Why does agriculture matter in the fight against poverty and environmental degradation?

Most of the world's poor people - 60% or more - live in rural areas and depend on agriculture for their survival.

Poverty and hunger go hand-in-hand. Over 842 million of the world's poorest people, mostly women and children, go hungry every day.

Agriculture is the economic bedrock of most low-income countries, frequently accounting for a quarter of gross domestic product.

Most of the labor force in low-income countries - 70% or more - works in agriculture.

Agricultural growth is critical for poverty reduction:

In Africa, a 10% increase in yields brings a 9% decrease in the number of people living on less than $1 a day;

In 1973-94, the new technologies of the Green Revolution increased the average income of poor farmers in southern India by 90%, and that of landless laborers by 125%.

Agriculture's ecological footprint is large and growing, making efficient agriculture critical for protecting such threatened natural resources as biodiversity, fisheries, forests, soil and water.