Towards a Climate-Resilient Family Farming Model in Togo: Challenges, Innovative Approaches and the Role of Funding from GEF8 and IFAD


International Research Journal of Economics and Management Studies
© 2026 by IRJEMS
Volume 5  Issue 4
Year of Publication : 2026
Authors : Toyi LEN’NAH, Oumar TOUAB
irjems doi : 10.56472/25835238/IRJEMS-V5I4P109

Citation:

Toyi LEN’NAH, Oumar TOUAB. "Towards a Climate-Resilient Family Farming Model in Togo: Challenges, Innovative Approaches and the Role of Funding from GEF8 and IFAD" International Research Journal of Economics and Management Studies, Vol. 5, No. 4, pp. 63-76, 2026. Crossref. http://doi.org/10.56472/25835238/IRJEMS-V5I4P109

Abstract:

Family farming in Togo, a pillar of food security, remains highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change. This study analyses the conditions for establishing a resilient agricultural model by linking vulnerability, adaptation strategies, public policies and financing mechanisms. The methodological approach is based on a combination of qualitative and descriptive analyses, drawing on a literature review, thematic and comparative analysis, as well as the use of survey data through descriptive statistics and cross-tabulations between beneficiaries and control groups. The results show that agroecology and climate-smart agriculture are essential levers for strengthening farm resilience, despite adoption constraints linked in particular to limited access to resources and services. Agricultural policies and initiatives such as the ZAAPs help to shape this transition, whilst funding from GEF8 and IFAD plays a key role in supporting investment and adaptation. The study highlights the need for an integrated model combining agricultural innovations, coherent policies and inclusive financing for a sustainable transformation of the agricultural sector in Togo.

References:

[1] Altieri, M. A. (2018). Agroecology: The science of sustainable agriculture. CRC Press.
[2] Altieri, M. A., & Nicholls, C. I. (2017). The adaptation and mitigation potential of traditional agriculture in a changing climate. Climatic Change, 140(1), 33–45.
[3] Berhanu, A. A. (2024). Smallholder farmers’ coping strategies to climate change:
[4] Evidence from Sub-Saharan Africa. Heliyon. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e0645
[5] Climate Policy Initiative. (2020). Examining the climate finance gap for small-scale agriculture. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org
[6] Creswell, J. W. (2014). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches (4th ed.). Sage Publications.
[7] Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). (2013). Climate-smart agriculture sourcebook. FAO.
[8] Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). (2017). Building resilience for adaptation to climate change in the agriculture sector. FAO.
[9] Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). (2018). Scaling up agroecology initiative: Transforming food and agricultural systems in support of the SDGs. FAO.
[10] Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). (2022). The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World. FAO.
[11] Folke, C. (2016). Resilience (Republished). Ecology and Society, 21(4), 44.
[12] Gliessman, S. R. (2015). Agroecology: The ecology of sustainable food systems (3rd ed.). CRC Press.
[13] Global Environment Facility (GEF). (2022). GEF-8 programming directions. GEF.
[14] High Level Panel of Experts on Food Security and Nutrition (HLPE). (2019). Agroecological approaches and other innovations for sustainable agriculture and food systems. Committee on World Food Security.
[15] High Level Panel of Experts on Food Security and Nutrition (HLPE). (2020). Food security and nutrition: Building a global narrative towards 2030.
[16] Hussein, J. (2024). Exploring smallholder farm resilience to climate change. Pastoralism: Research, Policy and Practice. https://doi.org/10.3389/past.2024.13424
[17] International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). (2021). Republic of Togo: Country Strategic Opportunities Programme (COSOP). IFAD.
[18] International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). (2023). Bridging the gap: IFAD’s role in climate finance for smallholder farmers. https://www.ifad.org
[19] Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). (2022). Climate Change 2022: Impacts, adaptation and vulnerability. Cambridge University Press.
[20] Lipper, L., Thornton, P., Campbell, B. M., Baedeker, T., Braimoh, A., Bwalya, M., Caron, P., Cattaneo, A., Garrity, D., Henry, K., Hottle, R., Jackson, L., Jarvis, A., Kossam, F., Mann, W., McCarthy, N., Meybeck, A., Neufeldt, H., Remington, T., &
[21] Torquebiau, E. F. (2014). Climate-smart agriculture for food security. Nature Climate Change, 4(12), 1068–1072. https://doi.org/10.1038/nclimate2437
[22] Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). (2020). Developing sustainable value chains in agriculture. OECD Publishing.
[23] Shilomboleni, H., Epstein, G., & Mansingh, A. (2024). Building resilience in Africa’s smallholder farming systems. Ecology and Society, 29(3), 22. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-15373-290322
[24] Sultan, B., Defrance, D., & Iizumi, T. (2020). Evidence of crop production losses in West Africa due to historical global warming. Scientific Reports, 10(1), 12834. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-69260-3
[25] United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). (2021). Nationally Determined Contributions under the Paris Agreement.
[26] Walker, B., Holling, C. S., Carpenter, S. R., & Kinzig, A. (2004). Resilience, adaptability and transformability in social-ecological systems. Ecology and Society, 9(2), 5.
[27] World Bank. (2019). Climate-smart agriculture investment plan. World Bank.
[28] World Bank. (2021). Financing climate adaptation in agriculture. World Bank.

Keywords:

Family Farming, Climate Resilience, Agroecology, Adaptation, Climate Finance, IFAD, GEF8.