The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) elected its CFO, Alvaro Lario, as its new president, choosing a private sector investment advocate to lead the UN agency in the fight against the global food security crisis, triggered by the war in Ukraine, climate change and the economic consequences caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Lario, IFAD's chief financial officer and associate vice president for financial operations since 2018, has pledged to double IFAD's impact on poor rural communities by 2030. "We have the institutions to fight poverty, we have the know-how to reduce inequalities, what we need is to mobilize resources and join forces" he told delegates from 177 member states attending the elections held at the headquarters of the IFAD in Rome. 

"We know that public aid for development and especially aid for agriculture will not be enough. Due to the war in Ukraine, small producers all over the world are suffering the current disturbances of the food systems. This is a further shock that occurs, it adds to the disasters linked to climate change and the uneven recovery from COVID 19. Poor communities are severely affected", he added. 

As IFAD's Chief Financial Officer, Lario has led IFAD's efforts to mobilize the commitment of the private sector in the fight against hunger and poverty for the poorest rural communities in the world. 

"As President of IFAD I will make sure that IFAD connects the huge amount of global savings from impact investments and pension funds to tackle poverty in poor rural communities. We need to make sure we use our AA + credit rating to mobilize more funds. This is a unique competitive advantage in the United Nations system", said Lario. 

Under his administration, IFAD became the first United Nations Fund and the only specialized body - other than the World Bank group - to access the financial market and obtain a credit rating allowing the Fund to expand its capacity to mobilize resources, extending it to the private sector. 

Lario has 20 years of experience in the private sector, academia and international financial institutions, and has also been involved in the development of local capital markets and investments in emerging markets at the International Financial Corporation of the World Bank group. 

Lario will take office on 1 October and will remain in office for a four-year term. Lario takes over from Gilbert Houngbo who has led the organization since 2017.