The challenge before world leaders as we gather for the G-20 ministerial meeting on agriculture in Hyderabad is immense: Over the past few years, we have gone from crisis to crisis, which has severely hindered global progress on the Sustainable Development Goals, accepted by UN member states in 2015.

For the first time in decades, there is a rising number of hungry people, even though we produce enough food to feed 10 billion people. Today, more than 800 million people go to bed hungry. Many of them, paradoxically, are small-scale farmers who produce one-third of the world’s food.

Hunger is rural — three-fourths of the world’s poorest and food insecure live in rural areas. Rural economies, specifically agriculture, have suffered from chronic under-investment. Today, low- and middle-income countries are increasingly indebted, and global inflation and local currency depreciation are making it challenging for them to finance their development and climate action. Additionally, donor support for agriculture has stagnated at 4-6 per cent of total official development assistance (ODA) for at least two decades. After peaking at US$10.8 billion in 2020, it fell 10 per cent to US$9.9 billion in 2021. Estimates suggest that we need US$300-400 billion annually until 2030 to transform food systems. So investment needs to grow at least 30 times.

Investing in rural agriculture makes a lot of sense for both governments and companies. For governments, boosting local production, local food chains and local markets means global food security, jobs and less conflict. It will also mean lower GHG emissions (agriculture is responsible for up to 21 per cent of total emissions). For the private sector, investing in small-scale farmers should be a win-win: Production costs are low, returns on capital are high, farmer organisations and cooperatives have shown they can achieve economies of scale, and crop diversification can defray risk for farms and markets.

These investments can build long-term  resilience and reduce the impact of climate change and other shocks. Every US$1 spent on resilience saves up to US$10 in emergency aid in the future. Investing in agriculture is at least 2-3 times more effective in reducing poverty than investment in other sectors.

Yet small-scale agriculture faces many challenges. Small-scale producers still lack access to credit, markets, technology,  infrastructure, information and land. This is where multilateral development banks and international financial institutions like the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) can make a big difference. If we de-risk investments through innovative financial instruments and mechanisms, we can help agriculture become the centre of growth it has the potential to be.

India’s G-20 presidency assumes critical importance in mobilising resources that will allow us to deliver on the international community’s resolve to ensure that every person has access to affordable, safe, sufficient and nutritious food. We can do this by increasing digitisation, making insurance attractive for farmers and insurers, providing access to easy and discounted loans, securing land rights and strengthening farmers’ organisations.

India is a crucial partner in the mission to end rural poverty and hunger. Leveraging the panchayat system, India has successfully built robust community institutions that have strengthened people’s ability to manage their own development. These experiences are an inspiration for countries attempting to become food secure. India has shown thoughtful leadership  in advancing South-South and triangular cooperation. This has only deepened with its increasing economic weight.

I welcome the Indian presidency’s commitment to, in the words of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, depoliticising the “global supply of food, fertilisers and medical products, so that geopolitical tensions do not lead to humanitarian crises”. We look to the G-20 to address chronic hunger and food insecurity by building more sustainable food systems.

The G-20 can set us on the course to much-needed structural change, mobilising commitments from governments, global financial institutions, investors and companies to invest in medium-term sustainable rural development and agriculture. I hope the Indian presidency can deliver an operationally feasible roadmap for inclusive, resilient and sustainable food systems. This will end hunger for 800 million people, create over 120 million decent rural jobs, boost incomes for the bottom 20 per cent and combat climate change, while also protecting biodiversity.