The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is seeking to raise USD521.6 million to boost food production and climate-resilient agriculture solutions in Asia and the Pacific, including the Philippines.
The amount forms part of FAO’s broader USD2.5 billion Global Emergency and Resilience Appeal for 2026, which aims to support more than 100 million people across 54 countries and territories, the organization said in a press statement on Saturday.
The FAO said the global appeal will fund life-saving emergency interventions, such as the distribution of seeds and tools, animal health campaigns, rapid livelihood recovery, and cash assistance.
It will also support resilience-building programs focused on climate- and biodiversity-positive agrifood solutions, water infrastructure, market access, agrifood systems restoration, and strengthened monitoring systems.
Of the total appeal, the USD521.6 million allocation for Asia and the Pacific is intended to assist about 30.5 million people in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Pakistan, the Philippines, and Timor-Leste.
The FAO formally launched its first-ever Global Emergency and Resilience Appeal on the sidelines of the 179th Session of the FAO Council at its headquarters in Rome on Dec. 3.
Speaking at the event, Philippine Permanent Representative to FAO Neal Imperial backed the agency’s call as he emphasized the need for timely emergency interventions to stabilize agricultural production, safeguard livelihoods, and ensure food availability when disasters strike.
“Emergency agriculture interventions save livelihoods and accelerate recovery. They allow farmers to replant, restock, and repair assets quickly, preventing prolonged hunger, avoiding displacement, and reducing the need for extended humanitarian assistance,” he said.
“By protecting productive assets early, we lay the foundation for shock-responsive food systems that support broader development goals.”
FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu reported that acute food insecurity has tripled since 2016, even with high levels of humanitarian funding.
“The current model simply does not keep pace with today’s realities. Supporting farmers to maintain production is critical to ensure food availability. When farmers can keep producing, communities stabilize, and the path to resilience becomes real,” he said.
Drawing from the Philippines’ experiences, Imperial emphasized the effectiveness of combining anticipatory action with emergency agricultural interventions.
He cited FAO’s Special Fund for Emergency and Rehabilitation Activities (SFERA), whose anticipatory action initiatives supported farmers and fisherfolk during the two typhoons that struck the Philippines in 2024.
He also highlighted the Green Climate Fund–supported Adapting Philippine Agriculture to Climate Change (APA) project, one of the country’s largest climate-resilience in agriculture initiatives, led by the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Science and Technology – Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration.
The APA project currently supports 1.25 million farmers and places 250,000 hectares under climate-resilient management.
In the 2023-2024 El Niño event in Isabela, the project provided cash and water management support to at least 4,000 people three months before peak drought conditions.
“These experiences underscore that emergency response saves livelihoods now, while resilience ensures they withstand future shocks. The two must move together,” Imperial said.
“Rising needs cannot be met by doing more of the same. Cost-effectiveness is now a humanitarian imperative. Agricultural assistance remains one of the most impactful investments: it enables people to feed themselves, strengthens local economies, and delivers durable results with fewer resources.” (PNA)
