The United States Agency for International Development
U.S. aid from the American people
Powering Agriculture: An Energy Grand Challenge for Development
Energy is critical to sustaining life
because
energy is vital to producing one of the
basic necessities…
Food
in quantities that will feed the world's
ever-growing population.
And yet, energy is often unavailable to
the farmers,
food producers and distributors in
developing countries who grow and sell food.
Energy access affects people at every
stage of the agricultural value chain.
With energy, a farmer can use irrigation
to grow more food,
can decrease the amount of food that
spoils after the harvest through refrigeration,
and can earn more income through
processing,
such as making milk into cheese, or drying fruit, but energy access means more
than just feeding families and communities.
Access to energy allows a farmer to
produce more food,
at lower cost, in less time. This means
she has more time to spend with her family,
participate in her community, and grow her business.
Without energy, a farmer's productivity
and income
are limited. She can't feed her country
or grow its economy.
All too often, she can't even feed her
family.
So how do we connect farmers and farm
related businesses to the energy that
will allow them to increase production,
security, and profits? How can they get
access to energy that is both clean
and affordable? The key is coming up with innovative,
sustainable energy solutions that will
transform the lives of these farmers.
But who will provide these big ideas? You.
Join the Powering Agriculture Energy
Grand Challenge for Development. Help us
find the market-based solutions that
will offer farmers in developing countries
clean, reliable, affordable power. Power
that will help increase food security
and drive economic growth. Be part of the
solution. Visit PoweringAg.org to learn more,
join the discussion, and share your ideas
and innovations.
USAID, Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, Duke Energy, Overseas Private Investment Corporation
