After the UAE Declaration at COP28 spotlighted agriculture in climate action, hopes were high for COP29. Yet in Baku, food systems received less than 3% of public climate finance, and just 14% of that went to smallholder farmers, despite them producing up to 80% of food in Africa and Asia.

Promises without delivery
Developed nations pledged US$300billion annually by 2035, but how much reaches agri-food systems remains vague, say activist groups. Experts noted that climate finance for smallholder farmers is actually decreasing, and bureaucratic inefficiencies swallow funds before reaching frontline producers.

Local voices silenced
Esther Penunia of the Asian Farmers' Association described Typhoon Usagi's devastation and emphasised that money "doesn't reach farmers at the local level ... it's not well spent". Calls for intermediaries or UN-mandated mechanisms aim to ensure funds actually support farmers.

Silver linings limited
Initiatives such as Brazil's forest restoration programme and the Baku Harmoniya Climate Initiative offered some promise-but critics warned they lacked "tangible and substantive commitments".

Looking ahead to COP30 in Brazil

With Brazil's colossal agricultural sector, COP30 in Belém is being framed as the "Turnaround COP", designed to translate pledges into real action for family farms. As farmer-turned UN champion Gonzalo Muñoz put it, "we need to accelerate... include the right incentives for farmers to shift ... regenerative."