Gates Foundation Commits Additional $30-Million to Fund to Help Poor Farmers

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, in Seattle, is committing $30-million to a global trust fund to help the world’s poorest farmers, a move aimed at combating hunger, the foundation announced today in Washington.

The fund, called the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program, was proposed by leaders at last year’s G-20—the Group of 20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors—summit after world economies tumbled and rising food prices exacerbated already high levels of global hunger.

The Gates Foundation’s $30-million pledge is part of $900-million the fund has raised from various sources.

Mr. Gates said he believes history has proven that supporting small farmers is one of the best ways to eliminate extreme poverty and hunger, and he urged other countries to join the effort.

“The launch of this fund is an important step forward, but only a first step,” said Mr. Gates in a news release. “Other countries meeting at the European, G8, and G-20 summits in June, and at the U.N. Summit in September should join the four founding partners and make good on their pledges. If we all sustain focus until the job is done, hundreds of millions of people will lead better lives,” he said, referring to the countries that initiated the fund: Canada, South Korea, Spain, and the United States.

The fund will be operated by the World Bank, and will concentrate its efforts on countries with robust national programs and policies currently in place that help small farmers by providing them with better seeds, tools and training, and access to places where they could sell their surplus crops.