"Let the history books remember not only the obstacles we faced, but the courage with which we faced them and the successes we achieved despite them."

The shocks of 2020 are already being written into the history books. Events such as the COVID-19 pandemic are once in a lifetime, and as such, we only have one chance to respond to an event for which none of us was prepared.

IFDC’s resilient staff overcame the many obstacles presented by the pandemic. More than 400,000 smallholder farmers in nearly 30 countries adopted yield- and income-improving agricultural technologies, transforming more than 190,000 hectares of farmland. More than 14,000 demonstration plots exemplified proven technologies to these farmers, letting them see with their own eyes the benefits of adoption, and over 5,000 outreach activities sought out agricultural entrepreneurs who want to make a difference. Training and capacity-building efforts reached 260,000 farmers, 46% of whom were women, which is key to achieving Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 2, Zero Hunger. Finally, a remarkable 838 public-private partnerships were formed – allowing IFDC to amplify both the quality and quantity of its efforts. Our research team continues to make strides in the area of soil health, and as a result, more than 50 scientific papers and reports were published by IFDC researchers in 2020.

Adoption of the agricultural products and practices pioneered and promoted by IFDC has changed the lives of millions of smallholders around the world. In 2020 the Africa Food Prize foundation evidenced this fact in the selection of Dr. André Bationo, chief of party for the Smallholder Agricultural Productivity Enhancement Program (SAPEP) in West Africa, who has been working to improve the lives of farmers for four decades. Bationo was recognized for his trailblazing work in microdosing, a climate-smart, yield-enhancing, and income-improving fertilizer application method, and warrantage, a credit system that helps farmers store and sell crops for higher pricing.

We are also honored that the 2020 World Food Prize laureate, Dr. Rattan Lal, agreed to join our board of directors. Lal’s work on developing and mainstreaming a soil-centric approach to increasing food production has already been recognized by many other international accolades, and we are excited to have his expertise assist in guiding the organization.

Last year, we wrote that we were “navigating uncharted waters,” and while there still seems to be some way to go, we have learned a lot and are confidently moving toward our vision of healthier soils and plants for a food-secure and environmentally sustainable world.

Let the history books remember not only the obstacles we faced, but the courage with which we faced them and the successes we achieved despite them.