Côte d'Ivoire secures major climate finance to support smallholder farmers adapt to climate change and increase yields

A $50 million Green Climate Fund (GCF) investment will help rice, cassava and yam farmers in the country's Central regions adopt proven CGIAR climate solutions.

ABIDJAN, IVORY COAST, July 1, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Farmers in Côte d'Ivoire's Central regions face rising temperatures, unpredictable rainfall, floods, and climate-driven pests that are putting pressure on the staple crops — rice, cassava, and yam — crops that underpin livelihoods and national food security.

A new USD 50 million Green Climate Fund investment will help change that. The Enhancing Sustainable Land Management and Climate-Resilient Agri-food Systems in Côte d'Ivoire project, known as LARACI (FP304), has received Green Climate Fund (GCF) Board approval. The project brings together the Government of Côte d'Ivoire, CGIAR, and FIRCA to deliver proven climate solutions at scale across the N'Zi, Moronou, Iffou, La Mé, and Gbêkê regions.

Over five years, LARACI will bring 110,600 hectares of land under improved low-emission and climate-resilient management. Working across climate information, extension services, and agroforestry, the project targets a reduction of more than 600,000 tons of CO2 equivalent emissions, while directly supporting 147,000 smallholders with tools to manage climate risk, stabilize and increase yields, and boost incomes.

The climate solutions provided include optimizing cassava-legume intercropping, which increases productivity, helps maintain soil fertility, and reduces erosion. The extension of System of Rice Intensification (SRI) practices will improve water use efficiency and cut methane emissions. Climate-smart staking will improve the performance of the yam crop and increase above and below ground carbon capture.

The project directly supports Côte d'Ivoire's Climate-Smart Agriculture Investment Plan and Nationally Determined Contributions, strengthening country ownership from design through to delivery and impact. It contributes to national priorities in food security, ecological transition, and climate change adaptation.

Developed through close collaboration with the Ministry of the Environment and Ecological Transition, the project illustrates Côte d’Ivoire’s commitment to mobilizing international climate finance to support agricultural producers.

Financing comes from a USD 40 million GCF grant and USD 10 million in co-financing from the Government of Côte d'Ivoire and CGIAR partners. The project is designed to ensure climate finance reaches the farmers who need it most.

Oumar N'Diaye, Executive Director, FIRCA, said:
“Ivorian farmers are now on the front lines facing the effects of climate change. The LARACI project gives us the means to act on the necessary scale by providing concrete, scientifically proven solutions tailored to on-the-ground realities. FIRCA will draw on its recognized expertise in fiduciary management, the coordination of large-scale projects, and the mobilization of climate finance to ensure effective, transparent, and results-oriented implementation.”

Catherine Koffman, GCF Regional Director for Africa, said:
“By tackling the structural barriers that keep finance from reaching Côte d’Ivoire’s farmers, this investment can unlock a more resilient, productive and inclusive agri-food economy. It backs climate-smart agriculture, in direct implementation of the National Climate-Smart Agriculture Investment Plan (CSAIP), across rice, cassava and yam — the staple crops central to livelihoods and national food security — while strengthening the financial, institutional and value-chain systems needed to scale climate-smart agriculture nationwide. The project reflects GCF’s commitment to strengthen country ownership and be Côte d’Ivoire’s climate partner of choice.”

Baboucarr Manneh, Director General, AfricaRice, said:
"This project is built on a partnership model that puts research and implementation together from the start and achieves impact at scale. AfricaRice brings decades of research on rice-based systems in Africa. FIRCA brings the national networks to put that research into practice. Together, and with the backing of GCF and the Government of Côte d'Ivoire, we can reach farmers at a scale that would not be possible working alone."

Simeon Ehui, Regional Director for Africa, CGIAR, and Director General of the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), said:
"This project is a milestone for CGIAR and for climate finance in Africa. As CGIAR's first Green Climate Fund project, it demonstrates that agricultural research organizations can do more than generate knowledge; they can directly mobilize and deliver finance to farmers who need it most. The country-led model we are advancing in Côte d'Ivoire provides a scalable blueprint for accelerating climate resilience across Africa."

Donna Bowater
Marchmont Communications
donna@marchmontcomms.com

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