Backing ambition and resilience for stronger agricultural systems in Vanuatu

“When a cyclone strikes, it hits us hard because our island is small and we are close to the sea. The big waves blow debris from the sea which destroys our cabbage and yam. The strong winds destroy everything, all our food,” said Tessa, a mother of two from Torba province in Vanuatu.

Vanuatu is a small island nation in the Pacific made up of 68 tropical islands and a population of about 335,000. Many here rely on farming and fishing to make a living. Communities have a strong connection to the land and sea. But the country is on the frontline of climate change, facing stronger cyclones, rising sea levels, and changing rainfall patterns.

Across Vanuatu, climate change is disrupting food production and increasing vulnerability for subsistence farming households. Soil degradation and reduced agricultural productivity threaten food security and limit access to diverse, nutritious diets, particularly for children.

For families like Tessa’s, the effects are immediate and cumulative. Climate impacts have repeatedly damaged their crops, reducing food availability and their capacity to recover. In response, Tessa has taken a proactive role in identifying and implementing solutions that strengthen her household’s resilience. 

“We must find a solution to feed our family,” she said, reflecting broader community efforts to strengthen production systems.

The Vanuatu Community-Based Climate Resilience Project (VCCRP), funded largely by the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and implemented by Save the Children in partnership with the Vanuatu Government and local communities, is designed to address these challenges at scale. Targeting 200,000 people, the project is supporting communities across all six provinces of Vanuatu with local adaptation planning, sustainable agriculture and fisheries, alternative livelihoods and ecosystem restoration.

A core intervention of VCCRP is the establishment of multiplication plots. These are community-managed gardens designed to improve productivity, strengthen adaptive capacity and enhance food security through the cultivation and distribution of diverse crop species and varieties, while also serving as demonstration sites for the adoption of sustainable agricultural methods. In practice, they operate as multi-functional systems that integrate food production, knowledge transfer and disaster preparedness.
 

Farmers from the community, like Tessa, collectively manage the plots, reinforcing local governance structures and ensuring sustained ownership. They are trained in sustainable agriculture, including intercropping to reduce risk, improved seed selection for resilience, irrigation practices to manage water variability, and soil fertility and conservation techniques to maintain productivity under changing climatic conditions. Training in sustainable land and plant management further supports long-term soil health and yield stability. The provision of agricultural tools complements these interventions by enabling more efficient and consistent application of improved practices.

The project also empowers women to lead and shape local climate action, from gender-balanced community adaptation committees to women-led food preservation, farmer training and producer-group forums that support livelihoods and food security. More than half of the farmers trained in adaptation planning and climate-smart agriculture are women.

 Since the project started, 49 multiplication plots have been established, expanding access to a range of crops such as Fijian taro, island cabbage, sweet potato, yam, and cassava. Crop diversification is contributing to more stable production systems by reducing reliance on single crop varieties or species and increasing resistance to climate-related impacts. At the same time, these crops improve the availability of essential nutrients, supporting more balanced diets at home.

"The multiplication plot now produces more food for the community – especially sweet potato and corn," explained Tessa.

Tessa and others are using techniques learned in the multiplication plots in their own gardens. “We remove the weeds, leave them around the root crops and plant a Gliricidia tree in the middle of the garden to protect the island cabbage and provide nutrients to our crops.”

Multiplication plots also function as community-level food reserves, with produce shared or stored to support families during and after extreme weather events.

Beyond promoting climate-smart agriculture through the multiplication plots, the VCCRP project is also supporting community climate planning, early warning systems, climate-smart fisheries, ecosystem restoration, food processing and market access, and stronger local climate governance to improve food security and resilience for vulnerable communities across Vanuatu.

So far, GCF funding has empowered Community Disaster and Climate Change Committees to develop locally owned adaptation plans, helping communities identify climate risks and plan practical responses. The project is promoting native tree planting, watershed protection, and community-based fisheries management, bringing more than 4,000 hectares under improved management.  VCCRP is part of a broader GCF commitment to support Pacific Small Island Developing States (SIDS) to build resilience to climate change through country-driven investments that respond to national priorities. 

In Vanuatu alone, GCF has committed about USD 113.4 million across six projects to strengthen community-based adaptation, climate information services, water security, climate-resilient agriculture, fisheries and livelihoods.

The Green Climate Fund is one of the largest investors in climate finance in the Pacific SIDS, with a USD 1.1 billion portfolio supporting projects that improve food, water, fisheries, and energy security, strengthen climate information and early warning systems, restore ecosystems, and accelerate the transition to low-emission development. 

“GCF is proud to back the ambition and resilience of communities on the frontline of climate change in Vanuatu and across the Pacific Small Island Developing States. From sustainable agriculture and climate information services in Vanuatu, climate-resilient water systems in Kiribati and Fiji, renewable energy investments in Tonga, hydropower development in the Solomon Islands, to regional initiatives to protect tuna-dependent livelihoods across the Pacific, our commitment is clear,” said Hemant Mandal, GCF Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific.

*All photos credited to Conor Ashleigh / Save the Children.