Climate-Smart Dairy Revolution: East Africa to Benefit from US$358 Million Resilience Boost

In a landmark step towards transforming East Africa’s climate-vulnerable dairy sector, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the Green Climate Fund (GCF) have joined forces to launch a US$358 million programme aimed at supporting 2.5 million rural people across Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda.

The Dairy Interventions for Mitigation and Adaptation (DaIMA) programme will receive US$150 million in co-financing from GCF, marking the fund’s first dedicated livestock investment. The remaining funding will come from IFAD, national governments and other partners.

The dairy sector in East Africa is under immense pressure from climate change. Increasingly frequent and severe weather events such as prolonged droughts, heavy rainfall and heat stress are threatening dairy productivity. The sector is also a significant source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, particularly methane. The DaIMA programme aims to address both of these challenges by helping farmers adopt climate-smart practices that reduce emissions while boosting productivity and resilience.

“Receiving this substantial additional financing from the Green Climate Fund for the DaIMA programme is a significant step towards a sustainable, climate-resilient dairy sector in East Africa,” said Sara Mbago-Bhunu, IFAD Regional Director for East and Southern Africa. “With the collaboration of governments of Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda, and financial and technical partners, and with IFAD’s innovative financing solutions, we aim to improve the livelihoods of millions of dairy farmers.”

Through a wide range of interventions including improved veterinary services, enhanced extension and breeding services, and better access to climate information, DaIMA will directly benefit 2.5 million smallholder farmers and indirectly support more than 15 million people across the dairy value chain.

The initiative also aims to reduce GHG emissions from the dairy sector by over 2.1 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2 eq) over the next 20 years. In doing so, it contributes to global climate action while supporting the implementation of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement in each of the participating countries.

“The DaIMA programme is the GCF’s first dedicated livestock investment, and it responds to the immediate adaptation and mitigation needs of the four participating East African countries,” said Catherine Kofmann, GCF Director for the Africa Region. “The GCF is proud to partner with IFAD in delivering a systemic transformation of the dairy sector, building climate resilience from farm to table.”

The programme’s design was led by IFAD in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Investment Centre, which provided technical expertise in livestock and climate change. It was supported by a GCF preparation fund and benefited from contributions by the Global Methane Hub and the Global Dairy Platform.

By adopting low-emission, climate-resilient approaches focused on improving production efficiency, strengthening monitoring and verification systems, and increasing financial access for farmers, DaIMA is expected to increase milk production by 34 per cent. The programme will also work to integrate women and youth more effectively into the sector, strengthening gender equality and social inclusion.

Giovanni Munoz, Service Chief for Eastern and Southern Africa at the FAO Investment Centre, underscored the programme’s alignment with broader climate and development goals.

“The approval of the DaIMA programme represents a major milestone for the dairy sector across four East African countries facing climate challenges. By scaling up low-emission, climate-resilient solutions focused on dairy production efficiencies, circularity, and sequestration; enhancing monitoring and verification systems and policies; and mobilising the local financial sector to channel climate finance to the private sector, DaIMA directly supports the implementation of the Paris Agreement’s NDCs in each country,” he said.

With climate change accelerating and food systems under strain, the DaIMA programme offers a timely and ambitious blueprint for transforming a vital agricultural sector while improving lives and livelihoods across East Africa.

Read Also: The Voice of Africa is Now Inside the United Nations