JAKARTA, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- Indonesia was unanimously elected as the chairperson of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) Governing Council for the period 2020-2022, the Indonesian Foreign Ministry said on Monday.
It was elected at the 43rd Session of the Steering Council in Italy that was held between Feb. 11-12.
Indonesia was represented by an expert staff member for the International Macroeconomics and Finance of the Finance Ministry, Suminto, as the Governor of IFAD Indonesia, the ministry said, adding that in the same period, the IFAD Governing Council co-chairpersons are the IFAD governors from Britain and Cameroon.
The Steering Committee is the highest decision-maker in the structure that determines the direction of policies and strategies in carrying out IFAD mandates.
The IFAD, with 177 members, is the only international financial institution and specialized United Nations agency that has a special mandate to encourage investment in rural areas and support the development of smallholder capacity.
Since 1978, the institution has distributed grants and low-interest loans of 22.4 billion U.S. dollars, capable of touching around 512 million smallholder farmers in various developing countries around the world.
Its governing council's 43rd Session was held under the theme "Investment in a sustainable food system to alleviate hunger by 2030."
According to the ministry, Indonesia presented one of its priorities in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), namely, empowering small farmers by providing easy access to capital and a wider market.
To escalate smallholder production capacity, Indonesia also increased its investment to improve management, processing, storage and marketing capabilities, it noted.
