Whether it’s Finance, Technology, or Inclusion, Nothing Works Unless the Farmer Clearly Sees “What’s in it for me?”

Agriculture underpins entire economic and social systems, making farmers the ultimate arbiters of whether any reform succeeds on the ground, climate experts said at the C3 event hosted by Outlook Business on Friday.

“Any decision, technological intervention, or financial mechanism can have far-reaching consequences. One key issue we have observed is that, despite numerous initiatives, existing systems still struggle to clearly signal market demand to farmers,” said Amit Patjoshi, CEO, Palladium India.

He also added that often, they try to solve problems from the farmer’s side, expecting the market to respond but that alignment does not always happen effectively.

While moderating the session of ‘Unlocking Patient Capital For Climate Tech Innovations’ Mohana Talapatra, Climate Action Consultant mentioned that It is neither realistic nor feasible to expect that we can mobilize capital for the entire system at once.

“The success of patient capital outcomes depends heavily on alignment particularly between financial instruments, market needs, and ecosystem realities,” she added.

Historically, most innovation and investment have focused on improving farm-level practices. On the other end, there has also been attention on connecting consumers to industry.

“What has been missing and is now emerging is the integration across the value chain, particularly through technology-enabled platforms that connect farmers, businesses, and markets,” said Suranjali Tandon, Economist, NIPFP.

She also gave an example of the rise of agri-tech platforms that aggregate supply and link it directly to buyers.

“These innovations help create more efficient and transparent markets,” she noted.

The experts in the panel also address the key challenge of ensuring that solutions actually reach smallholder farmers and create real beneficiaries.

“When we talk about inclusion, especially gender inclusion, it is often treated as an afterthought. Programs are designed first, and only later do we try to ‘add on’ women as beneficiaries.But this approach does not work,” mentioned L Prabhakar, Executive VP & Head- Social Investments, ITC

He also noted that Inclusion must be built in from the very beginning and should starts with a fundamental shift in how we frame the problem.