When I think about access to finance for smallholder farmers, I always think of my host father from my time in The Gambia as a Peace Corps Volunteer. At the time, I was frustrated that he would not adopt improved seeds that were more expensive but that could increase productivity.

When sediment builds up in a hydropower reservoir it can damage turbines and clog spillways. It reduces how much electricity a plant can generate, and it’s expensive to dredge. In Malawi, this is especially a problem, as hydropower provides nearly all of the country’s electricity.

How long should a development intervention run? For a BRAC program for women farmers in eastern Uganda, that decision was made by the amount of funding it would have.

As climate-related disasters are expected to grow in size and frequency with climate change, insurance may prove critical to relief and recovery, especially for small-scale farmers in developing countries.