29 June 2015 – Philippine Ambassador to Italy Domingo P. Nolasco presented his credentials to International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) President Kanayo F. Nwanze as the Permanent Representative of the Philippines to the Rome-based specialized United Nations agency. IFAD, as an international financial institution, supports rural development with finance programmes and projects through loans and grants.

In discussions after the presentation, Ambassador Nolasco and President Nwanze discussed the continued partnership between the Philippines and IFAD in support of implementation of programs in the country towards inclusive growth. IFAD’s presence in the Philippines dates back to 1978, with over 13 projects implemented in the country’s rural areas with a total value of almost US$170 million. 

In October 2014, the National Economic Development Administration (NEDA) approved two new projects with IFAD, namely the Convergence on Value Chain Enhancement for Rural Growth and Empowerment Project (CONVERGE) and Fisheries Coastal Resource and Livelihood (FishCoral) with a combined worth of US$ 55 million. Target areas of the projects are Regions IX, X and Caraga (XIII) for CONVERGE and Regions V, VII, XIII and ARMM for the FishCoral.

IFAD is one of the three UN agencies based in Rome aside from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP). END