Capacity Development for Investment (CD4I)
The FAO Investment Centre helps people and institutions make better agrifood investment and finance decisions through investment planning, training, economic and financial analysis, peer learning, mentoring, network building, study tours, webinars, e-learning and educational resources and tools.
One such tool is FAO’s RuralInvest. This participatory, interactive and free toolkit – developed nearly two decades ago and updated regularly – helps small and medium-sized rural entrepreneurs prepare viable business plans to access funding from banks and other financing partners.
The Centre also works with FAO’s technical divisions to develop, improve and scale up the use of other innovative tools and technologies. These include the Ex-Ante Carbon Balance Tool (EX-ACT), the Global Livestock Environmental Assessment Model interactive (GLEAM-i) and the Livestock Sector Investment and Policy Toolkit (LSIPT).
Initiatives
Latest stories
A risky business no more
02/04/2025
In Benin, between nine and ten percent of the population suffers from food insecurity and about 34 percent of children under five years old are affected...
FAO’s Investment Centre celebrates 60 years of effective development partnerships
16/10/2024
Over its six decades, the Investment Centre has helped design more than 2,400 partner-financed projects in 157 countries, totalling over $257 billion...
The FAO Investment Centre is 60 years young! Come celebrate with us on 15 October
15/10/2024
Come join us in celebrating this milestone with our partners, colleagues and guests on 15 October 2024, from 9:00 am to 10:00 am in the FAO Plenary,...
FAO and EBRD mark new milestone in 27-year cooperation
23/07/2024
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the Food and Agriculture Organization...
Latest publications
Investment guidelines for youth in agrifood systems in Africa
04/2022
The Investment guidelines for youth in agrifood systems in Africa, developed jointly by FAO and the African Union Commission (AUC)...
FAO Investment Centre – 2021 at a glance
03/2022
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) aims to provide sustainable agrifood investment and finance solutions to...
Up-skilling human capital for value-chain competitiveness in Uruguay
10/2021
Investing in farmers - or agriculture human capital - is crucial to addressing challenges in our global agri-food systems, from...
FAO Investment Centre - 2020 at a glance
07/2021
Making food systems more sustainable is not just about reducing carbon footprints, but also about creating jobs, reducing inequalities, improving efficiencies along supply chains and strengthening people’s ability to cope with climate change. This short summary - 2020 at a glance highlights the recent work fo the Centre.
FAO Investment Centre - 2019 at a glance
09/2020
Sustainable food systems are key to tackling our most pressing challenges – from ending hunger and poverty to preserving the...