About IFAD
At the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) we invest in rural people, empowering them to increase their food security, improve the nutrition of their families and increase their incomes. We help them build resilience, expand their businesses and take charge of their own development.Activities by IFAD
Global Initiative on AI for Food Systems
Global GermanyIndiaThe Global Initiative on AI for Food Systems, is a collaborative global effort led by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) together with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), World Food Programme (WFP), International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), and other partners to harness the transformative potential of artificial intelligence (AI) and digital technologies across the entire food value chain. It aims to boost agricultural productivity, strengthen food security, and build resilient, sustainable food systems by embedding AI into areas such as precision agriculture, supply chain optimization, and real-time decision support while addressing climate and resource challenges. A central objective is to establish common frameworks, shared digital infrastructure and standards that ensure interoperability, security, and adaptability of AI applications, enabling governments, innovators and smallholder farmers, who produce a significant portion of global food but often lack connectivity and support—to benefit from AI innovation at scale. The initiative supports knowledge exchange, synergistic partnerships, and proof-of-concept deployments to demonstrate scalable, responsible, and inclusive AI solutions that contribute to global food system resilience.
Activity Type AI Tools/SolutionsTrainings/WorkshopsTechnical AssistanceResearch/Reports/AssessmentsPolicy/Regulatory GuidanceAwareness/AdvocacyNetworks/Mentorship/ExchangeCorporate Portfolio Stocktake on Food Systems
Global Not ApplicableIFAD’s corporate portfolio stocktake provides a comprehensive overview of the performance and quality of the organization’s operations and results, paying special attention to food systems, sustainability, and scaling up in 2023. To better understand IFAD’s operating context and enhance the analysis of the global portfolio, interactive data dashboards enhanced by AI technologies were developed to evaluate the portfolio in terms of relevance and alignment on four sub-components of food systems: production, livelihoods, climate change, and resilience. Using Large Language Models (LLMs), AI translation tools, and other natural language processing (NLP) techniques, statements from national pathways, summit dialogues, and country strategies were processed, transformed, ranked, and classified according to IFAD-specific and multi-dimensional food system taxonomies. Results were aggregated, visualized, and analyzed in an interactive data dashboard that combines quantitative and qualitative data for a comprehensive overview and detailed examination of IFAD’s operating context.
Activity Type AI Tools/SolutionsResearch/Reports/AssessmentsGarden AI Benchmark
Global Not Applicable
AI models, including Large Language Models (LLMs), are becoming
essential building blocks for many digital solutions and services. As these technologies advance, choosing the right model is key to ensuring reliable and effective results. The Garden AI Benchmark is a collection of IFAD-specific tests for AI models, with automation scripts for testing models at scale and an interactive dashboard to evaluate results in a clear and easy-to-understand manner. The benchmark allows for the assessment of different models across several important areas for the IFAD context, using standardized evaluation metrics to measure both accuracy and ability to handle different tasks. The benchmark helps IFAD make better-informed model selection choices for specific purposes across a variety of solutions and use cases. Current model tests include: Choice Selection, Language Translation, Information Mapping, Information Retrieval, Complex Reasoning, Hallucination Abstention, Audio Transcription.
Blossom AI Portal
Global Not Applicable
Blossom is IFAD’s internal AI portal with general-purpose modules
for simple daily tasks. With Blossom, IFAD staff have access to a wide range of common AI technologies through a single portal. Blossom modules, powered by AI and related technologies, are designed to make advanced tools easy to use in day-to-day work with simple, intuitive, and user-friendly interfaces. Current modules include: Text Generation, Text Reasoning, Icon Generation, Summarisation, Text Translation, Document Translation, Transcription, Word Cloud, Table Extraction, OCR Conversion.