A spokesperson for the US Department of Agriculture confirmed today, Monday, that the funding allocated for an initiative led by the United States and the UAE, aimed at supporting climate-friendly agricultural practices worldwide, has increased to over $13 billion. They noted that governments contribute about $10 billion of the total $13 billion in funding, while the remaining funding comes from non-governmental stakeholders interested in financing initiatives supporting small farmers and emerging technologies, as well as reducing methane emissions.
U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the latest funding figures for the initiative in Washington, alongside UAE Minister of Climate Change and Environment Mariam Al Mheiri and former U.S. Vice President Al Gore. Vilsack stated, "Climate change continues to affect long-standing agricultural practices in every country, and it is crucial to have strong global commitment to directly address the challenges of climate change."
Al Gore emphasized the importance of allocating funding for climate-related innovations fairly, pointing out that "Black farmers, Indigenous farmers, and low-income farmers need to access this innovation too. We need to engage them in this."
For its part, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change noted that the "Agricultural Innovation Mission for Climate" initiative was launched in 2021 to unite countries around the goal of reducing agricultural emissions, which account for about 10 to 12% of greenhouse gas emissions.
The UAE is set to host the Climate Change Summit "COP 28" this fall.
