The World Food Programme convened a milestone event for the Kofi Annan Award for Innovation in Africa, celebrating the achievements of the supported pan-African ventures and programme in addressing health and food insecurity topics in Africa via innovative digital solutions.

The 18 ventures selected as finalists and awardees across the Kofi Annan Award’s two editions reached more than 1 million individuals throughout their sprint periods. This resulted in more people receiving quicker emergency services, better tracking of vaccination records, improved sustainable agriculture practices for farmers and reduced food waste, among other results.

Africa is in a critical moment of digitalization, where local innovators have the opportunity to transform the future of African livelihoods and economies. WFP is supporting these innovations and integrating innovative initiatives throughout its operations, implementing emerging technologies. As a leader in this context, WFP plays a key connective role for entrepreneurs, governments, UN agencies, public- and private-sector partners and beyond to engage in innovation for humanitarian and development actors.

“At the World Food Programme, we know innovative problem solving is needed now more than ever. After a challenging year of shifts in the humanitarian environment and an uncertain future ahead of us, we are investing in locally-led, context-specific innovations to maximize resources and generate a greater impact for those in need,” said WFP Ghana Country Director Aurore Rusiga.

The convening brought together nearly 100 local and pan-African entrepreneurs and leaders focused on impact innovation to exchange ideas and strengthen the Ghanaian innovation ecosystem. First, ventures shared common challenges and work toward solutions in AI applications, entrepreneurial resilience and funding and partnerships. Then, venture panelists, programme partners from the Austrian Government and the Kofi Annan Foundation and WFP representatives shared their learnings and experiences with the broader ecosystem in Ghana.

“We are proud of what the Kofi Annan Award for Innovation in Africa has accomplished over the last years,” said Jose Alcocer, Head of SDGx at the WFP Innovation Accelerator, which runs the Kofi Annan Award for Innovation in Africa. “Seeing the integrity and dedication of the ventures combined with their expertise in action gives me great hope for the future. At the WFP Innovation Accelerator, every step we can take to support them and ventures like them on their path to scale are steps worth taking, because it means one step toward food security and improved livelihoods for all.”

The Kofi Annan Award for Innovation in Africa is powered by the Austrian Federal Chancellery and Kofi Annan Foundation and operationally supported by the WFP Innovation Accelerator and Austrian Development Agency.

After two successful iterations, the Kofi Annan Award for Innovation in Africa is seeking additional partners to continue the impactful programme, empower more African innovators and accelerate progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals.

In Peru, a small but important experiment set out to answer a simple question: can technology make humanitarian assistance more efficient, transparent and reliable for the families who depend on it?

In late 2024, AIDONIC partnered with the World Food Programme (WFP) to test a new digital traceability tool in a real operational setting. This was not a full rollout. It was a proof of concept designed to assess whether blockchain-based records could strengthen how humanitarian assistance is documented, verified and protected.

A secure approach to data and delivery

The pilot created secure digital records for both donations and cash-based assistance distributions. When assistance was delivered, time, location and transaction data were captured and anchored to decentralized storage. Most importantly, personal information remained off-chain and protected, ensuring privacy and dignity were not compromised.

For the people WFP serves, this underpins the safe and reliable delivery of assistance.

Reducing friction at the last mile

In humanitarian settings, small inefficiencies can mean delays. Weak data systems can create confusion. Limited transparency can erode trust. By testing a system that securely verifies when and where assistance is delivered, this initiative aimed to reduce friction, strengthen data accuracy and reinforce trust and protect sensitive information at the last mile.

Assessing what works

For WFP, the exercise was about assessing feasibility. Could this technology integrate with existing workflows? Could it safeguard privacy while increasing confidence in reporting? The Peru pilot demonstrated that this is technically feasible in a real-world operational context.

For the wider humanitarian sector, the lesson is not that blockchain is a silver bullet. It is that carefully tested innovation can strengthen accountability while keeping people at the centre.

This was not a promise of transformation overnight. But it showed that with the right safeguards, digital tools can help humanitarian assistance move with greater clarity, security and confidence, ultimately supporting more accountable, reliable assistance for the communities WFP serves.

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Testimonial from the Peru Country Office: “In January 2025, working with WFP Accelerator, we developed and tested a proof of concept with AIDONIC to streamline CBT delivery processes and costs achieving efficiency gains of 48 percent and cost gains over 25 percent. The gains were both facing beneficiaries and in the backend. The tests included biometric deduplication using pictures instead of fingerprints and a blockchain certificate for tracking humanitarian aid.”

Learn how WFP and the John Deere Foundation are enabling smallholder farmers’ access to financial instruments and services for greater impact

By Miranda Stobbs, Ishank Gorla, Elisa Choi, Chloe Gueguen, Natasha DSouza

Smallholder farmers produce a significant share of the food in developing countries, yet they remain among the most vulnerable to poverty, climate shocks and food insecurity. Limited access to financial services continues to constrain their ability to invest in productive activities, protect their livelihoods and build resilience, ultimately undermining food security.

To address this challenge, WFP’s Inclusive Risk Financing (IRF) work expands access to a suite of financial solutions, including insurance, savings, and credit, complemented by interventions that improve smallholder farmers’ market access, promote climate-adaptive practices, create employment opportunities and strengthen resilient food value chains.

However, no single organization can fix these challenges alone. By working with governments, insurers, technology providers, and communities, WFP and the John Deere Foundation are helping build systems that last; systems that put farmers first and give them a fairer chance to recover, adapt, and thrive in a changing climate.

The Challenge

In 2025, an estimated 318 million people across 68 countries experienced acute food insecurity, driven by the compounding effects of conflict, economic shocks, weather‑related disasters, and persistently high inflation. As weather-related shocks become more frequent and severe, strategies for reducing and mitigating risks are essential to overcome hunger, achieve food security, and enhance resilience.

Over the past decade, WFP has unlocked access to IRF solutions for over 15 million people as part of a comprehensive risk management approach to build resilient food value chains, delivering a cumulative US$1.27 billion in financial protection. By providing tailored financial services, such as insurance, savings and loans, WFP helps vulnerable communities, particularly smallholder farmers, better manage shocks and strengthen their resilience.

In 2025, WFP’s IRF programmes supported more than 1.8 million people across 21 countries, delivering over US$270 million in financial protection, with premiums totaling US$13 million. Insurance payouts of US$4.9 million following extreme weather events reached around 760,000 people. WFP also provided technical assistance to the governments of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Lesotho, Ethiopia, Zimbabwe, and Zambia on the design and use of insurance solutions, helping strengthen national and private‑sector capacity to lead climate risk insurance and broader IRF initiatives.

Despite this progress, two major challenges remain:

First, in many contexts, insurance premium collection and payouts still rely heavily on cash. This reflects limited access among farmers to formal financial services; such as bank accounts and mobile wallets, as well as insufficient digital innovation among some insurance partners to build transaction platforms and stronger digital ecosystems. Cash‑based systems slow down support to farmers and their families, as manual distribution reduces the effectiveness and timeliness of payouts. Fragmented digital systems further limit efficiency and accessibility, especially in rural and underserved areas.

Second, limited national institutional capacity continues to be a major barrier to establishing, embedding, and sustaining IRF within government systems. Without stronger government ownership and technical, operational, and structural capabilities, externally supported initiatives risk remaining fragmented or short‑term. Institutionalization is a long‑term process that requires deliberate policy choices, sustained capacity development, and clear public ownership. Strengthening national institutions, together with robust digital insurance systems, is essential to ensuring scalable, nationally owned solutions that can build long‑term resilience for smallholder farmers.

The Solution — ARISE: Advancing Rural Insurance, Strengthening Institutions and Empowerment

With support from the John Deere Foundation, WFP is tackling the major barriers that limit farmers’ access to financial services. The John Deere Foundation’s support has helped WFP build upon digital systems that enable faster insurance payouts and strengthen national institutions so they can expand financial inclusion. This work is expected to help scale risk‑financing solutions to reach up to 4 million people in 25 countries by 2027 and support governments and financial services providers in integrating these tools into their own systems.

Component 1: Digitalizing the Inclusive Insurance Customer Journey

This component aims to strengthen digital ecosystems in five countries — Senegal, Haiti, Zambia, Madagascar and Bangladesh — to ensure efficient, timely, and transparent insurance delivery and distribution to 210,000 smallholder farmers. By digitalising the insurance customer journey from enrolment to claims and payouts, WFP and partners aim to reduce delays, improve transparency and enable faster recovery following climate shocks.

This work is co-created with technology partners, insurers and national stakeholders to ensure solutions are accessible, context-specific, and integrated into existing national systems.

Component 2: Strengthening Government Institutional Capacity

Under this component, WFP will support the integration of insurance products into the government of Ethiopia’s Input Voucher System to expand access to millions of farmers. Through technical collaboration and capacity strengthening, WFP is supporting Ethiopia’s Ministry of Agriculture to enhance national capacity to manage inclusive risk financing systems, promote financial inclusion and strengthen climate resilience for rural populations.

The Impact

Since 2009, IRF has demonstrated the value of strong public- and private-sector partnerships in expanding access to inclusive insurance for vulnerable populations. The model has been successfully implemented and scaled globally. Building on this foundation, the current initiative, supported by John Deere, is projected to reach 1.6 million smallholder farmers by the end of 2026.

Faster and more reliable payouts due to digitization will enable farmers to protect assets, invest in recovery and maintain food security after climate shocks. At the same time, stronger national institutions improve sustainability and reduce long-term dependence on externally managed systems. Digitalisation also enhances efficiency, accountability and access, particularly for remote communities that are often excluded from formal financial services.

As climate risks continue to challenge food security and livelihoods, inclusive and scalable risk‑financing solutions are more than essential. Collaboration enables WFP and its partners to design programmes that are resilient and locally owned, while the digitalization of programmes such as Inclusive Risk Financing and the strengthening of national institutions show how partnership can deliver real, measurable impact.

Food systems are strongest when smallholder farmers are better protected, better prepared, and more able to withstand future shocks.

By Jackie Negro

“Innovation is not optional. As needs rise faster than resources, we must work differently. Innovation in WFP is how we maximize the impact of every dollar we receive. With our focus on innovation, artificial intelligence, innovative financing, partnerships and new technologies, we ensure we stay agile in a rapidly changing world.”

-Rania Dagash-Kamara, Assistant Executive Director, Partnerships & Innovation

With ongoing crises and rising humanitarian needs outpacing limited resources, innovation — and the people behind its implementation — has been a beacon driving progress and hope in support of those in need.

In fact, in 2025, innovations supported by the WFP Innovation Accelerator reached 132.5 million people in 75 countries, saved WFP and other organizations US$324.8 million and enabled more than 130 organizations and governments to implement their solutions, bolstering the broader humanitarian community.

Behind the numbers are countless stories: of individuals receiving more efficient and effective humanitarian assistance, of innovators striving to transform the humanitarian system and of a global network taking part in lasting change.

Take a look at what we accomplished last year:

We saved time and money at a critical moment for WFP and the humanitarian system.

Resources are scarce across WFP and the humanitarian system. Efficiency and effectiveness is a must, as every dollar saved is another that is available for reinvestment in emergency assistance and resilience programmes.

In complicated supply chain planning situations, SCOUT uses AI to optimize planning and help WFP make informed decisions. Now active in Western and Central Africa and Eastern and Southern Africa, SCOUT has saved USD 6.2 million in 18 months. At a global scale, it is projected to save WFP USD 25 million annually.

In this critical time, we must also take a system approach to support collaborative action between impact organizations. Building Blocks, a blockchain solution reducing unintended avoidance overlap, has saved the humanitarian system USD 288 million. 159 organizations in Ukraine, Syria and Palestine used it last year to coordinate assistance.

We found significant impact at scale, reaching new heights.

Several long-supported innovations expanded their operations, showing the value of early support and attention to sustainable scaling.

School Connect, developed and driven by WFP colleagues, is now operational in 26 countries and 11,000 schools, helping local schools, WFP and governments monitor and report on school meal programmes for 3.6 million school children.

Sanku, an external venture supported by the WFP Innovation Accelerator, multiplied its reach last year, moving from 9.4 million people in 2024 to 59.3 million people in 2025. Thanks to its fortification system, each of those individuals has better opportunities to fill micronutrient gaps by eating fortified flour.

Together, we put innovation at the heart of WFP’s mission and embedded it in daily operations.

Country offices are the engines of that change, adapting global strategies to meet the needs of local communities. 56 WFP offices adopted machine learning, blockchain, artificial intelligence, robotics or drone technologies, spreading cutting-edge solutions across the world. Several also include innovation as cornerstones of their operational strategies, revolutionizing how WFP approaches assistance.

19 offices now have teams specifically focused on innovation implementation and methodology, and more than 600 colleagues in 165 duty stations have joined the Innovation Champions community, a voluntary community of practice that shares expertise on implementing innovative solutions.

Each of these contributions makes further collaboration and scale possible, helping WFP stay a leader in innovation across the UN.

We took risks, tried new approaches and embraced uncertainty.

Innovation goes beyond individual solutions. As the humanitarian system evolves and shifts, WFP evolves with it, finding novel ways to solve problems and forging new paths forward.

Through the Strategic AI Partnership for Humanitarian Actions, we are developing AI tools for damage assessment, anomaly detection and sensitive data processing, leveraging the most cutting-edge technologies for the humanitarian landscape. These solutions are building a foundation for a longer-term digital infrastructure capable of predictive analysis for humanitarian operations.

We have embraced deeper collaboration across WFP, understanding that knowledge is power in the face of uncertainty. The Innovation Network and SDGx Community host frequent knowledge sharing sessions and we celebrated innovation work during WFP Innovation Week. Next, our collective work will culminate in the launch of the WFP Innovation Strategy, which charts a path toward making innovation a force multiplier across the organization.

Innovation strengthens every part of WFP’s work, boosting efficiency and delivering greater results for the people who need it most.

None of this would be possible without the dedication of our colleagues, partners, innovators and supporters. With the commitment we have seen to make these results possible, we know we can face whatever challenges await us in 2026 and beyond.

For more information, read the Year in Review 2025.

The WFP Innovation Forum 2026, held this year as an official side event of the Munich Security Conference, brought together global leaders, partners and innovators to spotlight the solutions needed to build a more food‑secure and resilient world.

“Food security is foundational to peace and global stability. There can be no real security in a world where hundreds of millions of people do not know where their next meal is going to come from. And at the very heart of our mission to address that, to address hunger and create stability, is innovation.” — Carl Skau, Deputy Executive Director, World Food Programme

Hosted at the WFP Innovation Accelerator in Munich, the event convened senior voices from the humanitarian sector, governments, the private sector and cutting‑edge technology and development organizations. At a time when humanitarian needs continue to rise and resources remain under immense pressure, the Forum highlighted how innovation can unlock new efficiencies, ensure donor resources go further and strengthen WFP’s ability to reach those most in need.

“Innovation is no longer optional, it is essential. It is essential to bring us forward in the complex circumstances we are all working in. It is key in addressing the challenges we face in our shared mission to achieve a world free from hunger. The WFP Innovation Accelerator plays a crucial role in identifying, nurturing and scaling the most promising solutions to drive meaningful change.” — Jochen Steinhilber, Director‑General for Policy Issues, German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)

Eight WFP‑supported teams presented their breakthrough solutions that are already making a difference, showcasing how emerging technologies, from AI and forecasting tools to digital platforms, bio formulas and innovative finance, are shaping the future of humanitarian and development action.

Below, meet the innovators who took the stage at the WFP Innovation Forum 2026.

Emergency response and operational excellence innovations

1. Anomaly Detection for Assistance Delivery (ADAD)

Ensuring accurate registrations and secure transactions is essential for effective humanitarian assistance. Manual checks can miss subtle anomalies, risking duplication, data errors and misallocation of resources.

ADAD uses AI‑powered anomaly detection to strengthen data assurance across WFP operations:

• Registration Anomaly Detection (RAD): Flags irregularities in beneficiary data and prevents duplication.
• Transaction Anomaly Detection (TAD): Extends anomaly detection to payment workflows, identifying previously unknown anomaly types and adapting to new patterns over time.

By scaling RAD and TAD across operations, WFP can improve fraud detection, enhance financial assurance and increase transparency and efficiency in assistance delivery.

2. Conflict Forecast

Planning humanitarian response in conflict‑affected areas is especially challenging when conditions change rapidly and operational data is limited. Conflict Forecast applies predictive analytics and dynamic programming to generate national and subnational conflict forecasts, enabling earlier, more cost‑effective interventions. Together with WFP’s Early Warning and Emergency Preparedness teams in Somalia, Conflict Forecast aims to generate cost savings of up to USD 1 million per country through a multi model approach.

Key data components are fully open source on the UN Office for Coordinated Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA’s) HDX Signals, a tool to alert humanitarians to deteriorating crises, enabling wider uptake across humanitarian actors.

3. End‑to‑End (E2E) Supply Chain Planning and Optimization

WFP manages one of the world’s largest humanitarian supply chains, but fragmented systems and manual processes can slow critical decisions.

The E2E solution integrates demand forecasting, supply and sourcing plans, inventory insights and route optimization. All into a unified planning ecosystem. With this, WFP can turn expected needs into smarter, continuously updated sourcing and delivery plans. This connected workflow has already generated more than USD 11 million in cost efficiencies, with potential to unlock up to USD 50 million as global deployment accelerates.

4. People Portal

WFP’s traditional registration model relies heavily on field-based, in-person processes that are costly and resource-intensive to run, especially during rapidly evolving emergencies. People Portal replaces this with a self‑service platform where people can easily register for WFP assistance, update information and receive real‑time updates.

The platform features secure log‑ins, multilingual support and duplicate‑prevention tools. In Gaza, 2,015,000 people registered remotely, reducing registration costs from USD 12 to USD 0.50 per household, saving USD 9.4 million and enabling faster assistance in a volatile environment.

5. Jangala

Connectivity is critical for effective humanitarian response, yet many crisis zones and remote areas lack reliable or affordable internet access.

Jangala’s Big Box is a lightweight, briefcase‑sized device that transforms any internet source into scalable, easy‑to‑manage Wi‑Fi — no technical expertise required.

To date, Jangala has deployed 64 Big Box units, providing connectivity to 39 schools, 22 community projects and three emergency teams, serving almost 48,000 people. As a fully open‑source solution, Big Box supports both small field teams and large community‑level deployments.

Resilience innovations

6. Inclusive Risk Financing (IRF)

Communities facing recurrent extreme weather events often struggle with cycles of loss, debt and reduced productivity. WFP’s IRF model provides a market ready solution, combining:

• affordable insurance
• savings and loans
• rapid digital payments
• financial literacy training
• income‑support mechanisms.

In 2024, IRF reached 3.1 million people across 19 countries, delivering USD 250 million in financial protection and USD 41.5 million in payouts, helping households recover faster and avoid harmful coping strategies.

7. Remer

Lebanese farmers face increasing challenges from pests, soil degradation and high input costs. Remer’s Growth, an effective‑microorganism‑based liquid formula, improves soil health and water retention, reducing reliance on pesticides and chemical fertilizers. This cuts fertilizer use by 70 percent, improves crop productivity and soil quality and provides a more affordable alternative to conventional inputs.

In 2025, Remer partnered with the Ministry of Agriculture to promote sustainable practices nationwide. The team is now expanding research and development, with Growth Powder and additional products planned for launch in 2026.

8. School Connect

School Connect strengthens monitoring and accountability in school feeding programmes through simplified digital reporting.

Schools can easily capture:

• food deliveries
• stocks and losses
• attendance
• meal consumption

Data syncs to dashboards and automated reports, enabling real‑time visibility and improved decision‑making.

Since 2020, School Connect has captured data from 11,000+ schools across 25 countries, tracking 350 million+ meals for 3.6 million children. Over the next two years, the team aims to support School Meals Coalition countries, positioning WFP to lead the global digitalization agenda for school feeding by 2030.

Redefining the future of humanitarian response

The WFP Innovation Forum 2026 underscored the critical role of creativity, technology and cross‑sector partnerships in addressing global hunger.

“Innovation does not happen in isolation. It happens when purpose, creativity, and collaboration come together.” — Julia Monar, Director-General for Crisis Prevention, Stabilisation, Peacebuilding and Humanitarian Assistance, German Federal Foreign Office

As humanitarian needs grow more complex, the innovations presented this year, supported by WFP and a global network of partners, point toward a future where assistance is faster, more efficient and more resilient.

“The advance of AI and new technologies represent a window of opportunity. We have the chance to redefine what is possible in humanitarian response.

Tonight we have seen what becomes possible when strong solutions are matched with strong partnerships. From AI and data to locally-led approaches, these solutions show that humanitarian action can be even more efficient, resilient and equitable.” — Carl Skau, Deputy Executive Director, World Food Programme

The momentum from this year’s Forum will help shape the next generation of humanitarian and development tools, partnerships and systems, bringing the world one step closer to a hunger‑free future.

Missed the event or want to learn more about the innovation teams? Check out our event webpage.

By Lucy Bloxham

The WFP Innovation Accelerator sources, supports and scales high-potential solutions to end hunger worldwide. We provide WFP employees, entrepreneurs, start-ups, companies and non-governmental organizations with access to funding, mentorship, hands-on support and WFP operations.

Find out more about us: Visit our website. Subscribe to our newsletter. Follow us on LinkedIn and X. Watch our videos on YouTube.

By Julia Dalibor

Iraq is one of the countries most vulnerable to climate change, facing extreme heat, drought, desertification and increasing water scarcity. At the same time, rapid population growth and inefficient water use are intensifying pressure on agriculture and livelihoods.

To support Iraq’s transition from humanitarian recovery to long‑term development, WFP works across the country to strengthen resilience through food assistance, skills training, school meals, social protection and climate action. The PALM programme builds on this by activating Iraq’s home‑grown innovation ecosystem, identifying cost‑effective solutions that are sustainable, scalable and rooted in local realities.

Designed by the WFP Innovation Accelerator together with WFP Iraq, the programme set out to identify home‑grown, cost‑effective solutions, both low‑tech and high‑tech, that could enhance climate adaptation and improve livelihood opportunities for vulnerable communities. To activate the local innovation landscape, the Accelerator mobilized more than 30 partners across Iraq to source high‑potential entrepreneurs and organizations.

After a competitive selection process, three ventures were chosen for the first sprint cohort: Al‑Reef Mushroom, Zhany and Green Shovel. Over a six‑month sprint, these teams are piloting their solutions with farmers, refining their models and preparing for scale. Together, they represent the ingenuity of local innovators working to build a climate‑smart and resilient food system for Iraq.

Let’s meet the innovators behind the solutions:

Al-Reef Mushroom

In Mosul, Al‑Reef Mushroom is tackling a simple but powerful idea: what if local communities could grow mushrooms themselves, even in Iraq’s extreme climate? Fresh produce is scarce in many areas and summer temperatures can reach 52°C, conditions that make traditional crops hard to sustain. Mushrooms, however, can be cultivated indoors, offering a nutritious food source and new income opportunities.

With WFP’s support, the team trained farmers in controlled cultivation, introduced food‑safety and quality standards, improved packaging to survive transport and linked producers to local markets. The result is a working model: farmers are now producing mushrooms locally, earning income and bringing fresh food into places that rarely see it.

To make the system sustainable, the team is establishing Iraq’s first mushroom composting facility, a critical missing link in the national value chain. Though still a small pilot, Al‑Reef Mushroom shows how climate‑smart, community‑driven innovation can unlock new food and livelihood options where they are most needed.

Zhany

Zhany is tackling a challenge that sits at the heart of agricultural productivity: soil health. Across the Kurdistan region and beyond, years of reliance on chemical fertilizers have weakened soil, raised costs and reduced crop resilience. Zhany’s solution is vermicompost and “vermitea,” created from organic waste streams such as crop residues, animal manure and food scraps processed through red wiggler worms.

The nutrient‑rich amendment boosts yields by up to 30 percent, improves water retention by 15–20 percent and reduces farmers’ dependence on chemical inputs, leading to cost savings of up to 40 percent. Demand has already exceeded the capacity of the pilot, showing strong interest among farmers. Compost production for the current season is complete and distribution is about to begin.

Under the PALM Iraq Innovation Programme, the team is also receiving mentorship on packaging, distribution and business strategy to ensure regenerative soil practices can reach more farmers affordably. For households, healthier soil means more reliable harvests, steadier income and more secure access to food.

Green Shovel

Water scarcity is one of Iraq’s most pressing threats to food security. In many rural areas, irrigation practices are based on tradition rather than data, which can make it difficult to use water efficiently. Green Shovel offers a practical alternative: low‑cost sensors paired with AI recommendations that show farmers exactly when and how much water their crops need.

The system is already in use across farmland in Mosul (northern Iraq) and Basra (southern Iraq), with plans to expand to Diyala and Salahaddin in the centre of the country. Farmers using the technology have reported a 16 percent reduction in electricity use, a 16 percent reduction in fertilizer need and improved yields by 15 percent. Just as importantly, the sensors make water use more precise, helping farmers stretch limited resources further.

Because the devices are priced for smallholders, smart irrigation is now accessible to farmers who would normally be excluded from agritech solutions. The outcome is straightforward: more food grown with less water, strengthening household income and market supply while conserving one of Iraq’s most precious resources.

Next steps

The pilots of the PALM Iraq Innovation Programme were completed in early January, giving each team space to gather data, refine their models and deepen engagement with farmers, local institutions and community groups. In February 2025, the ventures participated in a dedicated coaching workshop facilitated by the WFP Innovation Accelerator, where they received hands‑on support in strengthening their business models, applying innovation methodologies such as design thinking and human‑centred approaches and planning the next phase of their growth.

From early 2026 onward, the focus shifts to scaling. This includes continued collaboration with government partners, support from other UN agencies and sustained ecosystem activation to ensure that solutions can grow beyond individual pilots. Over the coming year, the teams, supported by WFP innovation experts, will develop sustainable scale-up roadmaps grounded in local ownership and long-term viability.

Taken together, these three innovations reflect the broader truth that food security in Iraq will increasingly depend on what local actors build, test and refine themselves. By supporting innovators who understand the country’s realities firsthand, the PALM Iraq Innovation Programme offers a glimpse of what a more resilient, locally-driven food system could look like: one where the ingenuity of farmers, entrepreneurs and communities stands at the centre of Iraq’s path forward.

The WFP Innovation Accelerator sources, supports and scales high-potential solutions to end hunger worldwide. We provide WFP employees, entrepreneurs, start-ups, companies and non-governmental organizations with access to funding, mentorship, hands-on support and WFP operations.

Find out more about us: Visit our website. Subscribe to our newsletter. Follow us on LinkedIn and X. Watch our videos on YouTube.

By Sanjna Sudan

Asia is home to around 60 percent of the world’s population and is a major hub of global agriculture, producing roughly half of the world’s food across diverse farming systems and supply chains. Yet the region is increasingly exposed to climate change impacts. Prolonged droughts, floods, and heatwaves are disrupting food production and distribution, threatening the livelihoods and nutrition of millions of people.

To help address these challenges, the World Food Programme Innovation Accelerator hosted the in-person Adaptation Fund Climate Innovation Accelerator bootcamp in Munich. The five-day programme brought together eleven selected startups developing climate adaptation solutions for Nepal, Pakistan and the Philippines. Chosen through a competitive call for applications launched in September 2025, each team is working to counter the growing impact of extreme weather on food security across the region.

Here is a day-by-day look inside the bootcamp.

#1 Setting the context

The bootcamp opened with insights from Jothiganesh Shanmugasundaram, Regional Technical Lead for Climate and Weather-related Risks at WFP’s Asia Pacific Regional Office (APARO), who highlighted why climate change and food security are deeply interconnected. In one of the world’s most climate-vulnerable regions, intensifying floods and droughts, rising temperatures and shifting rainfall patterns are already reshaping how people grow food, earn livelihoods and access nutrition.

Climate change adaptation includes a wide range of actions aimed at strengthening the ability of communities and systems to cope with, manage, or avoid climate risks, while also responding to emerging opportunities. In this context, WFP APARO is actively adapting its programmes to reflect evolving climate realities and changing risk patterns. WFP’s work spans the full climate risk continuum. This includes averting and avoiding risk through greener operations and reduced environmental footprints; minimising risk through ecosystem restoration and climate-resilient infrastructure; addressing and transferring risk through disaster preparedness, early warning systems, climate information services, anticipatory action, insurance solutions, and shock-responsive social protection; and absorbing risk through emergency food and cash assistance when shocks exceed local coping capacity. Therefore, the region is looking for innovations that enable WFP is tackle these challenges and enable communities to adapt.

“As Asia and the Pacific is a hotspot for climate shocks, vulnerable communities are increasingly challenged by unpredictable weather that affects millions of lives and livelihoods each year,” said Shanmugasundaram. “Now more than ever, we need smarter and more innovative ways to understand and respond to these complex challenges. Working with startups is critical to developing and testing solutions that can address climate risks at scale.”

2. Unpacking targeting and user needs

Day two shifted the focus to the people at the centre of climate innovation. WFP Innovation Accelerator’s , Innovation Consultants Asia Sultan and Claudine Kishek guided the participating bootcamp teams through a deep dive into their solutions using a human-centred design approach.

The session encouraged teams to move beyond assumptions and technical fixes, and instead design with a stronger understanding of user realities, system constraints, and on-the-ground dynamics. Through practical exercises, teams explored how human-centred design can strengthen solutions by identifying risks early, improving decision-making and stakeholder buy-in, incorporating diverse perspectives, and uncovering interdependencies across markets, ecosystems, policies, and communities.

“In Asia’s diverse and climate-exposed contexts, solutions only work when they are built around the realities of the people they are meant to serve,” said Asia Sultan. “Human-centred design helps teams navigate complexity, reduce risk, and create interventions that are practical, inclusive, and ready to scale.”

3. Business sustainability in an era of extreme weather

Day three turned the spotlight to a critical question for climate innovation: how bold solutions survive and scale in an increasingly volatile startup environment. Regina Schmidt, Head of ADG2 Accelerator, led a session on why strong and sustainable business models are essential for long-term success.

As climate shocks intensify, startups face growing uncertainty, making financial resilience as important as technical innovation. Regina challenged teams to think beyond pilots and prototypes, emphasising that impact alone is not enough without a viable path to sustainability.

“Innovation without a viable financial business model is just an expensive experiment,” she said. “Only when bold ideas are grounded in economic discipline can they attract investment, scale with purpose, and create long-term impact.”

The session explored common reasons social enterprises struggle, including limited access to funding, weak support infrastructure, and challenges in developing sustainable revenue streams. Teams revisited business modelling fundamentals as a strategic framework that defines how an organisation creates, delivers, and captures value, with a focus on building models that can withstand climate-related disruptions.

4. Assessing impact and aligning with WFP’s environmental and social safeguards

Day four focused on ensuring innovation delivers measurable impact while aligning with WFP’s Environmental and Social Safeguards.

The day began with a session on monitoring and evaluation, led by Beth Plant, M&E Lead from the WFP Innovation Accelerator’s SDGx Acceleration team. She highlighted how impact measurement strengthens climate adaptation efforts by supporting learning and continuous improvement throughout the innovation process.

“Impact assessment enables innovation,” she said. “By collecting and analysing impact data, teams can identify areas for improvement, test assumptions, and surface risks early. This leads to stronger solutions that deliver real benefits at the point of implementation.”

Startups were also introduced to WFP’s Environmental and Social Safeguards (ESS) programming framework, which ensures innovations adhere to the do no harm principle by proactively minimising environmental and social risks. By embedding these considerations early, teams were encouraged to design solutions that are responsible, sustainable, and suitable for potential implementation and scale through WFP.

5. Designing for behaviour change

The final day of the bootcamp addressed one of the most overlooked challenges in innovation: behaviour change. Behavioural science expert Philippe Bujold shared why many promising solutions fail, not because they do not work, but because they are not adopted.

At the core of the session was the idea that impact only happens when solutions lead to action. To achieve meaningful social and environmental outcomes, interventions must reflect how people think, decide, and behave in real-world contexts.

Philippe explored key drivers of behaviour, including cognitive factors such as beliefs, emotions, attention, and mental shortcuts; social influences like norms, expectations, trust, and role models; and environmental factors such as access, friction, and default choices.

“Too often, innovative and potentially game-changing solutions fail not because of the design itself, but because they don’t get adopted at scale. You can have the best product, the best price, the best promised outcomes, but you also need to make sure the way it’s presented and used is grounded in real insights about human behaviour. Are you asking people to break a habit? Does the outcome of using the solution align with their goals and values? What are the people around them doing? And most importantly, are you using the right tools to address those barriers? Don’t just rely on information and price. Put the same rigour you had in developing your product into crafting your strategy to get people to adopt it.” said Philippe Bujold.

Through behaviour-centred design, teams learned how diagnostic tools can uncover why people behave as they do and how that understanding can inform more effective interventions. By integrating behavioural science into solution design, startups can be better equipped to move from strong ideas to real-world adoption and lasting impact.

The road ahead

The AFCIA bootcamp demonstrated the power of collaboration, innovation, and inclusive design in responding to climate challenges. By equipping startups with the tools, methodologies, and networks they need, the WFP Innovation Accelerator is helping build a new generation of climate adaptation solutions.

The sprint plans developed by the teams are currently under review by WFP, and selected innovations will receive equity-free funding to scale their solutions in Nepal, Pakistan, and the Philippines, alongside ongoing mentorship and support.

As the startups move forward with refined venture plans, they carry the promise of contributing to a more resilient and food-secure future. Time is limited, but with initiatives like this, meaningful progress is within reach.

If you missed the deadline for this challenge, note that applications remain open year-round through WFP’s rolling call for innovations.

The WFP Innovation Accelerator sources, supports and scales high-potential solutions to end hunger worldwide. We provide WFP employees, entrepreneurs, start-ups, companies and non-governmental organizations with access to funding, mentorship, hands-on support and WFP operations.

Find out more about us: http://innovation.wfp.org. Subscribe to our newsletter. Follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn and watch our videos on YouTube.

Innovation is now integral to how WFP delivers impact at scale, helping the organization reach more people, more efficiently and cost‑effectively. The WFP Innovation Forum brings this work to the forefront.

Why food security innovation matters during the Munich Security Conference

Operating in more than 120 countries and territories, WFP is uniquely positioned to understand local needs and scale innovative solutions that directly strengthen humanitarian response, resilience and global security. But this work depends on strong ecosystems that connect solutions to policy, funding, expertise and partnerships.

Munich, home to the WFP Innovation Accelerator, has become one of those global hubs. Since 2015, the WFP Innovation Accelerator has supported more than 500 teams, run 62 bootcamps and programmes, helped scale solutions in over 90 countries, its innovations catalysed USD 323 million in grant funding. Crucially, innovation at WFP is driven by country offices, regional hubs and the communities we serve, ensuring solutions are grounded in local realities and built for scale.

The innovation ecosystem in Munich naturally laid the groundwork for the Innovation Forum; a platform that brings innovators that solve global challenges together with governments, donors, development partners, the private sector and regional partners such as The German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the German Federal Foreign Office (GFFO), the Bavarian State Ministry of Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Tourism (StMELF), Luxembourg Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, John Deere Foundation and the Adaptation Fund.

The Forum’s journey

WFP’s innovation work begins in the field, where country offices, regional hubs and communities identify the challenges that most need solving, and continues through structured programmes that match innovations with country and regional offices, ensuring they directly address local priorities and providing funding, mentorship and technical support to help solutions grow. Proven innovations then receive tailored guidance to scale across countries and contexts. This global, end‑to‑end approach ensures that innovations featured at the Forum are grounded in real needs and built for long‑term, sustainable impact.

The Innovation Forum has expanded far beyond a traditional pitch format. It now connects this entire innovation pipeline with a broader humanitarian ecosystem through innovation marketplaces, thematic panels and targeted networking opportunities, as well as exclusive roundtable discussions designed to unlock innovative partnership models. Together, these activities strengthen WFP’s innovation capabilities, helping the organization respond faster and more effectively.

This broader architecture is intentional: it creates the space not only to showcase solutions, but also to engage with them, deepen collaboration and build the momentum needed to move innovations toward scale.

High‑level engagement has been a defining feature of the Forum’s growth. Participation from global leaders, including WFP Executive Director Cindy McCain and previous Executive Directors, has brought visibility and momentum to the event, reinforcing its role as a credible platform for action. This year, Deputy Executive Director Carl Skau will continue that tradition joining partners and government leaders on stage.

Innovating for Impact: the 2026 Forum

The 2026 WFP Innovation Forum: Innovating for Impact marks the next step in elevating humanitarian innovation on the global stage.

Participants will engage with solutions already driving results in some of the toughest environments, including Inclusive Risk Financing, a model that enabled 3.1 million people to access USD 250 million in financial protection last year, and People Portal, WFP’s self‑registration tool used in crises such as Gaza, Sudan and Ukraine, that reduces costs and accelerates dignified access to assistance. A fireside conversation with global leaders and an immersive exhibition will spotlight how strong partnerships and human‑centred design accelerate impact.

Join the conversation

As the WFP Innovation Forum enters its next chapter, WFP, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2020, continues to show that putting people first is essential to both humanitarian impact and global stability. Partners, innovators and supporters are invited to join the 2026 Forum to exchange perspectives, build connections and help shape the future of humanitarian innovation and food security.

Whether you’re a long term partner or new to the conversation, this is your invitation to be part of the movement.

Register here.

Explore highlights from past Forums in our YouTube gallery and be part of what comes next.

By Lucy Bloxham, Communications Consultant at the WFP Innovation Accelerator

The WFP Innovation Accelerator sources, supports and scales high-potential solutions to end hunger worldwide. We provide WFP employees, entrepreneurs, start-ups, companies and non-governmental organizations with access to funding, mentorship, hands-on support and WFP operations.

Find out more about us: http://innovation.wfp.org. Subscribe to our newsletter. Follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn and watch our videos on YouTube.

By Yanina Semenchenko and Sanjna Sudan

In Ethiopia, smallholder farming is the backbone of the agricultural sector, with the vast majority of the rural population dependent on small plots for their livelihoods. These smallholder farmers produce most of the country’s agricultural output and rely on farms that are typically well under a few hectares in size. Agriculture accounts for roughly one-third of GDP and is the primary source of income for around 80 percent of the population.

These smallholder systems are facing mounting challenges: soil degradation and nutrient depletion are widespread, driven by erosion, deforestation and unsustainable land use practices that reduce soil productivity over time. Meanwhile, the cost and limited availability of synthetic fertilizers, combined with low access to improved agricultural inputs, constrain farmers’ ability to sustain or increase yields. At the same time, extreme weather events linked to climate variability and change, including droughts, erratic rainfall and flooding, are intensifying, increasing the risk of crop failure, reducing food production, and undermining food system stability.

The number of people facing acute hunger has doubled since 2019 to more than 318 million in 2024, driven by conflict, extreme weather and rising costs of living. To address this, WFP leverages innovation to maximise impact and ensure that every dollar spent delivers the greatest possible benefit to the communities we serve. This is why, through programmes such as Agricultural Innovation for Climate Resilience (AICR), in partnership with the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) and the WFP Innovation Accelerator, launched a call for applications in 2023 seeking agriculture‑based innovations that help farmers and other agricultural stakeholders build the capabilities and foundations needed to scale for greater impact.

Thur Biotech, a participant in the Agricultural Innovation for Climate Resilience (AICR) programme, is taking challenging circumstances for farmers and innovating to improve food security for all.

What does Thur Biotech do?

Thur Biotech develops a range of eco-friendly biofertilizers and biocontrol agents designed to improve soil fertility, enhance plant growth and increase resilience to drought and other environmental stresses. By introducing beneficial microbes into the soil, their biofertilizers restore nutrients and support sustainable crop production. Their biocontrol agents offer natural and chemical-free solutions for pest and disease management. These innovations not only help smallholder farmers improve yields, typically by 20 to 30 percent, but also contribute to long-term soil health, reduce dependence on synthetic inputs and promote environmentally sustainable farming practices.

What has Thur Biotech gained from WFP’s AICR programme?

Participation in the AICR programme as a sprint innovation has played a significant role in Thur Biotech’s growth. Through tailored mentorship, technical support and access to WFP’s network of partners, Thur Biotech has been able to accelerate product development, test its solutions under real-world conditions and scale its impact more effectively.

Since joining the programme in 2023, Thur Biotech has expanded its reach from 600 farmers to more than 56,000 as of today. The team has also contributed to the development of Ethiopia’s emerging standards for biological products and has piloted a private agricultural extension model that complements government services.

Thur Biotech’s journey illustrates how startups can blend scientific innovation, practical field solutions and ecosystem support to navigate complex local conditions, build credibility and lay essential groundwork for others in the sector. Unlike conventional agricultural actors, social enterprises like Thur Biotech work at the intersection of innovation and social impact. They not only create solutions that improve yields and restore soils but also help shape the regulatory and market systems that make these solutions viable and scalable.

As co-founder Samson explains: “Operating with limited resources forced us to innovate not just in the lab, but across the whole ecosystem. Every step, from developing our products to engaging with policy and extension systems, was about creating pathways that others can follow.”

Along the way, the team has faced challenges that offer valuable lessons for other innovators. From managing scarce resources to navigating regulatory uncertainty and volatile markets, Thur Biotech’s experience highlights strategies that help startups succeed even in complex environments. These five insights, shaped by the realities of Ethiopia’s agricultural sector, are as practical as they are inspiring:

#1 Walk your own path

Thur Biotech made the bold decision to move from shared research spaces to establishing its first laboratory early in its journey.

For startups operating in challenging environments, there are often trade-offs between immediate convenience and long-term autonomy, especially when intellectual property is involved.

Samson explains, “We knew we might face months without proper facilities, but preserving our freedom to innovate was essential. This choice enabled us to make decisions quickly, adapt our research and maintain control of our products and growth trajectory.”

Thur Biotech believed that prioritizing their independence was a decisive factor for sustained success. With support from the AICR programme, the company was able to set up this first laboratory, gaining both operational independence and credibility as a biotechnology startup.

#2 Credibility opens doors

Being selected as a sprint innovation within the AICR Programme provided Thur Biotech with important external validation, signaling reliability and legitimacy to partners, investors, and institutional stakeholders. The programme’s support connected the team with World Food Programme, the world’s largest humanitarian organization focused on food security and nutrition, powered by GIZ.

Through technical guidance, contextual insights, and exposure to real-world humanitarian and food system challenges, WFP and GIZ can help Thur Biotech refine its solution, strengthen its evidence base, and align its innovation with the needs of smallholder farmers and vulnerable food systems. At the same time, the team’s persistent effort and strong execution have deepened their existing relationships and created new opportunities. Recognized credibility, combined with consistent delivery, enables a startup to grow, maintain trust and expand its impact.

Samson notes, “AICR opened the way to conversations with major organisations and potential partners. These partnerships gave us resources, networks and validation.”

#3 Policy can be a startup’s battlefield

Ethiopia’s regulatory framework for biological products is still evolving. Thur Biotech actively engages with research institutes and regulators, contributing to draft standards and best practices in the country. By participating thoughtfully in policy discussions, the company has positioned itself as a responsible, science-driven innovator while creating space for other startups to navigate the regulatory landscape more effectively. This engagement strengthens the wider ecosystem and ensures innovation aligns with national priorities.

#4 Build enabling structures when needed

To complement existing government-led extension networks, Thur Biotech is exploring approvals to pilot a private agricultural extension model that can support faster testing and learning. Agricultural extension work refers to the systems and services that help farmers access practical knowledge, training, and support, including guidance on improved farming practices, new technologies, climate-smart methods, and market information. These services play a critical role in connecting research and policy with farmers, helping innovations be understood, adopted, and adapted on the ground.

This approach offers a potential example for others in the ecosystem, particularly in emerging sectors where innovation is evolving rapidly. Through demonstrations and training, more than 220 extension workers across five Ethiopian regions have become instrumental in helping farmers adopt Thur Biotech’s products quickly. As a result, the company has grown from reaching 600 farmers in 2023 to more than 56,000 farmers today.

The company’s experience highlights how entrepreneurs can contribute to strengthening delivery mechanisms alongside public systems, especially when new technologies require more tailored or flexible engagement with farmers.

#5 Adapt fast in a volatile economy

Thur Biotech has navigated currency fluctuations that nearly tripled material costs, logistical challenges in conflict-affected regions and vulnerabilities in existing systems. The team diversified its products, optimized operations and coordinated deliveries from safer zones.

Samson reflects, “Every obstacle forced us to adapt quickly. Building resilience into our business model was not optional, it was essential for survival and impact.” Flexibility and proactive risk management are vital for startups operating in unpredictable environments.

Looking ahead

Thur Biotech is producing 30–35 tonnes per year now, and in 2026 they expect to reach 500,000–700,000 farmers with this facility, expanding its capacity to serve farmers across Ethiopia and laying the foundation to scale into East Africa. The company also aims to extend its biological solutions to industries heavily reliant on harmful chemicals, such as food processing and textiles, offering sustainable alternatives that amplify environmental impact.

Trailblazers in tough terrain

Thur Biotech’s story is one of flexibility, persistence and vision. By building their company while pioneering new approaches, they are creating pathways for others and shaping the future of Ethiopia’s agricultural ecosystem.

For donors and ecosystem partners, Thur Biotech’s experience offers strong evidence that supporting startups in fragile contexts is an investment in trailblazers whose work can catalyse growth across entire sectors.

As Samson reflects, “We are deeply thankful to WFP, AICR and our partners for opening doors and standing with us through challenges. And we are proud that our journey shows how startups can lead change.”

Find out more about us: http://innovation.wfp.org. Subscribe to our e-newsletter. Follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn and watch our videos on YouTube.

By Sanjna Sudan

Asia is home to a significant share of the global population and is rich in cultural diversity, natural resources and livelihoods. However, the region has been increasingly affected by extreme weather events that heighten communities’ risk of hunger and food insecurity. Extreme weather shocks damage crops and livestock, degrade soils, deplete fisheries and destroy agricultural infrastructure. These impacts force communities to migrate leading to displacement, loss of livelihoods and cascading disruptions across global food systems.

Smallholder farmers produce more than one third of all global food production. Still, they are among the most vulnerable to climate impacts, which threaten both their incomes and their ability to produce food reliably. Investment in innovative, weather‑sensitive solutions must increase as climate impacts intensify. We must prioritize preparedness and adaptation to move beyond the cycle of crisis and response.

With support from the Adaptation Fund, the WFP Innovation Accelerator has launched the second cohort of the Adaptation Fund Climate Innovation Accelerator (AFCIA) programme, this time focusing on the Asia-Pacific region. This USD 10 million initiative runs from 2024 to 2029, with four regional cohorts and seeks to identify, support and scale locally rooted climate innovations that strengthen adaptation and resilience, particularly in communities affected by recent climate crises and extreme weather events. By providing small grants to ventures in developing countries, the programme promotes long-term sustainable solutions for climate adaptation. This second edition focuses on the Asia-Pacific region and includes innovations in Nepal, Pakistan and the Philippines.

With over 278 applications received, these 11 ventures stood out as innovations with great potential to help vulnerable communities adapt to evolving stressors and crises and ensure a more resilient future.

Solutions for Nepal:

aQysta Nepal

aQysta Nepal is a digitized organic value chain platform that enables pay after harvest access to organic inputs while promoting indigenous crops for premium markets.

A very small percentage of smallholder farmers participate in commercial value chains. Many face low yields, limited access to organic inputs and certification, and exclusion from premium markets due to a lack of data, transparency and traceability.

aQysta is building an integrated organic value chain that connects smallholder farmers to high-value domestic and export markets. It provides organic inputs, like seeds, training and certification support on a pay after harvest basis, while digitizing each step of production and trade to ensure traceability and fair pricing. The model prioritizes indigenous and intercropped varieties that improve soil health, strengthen resilience and increase farmer incomes.

Kheti.farm

Kheti.farm is a digital platform developed by DV Excellus that delivers inclusive financial and agricultural services to smallholder farmers in Nepal.

Many farmers in Nepal lack access to formal credit. They face complex and bureaucratic loan processes, fragmented supply chains and limited digital literacy. As a result, many farmers depend on informal lenders, struggle to invest in quality inputs and cannot reliably access fair markets.

Kheti.farm operates as a one-stop digital agriculture platform that connects farmers with financial institutions, input suppliers, agricultural experts and buyers. Through digital loans, such as NMB Kheti Karja, and an integrated marketplace the platform enables access to finance quality inputs and climate-smart advisory services in a single system.

PlantSat

PlantSat is a satellite-based weather index insurance solution developed by Seed Innovations for smallholder rice and sugarcane farmers in Nepal’s Terai region.

Although Nepalese farmers experience millions in crop losses each year due to floods and heat waves, the majority remain uninsured. Traditional crop insurance is costly to administer across small and scattered farms, making it inaccessible for smallholders and leaving them highly vulnerable to climate shocks.

PlantSat provides weather insurance using satellite data, to automatically trigger payouts during drought and extreme heat events. By removing the need for field-level loss assessments, the model significantly reduces administrative costs and enables affordable, fast and transparent climate risk protection for farmers.

Super Krishak

Super Krishak is a digital agriculture solution by Gham Power Nepal designed to help Himalayan farmers adapt to climate change and improve farm performance.

Nepal’s agricultural advisory system is fragmented, so most farmers lack timely weather updates, irrigation advice, and direct market links. Farming remains input intensive and vulnerable to climate variability pests and weak coordination between farmers, service providers and government actors.

Super Krishak combines Internet of Things (IoT) enabled sensors, a mobile advisory application and a digital farm portal that links farmers aggregators and public services. The platform delivers personalized crop recommendations, weather alerts, irrigation monitoring and market linkage tools helping farmers plan more effectively, while reducing water use inputs and production risks.

Solutions for Pakistan:

GeoAirCon

GeoAirCon is an integrated ground thermal and rain harvesting solution that provides affordable cooling, heating and water resilience at both household and community levels.

Rising temperatures in Pakistan place farmers and rural families under severe heat stress, while high electricity costs limit access to conventional cooling. At the same time, families lose more food habitually due to limited cold storage and groundwater resources continue to decline.

GeoAirCon retrofits existing air conditioners or installs small-scale cooling units with shallow loop geothermal heat exchangers in households. The units lower electricity use while providing effective cooling and heating. The system also captures water to help recharge local groundwater. By keeping homes comfortable and agricultural produce fresh, GeoAirCon improves livelihoods, supports food security and strengthens water resilience. The company works with local operators, including women and youth, and offers affordable pay-as-you-go options to expand access to climate-smart cooling.

Seyrab Water Systems

Seyrab Water Systems is an IoT-enabled water infrastructure solution that strengthens groundwater security by using aquifers as natural storage and making local water systems more climate resilient.

Many communities in Pakistan face ongoing water stress due to falling groundwater levels, climate variability and unmanaged surface runoff. Seasonal floods and excess surface water are often wasted, while aquifers continue to deplete, leaving communities without reliable year round access to water.

Seyrab designs and builds low-cost managed aquifer recharge systems that capture excess surface water and store it underground. The solution combines physical recharge infrastructure with IoT-enabled monitoring dashboards that provide real time data, alerts and analytics on water flows and groundwater levels. Each system can supply reliable groundwater for 1,300 to 2,000 people at an affordable cost per person per aquifer, while improving long-term water resilience.

UpTrade Technologies

UpTrade Technologies helps smallholder farmers leverage their livestock as currency to access essential agritech, energy and digital marketplace solutions that improve productivity, livelihoods and food security.

In rural off grid areas of Pakistan, many communities lack access to finance, energy, water infrastructure and formal markets. Livestock is often a family’s most valuable asset, but it is difficult to convert into investment capital, limiting farmers’ ability to adopt new technologies or reach fair buyers.

UpTrade allows farmers to exchange the value of their livestock for critical assets, such as solar water pumps, lighting systems and other off-grid equipment. The company also operates an e-livestock trading platform called E Mandi, which connects farmers directly with urban buyers, reduces reliance on middlemen, improves price transparency and generates useful data on livestock and trade.

Weather Walay

Weather Walay provides hyper local, real time weather forecasts and alerts using a nationwide network of automated weather stations, supported by satellite and model-based data.

Across Pakistan, accurate local weather information is limited, especially for farmers and climate-sensitive businesses. This makes it harder to plan farm activities, manage risks, and prepare for extreme weather.

Weather Walay addresses this by combining satellite data, global weather models and ground observations to deliver location-specific forecasts through a mobile app and enterprise platforms. This helps individuals, farmers and businesses plan better, reduce climate risks and make more informed decisions.

Solutions for The Philippines:

CLIMBS Life and General Insurance Cooperative

CLIMBS is a cooperative microinsurance provider that helps farming communities cope with climate risks by combining fast weather based insurance with environmental restoration.

Farmers in the Philippines are increasingly affected by floods and extreme heat but often do not receive timely insurance support or long-term protection. Traditional insurance rarely helps communities adapt or restore their natural environment.

CLIMBS offers weather insurance that triggers payouts based on rainfall, wind, speed, drought and heat indicators delivering compensation within 10 to 15 days. Through its Plant a SEED initiative, a portion of the insurance returns is reinvested in activities like mangrove restoration which strengthens coastal protection, restores natural flood barriers and supports long-term community resilience.

IBISA S.A.

IBISA is an end-to-end insurance platform that enables farmers to receive fast and automated payouts at both micro and meso levels during climate events, such as typhoons, heat and heavy rainfall.

Traditional insurance is often slow, complex and expensive, especially for smallholder farmers, cooperatives and vulnerable communities exposed to climate risks. Many insurers and distributors also lack the tools needed to design, price and manage parametric insurance at scale.

IBISA provides the infrastructure that allows insurers, distributors and communities to easily launch and operate parametric insurance worldwide. Through its B2B2B and B2B2C model, the platform supports product design, pricing and operations, enabling rapid and transparent payouts and expanding climate risk protection to underserved markets.

MAYANI

MAYANI is an agritech platform that combines insurance with guaranteed market access to help smallholder farmers cope with climate shocks and strengthen food supply chains.

Smallholder farmers are increasingly affected by climate variability which reduces yields, lowers incomes and makes it harder to meet buyer commitments. At the same time, buyers face unreliable supply due to climate related production risks.

MAYANI addresses this by offering forward contracts, which are advance agreements that guarantee farmers a buyer for their crops at harvest. These contracts include built in parametric insurance so farmers receive automatic protection when climate shocks occur. This model provides farmers with income security while helping buyers access more reliable and stable agricultural supply chains.