The IFAD climate change fact sheet.

The RUPES and PRESA projects have been cited among IFAD-funded programmes that can help poor, rural people cope with and mitigate the impact of climate change.

The sister programmes are discussed in a fact sheet titled, “Climate Change: a development challenge.”

IFAD, the International Fund for Agricultural Development, released the fact sheet to describe its work on climate change mitigation and adaptation.

RUPES (Rewarding the Upland Poor for Environmental Services they provide) covers 6 countries in Asia. It started in 2002 and inspired the Pro-poor Rewards for Environmental Services in Africa (PRESA) programme, which began in 2008.

RUPES has helped build momentum and public interest in rewards for environmental services and has developed ways to reward poor farmers who protect ecosystems in China, Indonesia, Laos, Nepal, Philippines and Vietnam. PRESA, on its part, works in Guinea, Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania.

The IFAD document underscores that up to 35% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions result from agriculture and deforestation. Highlighting that the rural poor manage large areas of land and forest, it calls for carbon trading schemes to include mechanisms to compensate the rural poor, and for policy makers to incentivize carbon sequestration and soil and water conservation.

IFAD also outlines it’s efforts to streamline climate change adaptation and mitigation into its programmes. The factsheet further describes: a biogas project in China; an adaptation project in Peru; and partnerships on climate change between IFAD and other international organizations.

Download the factsheet [PDF, 401KB] or visit the IFAD Climate Change website.

Here’s a link to the RUPES website.