted to ask, you know, can food companies make their supply chains resilient by investing in their own suppliers, or do they also need to invest in the wider landscape, the water, the soil ecosystems that those farms depend on, and, you know, who needs to be involved in that?

Thanks very much. I appreciate the question and also the chance to discuss with the esteemed panelists and thank the AFIL for organizing this really exciting fifth event. It's a really good question because increasingly, agri-food companies indeed are investing in making their supply chains more resilient. We've heard the word resilience a lot. But there is a question as to how much can you invest in your supply chain on your own with a few of your suppliers or with other supply chain players, or how much do you need to go beyond and look at the landscape? So I'll try to take a few examples to explain why that is a really important question. I work with 250 companies that are members of the BBCSD, and we've done a recent poll to actually understand how much is sustainability still core to you, how much do you think it's driving competitiveness. And despite the headwinds on sustainability, what came out really strongly, 92% of the leaders that answered said, we expect sustainability to be a driver of competitive advantage within the next five to 10 years. So it stays there because if you don't make sure that your supply chain is sustainable, resilient, you don't have a business in a few years time, right? The question is how you go about this. And so of course we've heard excellent examples by the way of, Either a company like Ola Magri, who was here on stage earlier, who is also a member, we heard examples of investment in the value chain, for instance, working directly with the farmers, as you were saying, sometimes smallholder farmers that are harder to reach, to try and make their practices more sustainable, more regenerative. For instance, helping them to use no-till, helping them to use drip irrigation, et cetera, et cetera. And you can do a lot in maintaining this. And so we saw in the action agenda for regenerative landscape that we launched at COP28, we saw that by today, there is more than $9 billion that are being invested by 40 of the contributing companies into regenerative agriculture, that's great. But the risks are increasing because unfortunately, by the way, there is no adaptation to a planet of plus four degrees. So we keep talking about resilience, but let's not forget to continue to work on mitigation. That's really important. We heard Maximo say that, and I want to stress that as well, both mitigation and adaptation. When we look at adaptation, if you look at the risks today, The risks are compelling and increasing because even though we are making progress on sustainable practices, the ecosystem around is actually degrading. Recently, we launched a report with Follu and Systemic that actually showed that most companies are underestimating the risks because we're not looking at the right risk. We still only look at climate and water. We don't think about forest fires. We don't think about a lot of the risks that are accelerating. We're also using old models. in the old way of thinking that a risk can happen. But actually, we're moving towards a more catastrophic scenario. Sorry, I know you're an optimistic, Tania, but we are moving towards more and more catastrophes. And so we need to prepare for that and use a different level of probability. And last but not least, the reason why we're here today is that the finance world uses a different language than the sustainability world. And so we need to find bridges such as this hand-in-hand forum here. I was also, I think, last week at the Building Bridges that happens in Geneva, where actually investors meet together and see how can they further integrate sustainability in their thinking. Where am I going with this? Yes, so we underestimate the risks. And therefore, for instance, in that assessment we did, we saw that even though there is incredible investments in Brazil on regenerative agriculture using no-till, et cetera, The risks are accelerating because the climate is changing, because the forests are going down, because there is less water, and the risks are really high. So a call to invest beyond the value chain in regenerative landscapes, which requires working, and that's what we've heard a lot here, bringing the private sector, the value chain players that can bank on the market, the innovation, some of the investments, working with the different players of the supply chain, bringing the financial institutions that help to de-risk, We heard that very loudly. Working with the governments because often the policies that are in place are not conducive to more investments. So really trying to improve the enabling environment as we heard it. And finally, of course, bringing in the farmers that are the stewards of the land, as we heard before.

Thank you. I hope that today is an opportunity, or this whole week is an opportunity, for that bridge between the sustainability sector and the finance sector to be bridged, to be closed. Daniela, finally, last but not least, from your work with businesses in Italy, what is the biggest obstacle to turning corporate sustainability commitments into investment in more resilient food supply chains?

Yes, I think the big obstacle is the gap between the ambition and the real life, day by day life, the company are experiences. We all know that to have a sustainable food system, soil restoration, regenerative agriculture takes time, several years. And our companies in our country, especially our experience, but not only, a real, I mean, all the world experience a big geopolitical crisis, the cost of energy is really impressive. So what we're experiencing is that sustainability is pushing towards resilience, while finance and purchasing department are more on cost short-term results. So this is the issue. What makes the difference is understanding at strategic level, especially with the CEO commitment, a board level commitment, that sustainability is a strategic level. So investing today reduce the risk of supply chain disruption, operational risks, as well as protect the access to raw materials in the future, and also create a measurable value for the company. So this is, uh, the, the real challenge, what we are experiencing as UN Global Compact is that, uh, companies can do it alone. So we already heard many times this morning, blind that finance can be an asset. Government engagement on the riskable project is an asset insurance and platform of multi-stakeholder partnership can also help. The leading companies in our country, what they're doing, they're really integrating climate and nature in enterprise risk. And they're using procurement KPIs linked to sustainable KPIs. So if they switch the mind to cost cutting, to strategic business continuity issue, that what makes the difference. We are partially in there. We as global company, we have very nice sustainable companies, 22,000 in the world and 800 in Italy. But We still need more engagement and to raise the bar towards sustainability. In our opinion, sustainable supply chains are resilient. A resilient supply chain goes hand in hand with sustainability.

Thank you. We have time for a few more questions. And, Mathis, to come back to you, I mean, we've touched upon this, but how can partnerships help agricultural projects become viable beyond the initial pilot stage that we so often hear about? You know, what needs to be in place from the outset for that to happen, for it to go beyond the pilot.

So when you look at the first 25 years of this century, all my AI helpers agree that roughly 1.8 billion humans moved into cities. And that meant a huge transformation for the food system. And that was possible because there was a blueprint for a partnership, mainly in Latin America, predominantly in Brazil. And what we've seen there is we have financing, risk insurance, crop insurance, investment in R&D and private sector investment coming together. Now, we also heard about the downsides of the huge agricultural growth in that region, deforestation being one of the factors. so for the next 25 years where the AI helpers don't agree anymore, whether it's again 1.8 billion humans or 1.5 or even two that move into cities, we again have a huge transformation ahead of us, but we can learn from, um, what was possible, uh, in parts of the world. What is clear to me is that the next kind of transformation in agriculture will be one where smallholders play a central role, the majority of them being women, and where the region moves from the Western Hemisphere into Africa and into Southeast Asia. So not everything that works in one place will work in another place. But it's not that we haven't been able to pull things off. In 1992, when the world came together in Rio to look at sustainability as a core topic, Brazil was a net food importer. I'm old enough to remember 1992, so it's not that long ago, even though my kids disagree. The point I want to make is it is absolutely possible, and it's also a giant business opportunity. So rather than admiring the problem, we should think about where this kind of orchestration can make a huge difference.

Thank you. And I just want to welcome Peter, am I going to say this wrong, Ummenay, is that right? Thank you. Brilliant. Thematic lead for food systems and land use at the Green Environment Facility. Welcome. Thank you for joining us. Peter, sorry to sort of throw you in the deep end. I know you've just come up, but I wanted to ask about, so protecting Investing in water, soil and forests benefits many businesses as well as communities, but no single investor can capture all the benefits. How do you bring partners together to fund that kind of work?

Um, fantastic. Thank you very much. And I'm sorry, I, there was a confusion with my schedule, so I was on another panel. I have to run here. Um, so, uh, thank you for the question. Thanks. Um, first of all, let me just say. where I work and what is the Global Environment Facility, what it does, and then I will tackle your question. So I work for the Global Environment Facility. It's one of the largest multilateral environmental financing mechanisms for many conventions. So we serve different conventions, and we were born at the eve of Rio Convention in 1991. And the JAF really provide support to countries to meet their commitment under all of these conventions, including biodiversity, land degradation, climate change mitigation, international waters, chemical and waste, many matter conventions, Stockholm conventions, and so on. And we administer the different fund, including the GBFF fund, and now we are negotiating the plastic treaty, but also the BBNJ. So we are one of these environmental mechanisms. But also, we started to think about holistic approach and how our programs, instead of focusing on project, we wanted to move toward focusing on programs so that we can deliver across different focal areas objectives, so all the convention objectives. And this is when we started thinking about agriculture as we can describe from what you just described in terms of water removals, in terms of biodiversity loss, in terms of climate change and so on. So we talked about looking at agriculture as one of the key drivers for all of these negative externalities and how we address them. And different programs that I lead are actually looking toward food systems transformation that is nature positive, pollution free, but also that is biodiversity friendly. And to do that, of course, as the GEF, our mandate is to generate global environmental benefit. So meaning that we have to get those core indicators that we have to report to our donors. But when we look at this, sometimes we are missing some point. And this is when we started looking at the integrated approach to focus on systems transformation. And by focusing on system transformation, I really mean it. basically looking at four elements of the system transformation that can cut across all of this. One of them, and many people are here in the room, is actually policies and governance. I think if we were to tackle our priorities in terms of addressing all interconnected challenges, our policies must align. We need to have a strong governance at the country level. We are promoting what we call policy coherence. It means whole of government, whole of society approach, because this is one element. The second element, I think, I don't know, I came late from the panel, many people have maybe talked about this, is finance. I think we keep talking about finance. We need to leverage finance. We need to move from this isolated boutique approach to a more comprehensive program level that is easily creating a bankable pipeline of project that we can really increase finance at scale. And that's one of the key elements that we are trying to promote. And with this, basically, as the GF, we still public money. So we provide catalytic funds. But for this catalytic fund to land and have more impact, it has to help create those enabling conditions and allow private bank philanthropies, MDBs to come in with larger ticket size. So we are promoting now the blended finance approach using the GEF money as a de-risking, using the GEF money as a junior equity, using the catalytic money to kind of leverage additional finance. The third part is innovation. I think many people have talked about this. We are living in a digital world. I think we can take advantage of technology really to scale up our approach, really to support farmers that are in need to develop these technologies, which will not just cover the production system, but will also look into the value chain and cross the value chain, so infrastructure and so on. And finally, I think this forum is also talking about this, is what we call the inclusion with multi-stakeholder approach. So I think farmers in this room, they are actually at the center and youth are at the center. They are creative innovations. They are the leaders of the future. They need also to be part of this, but also indigenous people and local knowledge that we need to leverage. So I think for me in that question is basically that we have to take that holistic approach where we look into all of these key elements. Maybe the one that I saying is just four, but I think many people and where you sit, wherever you sit in your organization, you still know and identify some of these key elements that we unlock and really provide the support that can help us unlock some of these potentials and then provide sustainability in the way we farm the way we produce food, the way we eat food, and across the entire value chain. So I will stop there for now. Thank you.

Thank you very much. Thank you. Ivan, I just wanted to come to you next and ask, governments come to Rome with investment plans and investors come here with their own investment criteria and risk appetite. But what is the most common mismatch that you see between the two and how can it be bridged before the deal reaches your desk?

Thank you. And this is actually the most interesting part of this gathering. It's the discussion of the investment plan that is going today and tomorrow. And there are different things that you see in those plans. Some of them are too ambitious. They probably should be ambitious, but you think, is it possible actually to do this? Others are not really based on a competitive advantage. But one thing that I have seen, and I haven't seen all of them, but I have seen a few, that is missing is, how do you make sure that this is a success for you? And the way I would define success for a government is, you have limited resources, you have $1. How do you make sure that $4 of other people's money will come to this sector? And this is private capital. So if you read through those plans, you don't see why the private sector will jump on this. And that's very important because the resources of all the governments in this room are limited. But the capital that is outside can be leveraged if you put the right things in your business plan.

You have to start asking yourself, so what is missing?

So why are they not there today, those operators? Then the second question is, I have some operators here, why they're growing at single digits and not at double?

Digits as in some other countries.

And the third one is, how do I build trust so that they come here? And all those are difficult questions. They are not easy questions, but they have to be asked. And you have to also look at those examples, probably in this room as well, of countries that have succeeded. There are countries that didn't have this industry there, and now they have it, and they're the leader in the industry.

So how did they do it?

Go and talk to those governments and you'll see that they have put a very credible plan, but they have leveraged the private sector to get there and to lift their farmers from poverty.

Could I extend that to the rest of the panel? What do you see as the biggest mismatch between investment plans and investors? Anyone.

I mean, When we have these conversations, the biggest mismatch is often that I think the welcoming environment for innovation is mixed in countries. And the second one is clarity on capital controls. So that's also a big challenge in the countries where we invest, that we need to have certainty that the money we invest can actually do what it does, create a profit, and that we can move that profit from one country to another, similar to seeds that we want to move from one country to another. So certainty in those areas are really crucial. But I have to say, compared to five years ago, the crises that we have seen have dramatically changed how government approach investments in the agricultural sector. What unfortunately I have to say also was helpful is the lack of commitment of European and the US government in overseas development aid. So those two factors have really led to a much, I wanna say more productive conversation about attracting private investment.

Okay, that's interesting. Emeline.

Yes, thank you. I wanted to draw on some work that we did that we presented at UNCCD a few weeks ago. that is business backed recommendations to policymakers to unlock co-investments, because I think that's your question. And we identified three levers for better grounds for co-investments. The first one, to your point and to the point that many have made, it's stability in the government, but stability of the policies and coherence of the policies. We've heard many times, we'll continue to hear that at the moment, the incentives that are put in place by governments are often not conducive to good environmental or social outcomes. It's the so-called policy subsidies reform that we need to do. We don't know if it will ever happen, but the point is that governments are pulling things in one direction and then expecting them to go in another in the same time, that doesn't work. So coherence Linking climate, nature, resilience, productivity together with the right policy mechanisms is critical. And when it's not there, it's not encouraging anyone to invest. So first. Second is having a longer term vision. We've heard about it. That's a problem that everybody has. Private sector, governments, everybody is short term thinking. And short term means we focus on productivity. And this is not conducive to resilience. Resilience is how much am I able to continue to produce in the future despite climate events. It may not mean that I have the highest productivity tomorrow. It means that I still can produce in a few years. That's a switch we need to do. So the longer term thinking in terms of investment, return on investment. And the last one that we haven't heard so much about that is really critical for companies is the some coherence and alignment around disclosure and reporting. At the moment, we're being asked by different governments, different voluntary reporting systems and others to report across so many KPIs in all directions, and that's not helpful either. So again, some coherence bringing back nature, climate, some financial outcomes, social outcomes. will also really help to be conducive to the direction we want.

Thank you. Thank you. Anna Maria.

Yeah, so I agree with what has been said, so I'm not going to repeat that, but perhaps two things. You mentioned resilience. I think that we are already lacking a standardization in terms of measuring resilience outcomes. And if you want to be able to get into a market and to make transactions, it needs to be very, very clear. When you say resilience, what is resilience and how you are going to be measuring it? That's one. And second, it's, I think, and this is from a small-scale farmer perspective, one of the main challenges is being small. So when you're small, again, it's hard to go and to make transactions in the market. So this is why the Gates Foundation, we believe that aggregation models where you can have many small-scale farmers together can unlock a lot of the opportunities that investors are looking for.

Thank you. We have run out of time, unfortunately, but I just wanted to see if anyone had anything they wanted to add, any final remarks before I hand back to Angelica?

If I may, I totally agree with what has been already said. From the point of view of the Global Compact, we urge companies to have a long-term approach, multi-year approach with supplier in order to sustain them. A value creation, shared value for the farmers and the supplier, meaning not only giving training and technical approach, but also monitor how we increase the income of these people working with us. And the third thing is being accountable. So reporting is very important in a long term, not only here by here, but also which is the result we are giving in this area in the long term. Of course, company ask for the risk pipeline of projects, easy, and guarantees are helpful, but we also believe that multi-stakeholder approach can balance very well this issue.

Thank you. Thank you. I think that's all we have time for. Thank you very much to all our panelists, and I hope the conversations over the coming days help turn the ideas we've discussed into actual investments. And thank you very much. I'll hand back to Angelica.

Our sincere thanks for such a thought-provoking discussion that showcase our Hand-in-Hand Initiative leverages innovative partnerships to bring in the right investors. Thank you to all of you for this very interesting exchange. And as we reach the end of today's journey, I would like to invite to the podium Mr. Mohamed Mansouri, Assistant Director General of the FAO Investment Center, a crucial Hand-in-Hand Initiative partner to deliver closing remarks.

Thank you very much, Angelica. Excellencies, esteemed partners, dear colleagues, ladies and gentlemen, it's a great privilege to deliver the closing remarks for the official opening of the Hand in Hand Initiative Investment Forum 2026. So, I'm Mohamed Mansouri and I lead the FAO's capacity to support investments Our work is very concrete, very country focused, very people focused. We work in 120 countries and we work also through partnership, mostly with international financial institutions. And we have very long standing partnerships with virtually all the IFIs in the world. Many of them were here. Our discussions this morning have made one thing very clear. Transforming agri-food systems requires us to invest differently, moving from fragmentation to integration, from individual interventions to coordinated investments at scale, and from traditional financing to innovative investment solutions. This is particularly important in the world of today. Agri-food systems are under growing pressure from climate, extreme weather events, economic uncertainties, and structural vulnerabilities, while the resources available to address address these challenges are increasingly constrained. We therefore need to make every investment count. This means looking beyond individual projects, initiatives. We need to understand where the barriers to investment lie and address those critical constraints, pain points, to create positive spillovers across economies and communities. This is precisely what the Hand in Hand Initiative seeks to do, as many of the speakers today underlined. It brings together data, analysis, technical expertise, policy dialogue, and partnerships to help countries identify their investment priorities and translate them into concrete opportunities. And it connects those opportunities with the public, private, and non-traditional partners who can help Sorry. Who was talking about technology? I'm very sorry for this. I'm trying just to retrieve my file. Here. It is coming. Sorry again. Yeah, so hand in hand, and then I was saying it connects those opportunities with the public, private, and non-traditional partners who can help take them to scale. Our discussions this morning have highlighted three important messages. The first one is transformation starts with people, countries, and regions. The experiences shared during our first panel remind us that there is no single pathway to agri-food systems transformation, countries and regions face different challenges, but they can learn enormously from one another. Sharing experiences and proven solutions helps us understand what works, adapt successful approaches to different contexts, strengthen collaboration, and avoid duplication, learning together. Most importantly, it helps us accelerate and scale up solutions for greater impacts. The Hand in Hand Initiative provides a framework for connecting national, regional, and global processes while keeping investments firmly anchored in countries own priorities and potential. The second aspect is that we need to invest more strategically. I think many of the speakers today addressed that we need to identify the tipping points where capital, knowledge, technology and policy can unlock wider change and this requires strong evidence. We need to understand not only where the needs are greatest, but also where the opportunities lie, for example, at different points along the value chain and how investments can generate the greatest impact. But identifying opportunities is only the first step. Turning them into viable investment requires sound preparation, appropriate financing arrangements, and the institutional capacity to deliver. Third, no single actor can do this alone. Our second panel has shown the distinct and complementary roles of governments international, regional, and local financial institutions, the private sector, foundations, and other international partners. The challenge now is to bring these capacities, capabilities together and align finance and expertise to provide integrated solutions that recognize the different but complementary roles of public investments, development finance, and private capital that the and what the private capital can bring. Public finance remains critical but it cannot meet the scale of the challenge alone. We need to use different sources of finance strategically build the required partnerships that help manage risk and all the types of risks as it was referred to this morning and creates the conditions for responsible private investment. Above all we need to ensure that investment reaches those who ultimately drive agri-food systems transformation, farmers, especially small-scale farmers, producers, small and medium enterprises, women across the board and young people. This is why the emphasis of this year forum on innovation and integration is so timely. Innovation is not simply about a new technology or financial instrument It is also about finding better ways to connect actors, knowledge, finance and investment opportunities as much as it is about business models. And integration allows us to turn these connections into greater and more lasting impact. The opening ceremony today is only the beginning. Over the coming days, this forum gives us the opportunity to move from dialogue to concrete engagements and action. So let me close with a call for all of us this morning to use these days to move from fragmentation to integration, identifying the investment opportunities that are ready to move forward, forge the partnerships needed to finance them and accelerate their delivery, align our efforts around integrated solutions that can deliver impact at scale. And let us leave this forum not only with stronger connections and shared ambitions, but with concrete next steps to turn investment plans into action and agree on concrete next steps with clear responsibilities to follow up. So on behalf of FAO, I thank all our speakers and panelists for their contributions this morning and all our partners for their continued engagements with the Hand in Hand Initiative. I wish you a productive and successful Hand in Hand Investment Forum 2026. Thank you very much.

Thank you, Mohammed, for these closing remarks. And as you said, this is just the beginning. So this is a perfect start for the Investment Forum Week. And now we're all ready to work together, as Mohammed said, from fragmentation to integration to action and impact. Allow me to once again thank all of our distinguished speakers and participants. I hope you enjoy the rest of the investment forum. Before you leave, I just would encourage you not to forget to book your bilateral meetings and on screen there should be a QR code for you to do so. And there's an additional QR code for you to provide any feedback you may have on the session. Thank you very much.