The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) has opened a major regional funding opportunity for institutions and organizations working to strengthen food systems, agricultural value chains, climate resilience, food security, employment and inclusive economic development in the Central Sahel.

Through its Call for Proposals: IFAD Support for Food Systems Transformation in the Central Sahel, IFAD is seeking an eligible organization, government agency, private-sector entity, research institution or consortium to implement a transformative regional initiative covering Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger.

The initiative is backed by a USD 2 million grant and is designed to provide catalytic financing for innovative and scalable interventions capable of addressing critical bottlenecks across selected agri-food value chains.

Eligible applicants: Eligible institutions, governmental agencies, private-sector entities, research institutions and consortia that meet IFAD’s grant-financing eligibility requirements and can demonstrate relevant experience in the Central Sahel and the priority thematic areas.

Geographical focus: Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger

Grant value: USD 2 million

Application deadline: 16 October 2026 at 23:59 GMT

Overview of the IFAD Central Sahel Food Systems Grant

The Central Sahel is confronting a combination of interconnected challenges that affect food security, livelihoods, economic development and the resilience of local communities. These challenges include food insecurity, conflict, climate change, land degradation and limited economic opportunities.

At the same time, the region has significant agricultural and economic potential. Transforming agri-food systems could create opportunities for improved food production, employment generation, private-sector investment, regional trade and more resilient livelihoods.

Recognizing this potential, the governments of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, together with IFAD, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP), have identified specific agricultural value chains that offer opportunities for transformation.

The three priority value chains are:

1. Livestock
2. Cassava
3. Rice

The IFAD grant is intended to support innovative interventions that can address constraints throughout these value chains, from agricultural production through processing, marketing and consumption.

Rather than simply financing isolated activities, the initiative is intended to support interventions with the potential to generate transformative, commercially viable, climate-resilient and scalable outcomes across the Central Sahel.

What the $2 Million Grant Seeks to Achieve

The central objective of the funding opportunity is to support food systems transformation in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger.

The grant is expected to provide catalytic seed financing for initiatives that can identify and address important bottlenecks while unlocking opportunities within the selected value chains.

Successful proposals should therefore go beyond conventional agricultural projects and demonstrate how the proposed intervention can contribute to broader food-system transformation.

Potential areas of impact include:

• Improving agricultural production systems
• Strengthening livestock value chains
• Supporting rice production and related value-chain activities
• Developing cassava-based economic opportunities
• Improving processing and value addition
• Strengthening agricultural marketing systems
• Expanding market access
• Improving regional integration
• Generating employment opportunities
• Increasing opportunities for women and young people
• Attracting private-sector investment
• Strengthening climate resilience
• Addressing constraints that limit agricultural value-chain development
• Creating models that can be replicated or scaled across the Central Sahel

Applicants should demonstrate how their proposed intervention can contribute to sustainable and inclusive food-system transformation rather than focusing solely on short-term outputs.

Why the Central Sahel Is a Priority

The Central Sahel faces multiple challenges that are closely connected.

Food insecurity, for example, cannot necessarily be addressed through agricultural production alone. Production systems are influenced by climate conditions, land degradation, access to markets, processing capacity, infrastructure, investment, employment opportunities and broader socioeconomic conditions.

Similarly, climate change can affect agricultural productivity, livestock systems, water availability and rural livelihoods. Land degradation can further undermine productive capacity, while limited economic opportunities can restrict the ability of communities and businesses to invest in more resilient systems.

The IFAD initiative therefore takes a food-systems approach, recognizing that transformation requires attention to multiple stages and actors within agricultural value chains.

This creates opportunities for proposals that can connect:

Production → Processing → Marketing → Consumption

while also strengthening resilience, inclusion, investment and regional integration.

Priority Value Chains

1. Livestock Value Chain

Livestock has been identified as one of the priority value chains for the initiative.

A strong livestock value chain can involve considerably more than livestock production itself. Opportunities can exist across production, animal health, feed systems, processing, transportation, marketing and related services.

Applicants proposing livestock-related interventions should demonstrate how their approach can address specific bottlenecks and create commercially viable opportunities.

Projects could potentially focus on areas such as:

• Improving livestock productivity
• Strengthening livestock-related businesses
• Improving processing and value addition
• Connecting producers to markets
• Supporting private-sector participation
• Increasing employment opportunities
• Improving resilience to climate-related pressures
• Strengthening regional value-chain linkages

The proposal should clearly establish the particular problem being addressed and explain how the intervention can generate sustainable results.

2. Cassava Value Chain

Cassava is another priority value chain identified under the initiative.

The cassava value chain provides opportunities across cultivation, processing, product development, commercialization and market access.

Applicants working in this area should consider how an intervention can unlock value beyond primary production.

Potential areas could include:

• Improving cassava production
• Strengthening processing systems
• Supporting value-added cassava products
• Improving market linkages
• Developing commercially viable enterprises
• Creating employment opportunities
• Expanding opportunities for women and youth
• Improving climate resilience
• Strengthening regional markets

The emphasis of the call is on interventions capable of addressing bottlenecks and unlocking opportunities, meaning applicants should provide a clear rationale for why their proposed intervention is needed and how it can produce scalable results.

3. Rice Value Chain

Rice is the third priority value chain under the Central Sahel initiative.

Rice-related interventions could potentially address constraints affecting different stages of the value chain, from production to processing, marketing and consumption.

Proposals should demonstrate how the intervention can contribute to food security and economic opportunities while also addressing issues such as resilience, inclusion, commercial viability and potential for scaling.

Applicants should therefore clearly identify the value-chain constraint they intend to address and explain how the proposed intervention will generate measurable and sustainable improvements.

Submit questions regarding this Call for Proposals by sahelfoodsystems@ifad.org by 2 October 2026 at 23:59 GMT.

Submit proposal to this address: sahelfoodsystems@ifad.org

Deadline for submission: 16 October 2026 at 23:59 GMT.

Key Characteristics IFAD Is Looking For

The call emphasizes several characteristics that applicants should incorporate into their proposals.

Regional Relevance

The proposed initiative should have relevance beyond a single isolated intervention.

Because the project is designed around the Central Sahel, applicants should demonstrate how their intervention relates to the regional context and the countries covered by the initiative: Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger.

A strong proposal should therefore explain the regional significance of the problem and demonstrate how results could contribute to broader food-system transformation.

Commercial Viability

IFAD is looking for interventions that have a realistic pathway toward commercial sustainability.

Applicants should demonstrate that their proposed intervention has potential to generate economic value and operate within realistic market conditions.

Commercial viability may involve:

• A clear market opportunity
• A credible business model
• Private-sector participation
• Sustainable revenue generation
• Market demand
• Value addition
• Investment potential
• Long-term financial sustainability

The proposal should therefore make clear how the intervention can move beyond grant financing and contribute to sustainable economic activity.

Climate Resilience

Climate change is one of the interconnected challenges identified in the call.

Applicants are expected to consider how their interventions can strengthen the resilience of food systems and value-chain actors.

This is particularly relevant to agricultural systems because climate-related pressures can affect production, land, livestock, markets and livelihoods.

Proposals should therefore explain how climate resilience is incorporated into the intervention rather than treating it as a separate or secondary issue.

Inclusion of Women and Youth

The call specifically highlights the importance of women and youth.

Applicants should demonstrate how their proposed initiatives can create meaningful opportunities for these groups within the selected value chains.

This could involve participation in:

• Agricultural production
• Processing
• Entrepreneurship
• Value addition
• Marketing
• Employment
• Business development
• Innovation
• Private-sector activities

The proposal should clearly explain the role women and young people will play and how the project will ensure that they benefit from the proposed transformation.

Potential for Scaling Up

One of the important characteristics of the funding opportunity is the potential to scale successful interventions.

IFAD is not simply seeking an intervention that works at a small or isolated level. Proposals should demonstrate how successful approaches could potentially be expanded or replicated across the Central Sahel.

Applicants should therefore consider:

• Scalability
• Replicability
• Institutional sustainability
• Market expansion
• Regional applicability
• Long-term financing
• Partnerships
• Knowledge transfer

A proposal should make a convincing case for how the initial grant investment could generate results beyond the immediate project activities.

Click here for more information on Support for Food Systems Transformation in the Central Sahel 

Who Can Apply?

The call is designed for institutions and organizations, rather than individual applicants.

Eligible categories identified in the announcement include:

• Governmental agencies
• Private-sector entities
• Research institutions
• Eligible organizations
• Consortia

Applicants must meet the relevant IFAD grant-financing eligibility requirements.

Organizations should also be able to demonstrate appropriate experience in the priority areas and themes covered by the grant, particularly within the relevant regional context.

Can individuals apply?

This opportunity is not presented as an individual scholarship, fellowship or personal grant. The call is seeking an institutional implementing partner capable of delivering a regional food-systems initiative.

Individuals who are interested in the opportunity would therefore generally need to participate through an eligible organization, institution, company, research body, government agency or consortium rather than applying as an individual beneficiary.

Geographic Eligibility

The geographic focus of the initiative is the Central Sahel, specifically:

• Burkina Faso
• Mali
• Niger

The project is intended to support food-systems transformation across these three countries.

Applicants should therefore pay close attention to the regional dimension of the call and demonstrate how their proposed intervention relates to the Central Sahel context.

The announcement does not state that eligibility is based on race or ethnicity. Eligibility is instead framed around the type of institution or organization, grant-financing eligibility, relevant experience and the regional scope of the proposed initiative.

Required Application Documents

Applicants are required to submit several documents as part of their proposal.

1. Grant Concept Note Template

Applicants must complete the designated Grant Concept Note Template.

The concept note is expected to provide the substantive information necessary for IFAD to evaluate the proposed intervention.

Applicants should ensure that the concept note clearly communicates:

• The problem being addressed
• The proposed solution
• The relevant value chain
• The regional relevance
• The expected results
• The commercial potential
• Climate-resilience considerations
• Inclusion of women and youth
• Potential for scaling
• The organization’s ability to implement the initiative

2. Self-Certification of Eligibility for IFAD Grant Financing

Applicants must provide the relevant Self-Certification of Eligibility for IFAD Grant Financing using the standard form.

This document is intended to establish that the applicant meets the applicable eligibility requirements for IFAD grant financing.

3. Self-Certification for UN Entities

A specific self-certification document is also provided for UN entities.

Applicants that fall under this category should use the applicable UN-entity eligibility documentation.

4. Brief Institutional Profile

Applicants must submit a brief institutional profile of one page or less.

The profile should detail the organization’s:

• Relevant experience
• Institutional capacity
• Experience in the priority area
• Experience with the specific themes of the grant
• Regional experience

This is particularly important because IFAD needs to assess whether the applicant has the institutional experience and capacity required to implement the proposed initiative.

5. General Provisions Applicable to IFAD Grant Agreements

Applicants should also review the General Provisions Applicable to IFAD Grant Agreements.

These provisions are important because they provide information about the framework governing IFAD grant agreements.

Applicants should carefully review the applicable requirements before submitting a proposal.

 

How Proposals Are Expected to Stand Out

Organizations preparing applications should pay particular attention to the characteristics explicitly emphasized by IFAD.

A competitive proposal should demonstrate a clear connection between the identified challenge and the proposed intervention.

It should also demonstrate:

1. A clearly defined food-system problem
2. Strong relevance to one or more priority value chains
3. Regional relevance across the Central Sahel
4. A credible commercial model
5. Climate-resilient approaches
6. Meaningful participation of women
7. Meaningful participation of youth
8. Potential to generate employment
9. Potential to attract private-sector investment
10. Potential for regional integration
11. A realistic pathway to scale
12. Strong institutional capacity
13. A clear implementation approach
14. Sustainable and transformative results

The strongest applications should not simply describe an agricultural problem. They should explain the structural bottleneck, present an innovative and practical intervention, demonstrate why the intervention is commercially viable and show how successful results can be scaled.

Why This Opportunity Matters

The USD 2 million grant represents an opportunity to support initiatives operating at the intersection of agriculture, food security, climate resilience, economic development, employment and regional integration.

The focus on livestock, cassava and rice creates a defined framework for applicants while leaving room for innovative approaches across production, processing, marketing and consumption.

The emphasis on women and youth also provides an important opportunity to design interventions that connect food-system transformation with inclusive economic participation.

Furthermore, the focus on commercial viability and private-sector investment means applicants are expected to consider how their initiatives can contribute to sustainable economic systems rather than depending indefinitely on grant financing.

The regional scope is equally important. Solutions that demonstrate potential for replication across Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger may have broader relevance than interventions designed exclusively for a single locality.

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Conclusion

The IFAD Support for Food Systems Transformation in the Central Sahel Call for Proposals provides a significant funding opportunity for eligible institutions and organizations seeking to contribute to food-system transformation in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger.

With USD 2 million in grant financing, the initiative is focused on catalytic investments that can address bottlenecks and unlock opportunities across the livestock, cassava a

The opportunity places particular emphasis on regional relevance, commercial viability, climate resilience, women’s and youth inclusion, private-sector investment, employment, regional integration and the potential to scale transformative results.

Organizations considering an application should therefore approach the opportunity from a systems perspective and demonstrate not only what their proposed intervention will do, but also how it can contribute to sustainable and inclusive transformation of food systems across the Central Sahel.