With world hunger reaching its highest peak since 2006, solutions addressing each link in the food system are essential. Drawing from TechnoServe's work across value chains with a range of public and private partners, we are highlighting the latest challenges, insights, and promising approaches in the current effort to prevent widespread food insecurity and build greater long-term resilience.
It seems simple – people who make their living growing food should have enough of it to feed themselves. But around the world, smallholder farmers are often disproportionately affected by hunger. Read on to discover four reasons behind this apparent paradox – and how you can help fight food insecurity alongside these farmers and their families.
Juan Carlos Thomas, Director of Entrepreneurship at TechnoServe, writes about TechnoServe's report on the impacts of COVID-19 for micro-retailers in this NextBillion article.
In 2019, Kyle and Katina Connaughton, owners/operators of SingleThread Farms, traveled to Peru through the Chefs for Change initiative – a program that connects the world’s best chefs to smallholder farmers in developing countries.
In Nicaragua, agriculture — and livestock production, in particular — is a primary driver of deforestation. Over the years, as cattle ranching has increased, so has land degradation throughout the country. By adopting silvopastoral systems, which integrate trees, shrubs, and grasses with livestock, farmers can improve their livelihoods and restore local ecosystems.
Global coffee prices are rising after several years at near-historic lows that prompted many farmers in Central America to immigrate elsewhere. But higher prices alone are not enough to sustain progress. To ensure long-term, profitable incomes, farmers need support establishing long-lasting market connections, developing climate-resilient growing techniques, and diversifying their incomes.
When the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the livelihoods of millions of entrepreneurs last year, digitalization offered small businesses around the world a promising solution. In this Q&A, TechnoServe’s Global Entrepreneurship Director, Juan Carlos Thomas, speaks with the Executive Director of the Argidius Foundation, Nicholas Colloff, and Dalberg Advisors’ Global Knowledge Lead, Kusi Hornberger, about the future of digital technology for supporting entrepreneurs.
Jonathan Barnow, Vice President for Strategic Initiatives at TechnoServe, writes about the role that the private sector has in helping farmers and entrepreneurs recover from the COVID-19 crisis.
Cristina Manfre, Global Gender Director, TechnoServe identifies three priorities for improving the resilience of women farmers and entrepreneurs ahead of the next crisis.
Drawing from TechnoServe's COVID-19 survey data, Nupur Parikh, Director, Strategic Initiatives, and Brent Wibberley, Director, Food Processing and Nutrition, break down how the pandemic has impacted agricultural value chains.
