Latin America and the Caribbean
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Latin America and the Caribbean
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Latin America and the Caribbean
Overview
Economic transformation has made great strides in Latin America and the Caribbean, yet wide inequalities persist. Home to 595 million people, this region offers valuable lessons, but there is still much work to do.
Most impressive is that all countries in the region, except for Haiti, are now considered middle-income. However, one person in four still lives in poverty, and the poor tend to be concentrated in rural areas. Eighty per cent of the region’s population is urban.
Among the poorest and most marginalized are women, indigenous peoples, and those of African descent. Some 15 million people live by farming a huge variety of crops; others inhabit expansive forests. However, traditional agricultural techniques are evolving in the face of economic and climate change.
Transforming rural communities
IFAD has been active in this remarkably diverse region, where we pioneered community-centric development, for four decades. By encouraging local people to identify projects that could enhance their prosperity, and then providing training and financial assistance to carry out those projects, we have helped to transform communities and demonstrate the benefits of bottom-up development strategies.
Working together, with and for the poor
IFAD partners with governments, NGOs and communities to draw up pro-poor policies that benefit rural areas, and to implement them in the most effective ways.
By the end of 2016, IFAD was working with 19 governments to deliver 37 ongoing programmes across the region, with a total investment of US$770 million.*
Our breadth of expertise and geographical reach enables us to promote knowledge-sharing between projects and regions. Partnerships are fundamental to our efforts to further expand policies that level the playing field for small farmers through policy dialogue and South-South cooperation.
Examples of our work include helping:
- young people become entrepreneurs;
- farmers understand and access markets; and
- indigenous peoples manage irrigation systems more effectively.
Everywhere we work, we bring appropriate solutions that raise rural incomes and help people respond to climate change.
* This amount includes the contributions of the Spanish Trust Fund, managed by IFAD.
Learn more
Some of the most marginalized population groups can be found among the region’s 125 million rural people.
Over a quarter of the region’s population continues to live in poverty. In recent years, the absolute number of people living in poverty has increased.
Rural areas continue to experience inequality. In Bolivia, for example, poverty declined nationwide from 61 per cent in 2005 to 39 per cent in 2013. However, in rural areas, 60 per cent of the population lives in poverty and 39 per cent in extreme poverty.
Rossana Polastri
regional-director
Latin America and the Caribbean knowledge platform
Latin America and the Caribbean knowledge platform
Latin America and the Caribbean knowledge platform
A space for sharing lessons learned and good practices, which are essential elements for the sustainable development of rural territories.
Where we work
Related news
Related news
Sin equidad de género no habrá desarrollo sostenible, asegura el FIDA en el lanzamiento del Decenio Interamericano por los Derechos de las Mujeres Rurales
“La igualdad de oportunidades y derechos de las mujeres rurales es fundamental para construir sociedades más prósperas, inclusivas y capaces de hacer frente a desafíos globales como el cambio climático y la inseguridad alimentaria. Sin equidad de género no habrá desarrollo sostenible”, enfatizó hoy el FIDA.
La CEPAL y el FIDA proponen redefinir el concepto de ruralidad para mejorar las políticas públicas e impulsar la agenda de desarrollo socioeconómico
La Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL) y el FIDA proponen una nueva aproximación al concepto de ruralidad en México y América Latina con el objetivo de focalizar la acción pública para reducir las desigualdades y avanzar en la consecución de los Objetivos de Desarrollo Sostenible.
New UN report: 43.2 million people suffer from hunger in Latin America and the Caribbean, and the region has higher levels of overweight and obesity than the global estimate
The Regional Overview 2023 indicates that, despite halting the upward trend in the last period, hunger levels in the region remain above the 2019 figures prior to the outbreak of COVID-19. In addition, 8.6% of children under five years of age are overweight.
Stories and blogs
Stories and blogs
Why camelids are key to a better future in Bolivia and beyond
Why has the UN declared this year the International Year of Camelids? IFAD’s Country Director for Bolivia, Daniel Anavitarte, explains why you should care about these extraordinary mammals – and why they’re key to sustainable rural development in South America and beyond.
Saving the Amazon: The story of the indigenous women fighting climate change
In the heart of the Peruvian Amazon, a group of indigenous women are fighting climate change through reforestation and ancestral farming techniques.
What I’ve learned about resilience from rural communities in Guatemala
Faced with the impacts of climate change, small-scale producers in Guatemala urgently need to manage risk using tools like insurance. Read how INSURED promotes the use of agricultural insurance to build resilience and strengthen livelihoods.
A decade of progress for small-scale farmers in Cuba
Marking ten years in Cuba, IFAD’s Country Director met small-scale farmers and partners to discuss progress made and what is yet to be done.
Related publications
Related publications
IFAD Research Series 93: New methods to define and measure rurality in Latin America and their impact on public policies: the cases of Mexico and Panama
This paper outlines two index proposals for defining and measuring rurality: the relative rurality index and the contiguity of areas of similar densities.
Regional Overview of Food Security and Nutrition in Latin America and the Caribbean 2023
The 2023 edition of the Regional Overview of Food Security and Nutrition in Latin America and the Caribbean presents an update of the data and trends in food security and nutrition in recent years.
INSURED results 2018-2023
This brief shares the results and lessons learned from the first phase of the Insurance for Rural Resilience and Economic Development (INSURED) programme.